Pierre Charles L'Enfant

On May 2, 1783, architect Pierre Charles L'Enfant was promoted by brevet to Major of Engineers in recognition of his service to American liberty. A short excerpt from the text:

"Pierre Charles L'Enfant was an architect, engineer and city planner who, most famously, designed the spatial plan for Washington, D.C.

Born in Paris in 1754, L'Enfant was the eldest son of painter Pierre L'Enfant. He studied under his father at the Academie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture (Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture), France's most prestigious art institution. In 1776, he left in order to join the American Revolution, serving first with the French Colonial Troops and then as an officer in the Continental Army Corps of Engineers. He served on George Washington's staff at Valley Forge, suffered a serious injury at the Siege of Savannah (October 1779) and, captured by the British during the battle for Charleston (May 1780), spent six months as a prisoner of war. Commissioned as a captain, L'Enfant was promoted to brevet major in recognition of his sacrifices."