A personal reason for Lafayette’s interest in emancipation may have been his association with the slave, James Armistead, during the Revolutionary War.  With the permission of his master, Armistead volunteered for service with Lafayette during the siege of Richmond in 1781.  Before long, he was performing important espionage service behind enemy lines, masquerading as an escaped slave while he obtained information about the plans and movements of the British.  He continued his spying as a servant in Cornwallis’s camp during the Yorktown Campaign and relayed intelligence to Lafayette that helped bring about the American victory at Yorktown.  When Lafayette returned to America in 1784, he wrote a special testimonial about Armistead’s service and was instrumental in helping the slave win his freedom from the Virginia General Assembly in 1787.  In tribute to Lafayette, James Armistead adopted the surname Lafayette, which he used for the rest of his life.  When Lafayette again returned to America in 1824, he visited Richmond and recognized his old associate in the crowd.  According to a local newspaper account, Lafayette called him by name and took him into his embrace. 
 
 

Engraving made from  the Le Paon  painting of Lafayette Marquis de Lafayette's testimonial to James Armistead

Lafayette at Yorktown Painted by Jean-Baptiste Le Paon about 1783