Vive Lafayette!

Poetry Competition

After 200 years, the American Friends of Lafayette celebrate the return of General Lafayette to Schenectady,

Hero of France and the American Revolutionary War !

Join the celebration by entering your original poem about America’s friendship with Lafayette into the competition.

  • Poems must be 500 words or less.

    All poems must be original and written by the poet entering the competition. This means the poem cannot be stolen or written by artificial intelligence (AI, such as Grammarly).

    All entries must be received by 11:59 p.m. on February 28, 2025.

    If the poet is under the age of 18, a parent/guardian or teacher must fill out the entry form.

    1. Kindergarten through 5th grade

    2. 6th grade through 12th grade

    3. College, adult, and beyond

  • The judge panels are comprised of authors and poets from New York State, many of whom are members of the Hudson Valley Writers Guild.

    A panel of two to three judges will review all entries for that age group.

    Judging is blind, which means the poet’s name does not appear on the copy of the poem when it is sent to the judges. Each poem is assigned a number instead.

  • There will be one winner per age group. The winners will be announced by May 01, 2025.

    The winner of each age group will be invited to read their poem to Lafayette at Schenectady’s celebratory dinner on June 11, 2025, at 6:00 p.m.

    The selected poems will be published in a souvenir book for guests of the dinner.

Learn more

As America neared its 50th anniversary as a free & independent nation in 1824, Lafayette embarked on a thirteen-month tour of all twenty-four United States.

On August 16, 2024, AFL began the bicentennial celebration of Lafayette’s triumphant return tour in New York City and will follow Lafayette’s path, recreating many of the events that took place on his journey 200 years ago.

Learn more about the June 11, 2025, Schenectady, NY visit HERE.

Where is Lafayette now?

The American Friends of Lafayette (AFL) is an historical and patriotic society dedicated to the memory of Major General Gilbert Motier, Marquis de Lafayette and to the study of his life and times in America and France. Learn more about AFL at the website HERE.

HERE are 27 reasons why everyone should celebrate Lafayette.

The Hudson Valley Writers Guild supports the efforts of writers in all genres by sponsoring readings, workshops, and contests and providing a number of valuable resources for the entire literary community of Upstate New York. Discover more HERE.