In France, enthusiasm for the American cause was high: the French intellectual world was itself in revolt against feudalism and privilege. However, the Crown lent its support to the colonies for geopolitical rather than ideological reasons: the French government had been eager for reprisal against Britain ever since France's defeat in 1763. To further the American cause, Benjamin Franklin was sent to Paris in 1776. His wit, guile and intellect soon made their presence felt in the French capital, and played a major role in winning French assistance.

Additional Tags

american history: franco-american alliance, france and the american revolutionary war, alliance between america and france, france recognizes american independence

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Classroom Considerations

• Knovation Readability Score: 5 (1 low difficulty, 5 high difficulty)

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