General Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau, was commander of the French forces stationed in Rhode Island in 1780-81. After participating in the march on Yorktown, his army returned to Providence in November 1782. Included in this lot are: Rochambeau's invitation (not autograph) to Mr. and Mrs. Angell for a ball at Hacker's Hall on 16 November 1782 Invitation from Viscount de Fleury to Miss Nabby [Abigail] Angell, "informing her that a chariot will wait upon her at 6 o'clock this afternoon", undated and invitation from Count de Vauban to "Nyby Angel" to "beg the honor of her company at tea tomorrow the 25th." Abigail Angell (1758-1845) was the daughter of James and Mary Angell of Providence; she later married newspaper publisher William Goddard. See Howard Preston, "Rochambeau and the French Troops in Providence," Rhode Island Historical Society Collections, January 1924, page 20, which discusses the Angell family's attendance at the ball. with--a small group of related family papers: Providence Gazette and Country Journal, 27 May 1786 (featuring marriage of William Goddard and Abigail Angell) Early manuscript transcript of the Angell family's 1785 manumission of their late father's slave Cloe, 30 March 1786 Group of 5 letters to Goddard family members, 1784-1867 and undated, including a letter from Rodolph Vall-Travers to William Goddard regarding George Washington, 23 December 1791 Letter from Harriet __ of Providence to Rebecca Power, 1 April, no year. Provenance: Charles Hamilton auction, 29 October 1981, lot 38.