What is Marquis de Lafayette’s connection to George Washington in Outlander season 7 episode 14?

Outlander season 7 episode 14 premiered on Starz for US audiences on Friday, December 27, 2024. The episode raised the stakes for Jamie and Claire Fraser as the country is on the brink of the American Revolutionary War. With tensions escalating, several Revolutionary War notables were featured in the episode, titled Ye Dinna Get Used to It, including General George Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette.

This week's episode saw a lot happening with the Frasers, including hosting a dinner with war generals and other notables. George Washington sat at the head of the table and shared his relationship with the Marquis de Lafayette with Claire during dinner. He said that he considers the Marquis like a son.

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What happened to Marquis de Lafayette and George Washington in Outlander season 7 episode 14?

One of the defining scenes in Outlander season 7 episode 14 was the Hamilton-esque dinner at Lord John Grey's residence, although John was still missing at this point. The host of the dinner was Jamie Fraser, who was a newly minted General of 300 men, along with his wife, Claire Fraser.

At General George Washington's insistence, the dinner was hosted there after a soldier aggressively suggested the residence as a suitable place for hosting the General. During the dinner, Claire and Jamie were joined by General Washington, who sat at the head of the table, along with the Marquis de Lafayette and other generals.

Earlier in Outlander season 7 episode 14, Claire and the Marquis had met while she was at the market buying stuff for dinner. They accidentally bumped into each other, causing Claire's items to fall to the ground. The Marquis called himself a turnip for causing the accident. He promised to send her cheese after learning about her name and that she was the wife of General Fraser.

Back at the dinner, General Washington, Claire Fraser, and the Marquis de Lafayette, whose full name was Marie Joseph Paul Yves Rich Gilbert du Motier, engaged in easy conversation. At one point, the Marquis told Claire to call him Gilbert instead of addressing him as "Monsieur le Marquis," saying that it was how the people who loved him addressed him. He confirmed this with General George Washington, saying:

"Is this not so, mon père?"

In French, "mon père" can be translated as "my father," which depicts the close relationship between General Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette in Outlander season 7 episode 14.

General Washington further confirmed their father-son dynamic by telling Claire that he considers the Marquis as his son. The Marquis shared a story about how General Washington took care of him when he was wounded at the Brandywine, even going as far as to wrap him with his own cloak and sleep beside him on the ground.

The father-and-son relationship between General Washington and the Marquis of Lafayette depicted in Outlander season 7 episode 14 isn't far from history. Per the Smithsonian Magazine, Lafayette's biographers noted that Washington viewed Lafayette as the son he never had, while the Marquis regarded the General as his long-lost father.

Lafayette's story about General Washington tending to and watching over him after he was wounded at the Brandywine also happened in real life, per the Smithsonian Magazine. However, the details about the cloak remain unconfirmed.

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Catch Outlander season 7 episode 14 now streaming on Starz for US audiences and on Netflix in select countries worldwide.