CHAPTER FIFTEEN: Peacemaker: Paris, 1778–1785

Franklin arrives in Paris as the world's most famous American and becomes a celebrity, cultivating a deliberate image of frontier simplicity that captivates French society. He navigates a chaotic delegation plagued by internal conflicts and espionage while pursuing a dual strategy of idealistic appeals and realistic diplomatic calculations to secure a French alliance.

Franklin's arrival in December 1776 transforms him into an instant celebrity across Paris. His scientific reputation, poor Richard's writings, and persona as a rustic philosopher make him the object of widespread adoration—his likeness appears on medallions, snuffboxes, and in homes throughout France. He deliberately cultivates this image through his fur cap, spectacles, and plain dress, presenting himself as a symbol of New World virtue against European corruption, though he is acutely aware of the pose.

Franklin establishes himself at Passy in the household of merchant Jacques-Donatien Leray de Chaumont, which becomes America's first foreign embassy. This compound becomes a center of diplomatic activity, though it is riven by conflict. Silas Deane, the first commissioner, proves corrupt but personable; Arthur Lee, the third commissioner, is paranoid and antagonistic toward both Deane and Franklin, spreading rumors about Franklin's loyalty. Unbeknownst to Franklin, his secretary Edward Bancroft is a highly paid British spy who regularly deposits coded letters in invisible ink in a tree near the Tuileries, reporting on French aid, ship movements, and military plans. Though Lee suspects Bancroft's treachery, his warnings are dismissed as paranoia; Lee's own private secretary is also a spy.

Franklin meets French foreign minister Comte de Vergennes in December 1776 and immediately pushes for alliance, but Vergennes, cautious about France's finances and military readiness, offers only secret aid. Franklin writes a memo emphasizing the balance-of-power argument—that France should cripple Britain by supporting America—but also pursues a parallel strategy of appealing to idealistic sentiment by having American founding documents translated and circulated to win French hearts. He publishes satires mocking British conduct, including a brutal parody of a German count paying bounties for dead Hessian soldiers.

In September 1777, after news of Philadelphia's fall demoralizes the Americans, Franklin remains calm and confident. When told "Howe has taken Philadelphia," he replies that Philadelphia has taken Howe. Days later, a messenger arrives with news that General Burgoyne has surrendered at Saratoga with his entire army. This victory transforms Franklin's diplomatic position. Louis XVI immediately authorizes resubmission of the alliance request.

In December 1777, Franklin begins playing the French and British against each other, allowing word to leak that British emissaries are in Paris and hinting at possible American accommodation with Britain. The British send spymaster Paul Wentworth to negotiate peace terms, and Franklin meets with him, agreeing to nothing but ensuring both the French and the British discover how close the Americans are to a deal on the other side. This maneuver accelerates French negotiations.

On February 6, 1778, the Treaty of Friendship and Alliance is signed at Passy. Franklin wears a faded blue velvet suit he had saved from his humiliation at the Cockpit four years earlier. Bancroft immediately copies the treaty in invisible ink and gets it to London within forty-two hours, later profiting by speculating on this insider information. At the formal ceremony at Versailles on March 20, Franklin attends in plain brown dress without a sword or wig, contrasting sharply with other diplomats in full court regalia. Louis XVI receives him privately and blesses the alliance as serving "the good of both nations." The queen, Marie-Antoinette, dismissively notes that such a man could never have risen so high in Europe—a comment Franklin would have accepted with pride.