Just before sunset on Monday, February 10, 2014, President Barack Obama and President François Hollande came to Thomas Jefferson’s mountaintop home on the occasion of the State Visit of the President of the French Republic to the United States. The two world leaders paid tribute to Jefferson and to the long-standing friendship between the United States and France. President Hollande was no doubt the most distinguished French visitor to the mountaintop since Jefferson welcomed his old comrade, the Marquis de Lafayette, in 1824.
Over the years, numerous influential figures and world leaders have visited this UNESCO World Heritage Site, including President Ronald Reagan, Lady Margaret Thatcher, President Mikhail Gorbachev and of course, Jefferson’s good friend President James Madison.
Monticello's President Leslie Greene Bowman guided the two leaders through the house, sharing with them the numerous manifestations of Jefferson’s love of France.
- Photographs from the private tour.
- Official transcript of the two presidents' remarks in the Entrance Hall.
- Official transcript of the Remarks by President Obama and President Hollande of France at the Arrival Ceremony at the White House on February 11, 2014.