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Thomas Jefferson French Connections
- American Ambassador to France succeeding Benjamin Franklin
- Dispatched France's premier sculptor, Jean-Antonine Houdon to Mount Vernon to do casts for the definitive sculpture of George Washington
- Enjoyed unqualified success as the most visible American in Paris derived in great part from his outspoken affection for all things French
- Derived great pleasure from French wine, French food, French architecture and the discreet charms of French society as the minister to the court of Versailles
- He became the primary conduit for the Franco-American cultural exchange
- Sent over seeds from Virginia for planting on French soil because the French had never seen wild honeysuckle or swamp laurel
- Learned about the French experiments in the new science of air travel or "ballooning".
- When Jefferson was presented to the French court soon after his arrival, legend has that Vergennes, the French foreign minister asked him if he was intended to serve as Franklin's replacement, to which Jefferson allegedly replied: "No one can replace him, Sir; I am his successor."
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