France's defeat in the Seven Years' War (1763) came at a heavy price: the loss of vast North American territories to Great Britain and a navy left in ruins. Yet while the map had changed, French communities across the continent held on to their language and their identity. For the French Kingdom, the humiliation carried a clear lesson: Britain's supremacy had been won at sea. Rebuilding the navy became the priority, and when the American colonies began their revolt against the Crown, France saw its opportunity. This is how Versailles and the French supported the American War of Independence.

A weekly conversation with Valérie Lagier, chief curator of the Franco-American Museum of Château de Blérancourt

When General Pershing arrived in Paris in 1917, the first thing he did was visit Lafayette's tomb. The gesture of Americans honoring the Frenchman who helped them win their independence is exactly the spirit on which the Franco-American Museum of Blérancourt was built. A gift from Anne Morgan to France to tell the story through art of a complex and unique 250-year-old relationship.

A weekly conversation with Valérie Lagier, chief curator of the Franco-American Museum of Château de Blérancourt.

On November 8, 2019, French philanthropist and art expert Hélène David-Weill was awarded the 2019 Anne Morgan’s Women of Courage Award at the American Friends of Blérancourt Annual Gala in New York.

While women leaders, artists, chefs, and entrepreneurs were honored throughout the evening, the American Friends of Blérancourt also recognized the men who have promoted not only the memory of Anne Morgan—who donated her home in France to become the only Franco-American Museum—but who also strongly believe in a world of equal opportunities and diversity. Among them is Jay R. Paul, a former publicist and a member of the board of AFB upon whom was bestowed the Château de Blérancourt Award.

The American Friends of Blérancourt was honored to be a part of a special evening at Versailles on June 28th, 2019, to commemorate the Treaty of Versailles and to celebrate American philanthropy in the regions devastated during and after World War I.

On Wednesday, June 12th, 2019, Franck Laverdin, Chairman of the American Friends of Blérancourt (AFB), Pamela Johananoff, Board Member, and Matthew Adell hosted the summer kick-off party for their annual gala next November 8, 2019 in New York.

We are proud to share that our traveling exhibition "American Women Rebuilding France 1917-1924, will open tonight on March 1st at the KANEKO-UNO Library at the Univerversity of Nebraska, Omaha.