Washington – Rochambeau Trail | portsmouthhistorynotes

November 18, 2025

The French Arrive and Depart

The French arrived in Newport in July of 1780. Most of the forces wintered in Newport except the Lauzun Legion which camped in Connecticut. Rochambeau was very skillful in handling his troops and the Americans began to appreciate their presence. Where the British had demolished defenses, the French engineers worked on rebuilding them. Major General William Heath’s diary for September of 1780 notes that “The batteries were strengthened, a very strong one erected on Rose-Island, and redoubts on Coaster’s-Island: the strong works on Butt’s-Hill (were) pushed..” A few days later he would remark: “The French army continued very busy in fortifying Rhode-Island: some of their works were exceedingly strong, and mounted with heavy metal.” We know from orderly books (daily records) that the American militiamen were aiding the French masons as they enlarged and fortified Butts Hill Fort.

As the road to Yorktown began, Rochambeau and his general staff left Newport on June 10, 1781. He arrived at Providence the following day. Brigadier General de Choisy was left behind in Newport with some French troops. In August he sailed with Barras’ fleet to the Chesapeake area.

On the morning of June 11, 1781, the first Brigade of French troops began to load onto the small vessels in the harbor of Newport. All the troops had left by the 12th and camped on the west side of Providence between Westminster and Friendship streets. The French Army performed a grand review in Providence on June 16, then set out for Coventry in four divisions. One division departed each day from June 18 to 21. Rochambeau left Providence with the first division (the Bourbonnais Regiment) and arrived at Waterman Tavern in Coventry in the evening of June 18.

The Route:

Followed the alignment of Broad Street to Olneyville.
Passed through Stewart Street to High Street,
West along High to the “junction” (Hoyle Tavern),
Cranston Street (then called the Monkey Town road) to Route 14
Route 14 to the eastern side of the Scituate Reservoir.
The original road was lost to the reservoir but picks up again as Old Plainfield Pike in Scituate.
West of Route 102 in Foster,
Route 14 into Coventry.

There the army camped outside of Waterman’s Tavern.

General Rochambeau’s French Army was marching to join forces with General Washington’s Continental Army. The allied armies moved hundreds of miles toward victory in Yorktown, Virginia in September of 1781.