DUPORTAIL (Louis Le Bègue de Presle). Signed as Minister of - Lot 25

DUPORTAIL (Louis Le Bègue de Presle). Signed as Minister of War. Paris, August 30, 1791. One p. folio, printed letterhead with his name and titles, woodcut royal coat of arms in lower margin; framed under glass. Certificate of service granted to a Parisian soldier who, from 1761 to 1766, had been a member of the Crown Regiment. A FRIEND OF THE MARQUIS DE LA FAYETTE, GENERAL LOUIS DUPORTAIL (1743-1802) took part in the American War of Independence as an engineer officer, and owed his appointment as Minister of War to his relationship with La Fayette in November 1790. However, faced with criticism from royalists on his right and radicals like Couthon on his left, he was forced to resign in December 1791. After the fall of the monarchy, he was arrested at the suggestion of Abbé Fauchet. In 1794, he left for America, where he was well received, and stayed until 1802 - he died at sea on his return voyage.