text: who was king of france during the revolutionary war? also,when did the marquis de lafayette arrive in the colonies? marquis de la fayette landed safely near georgetown, south carolina on june 13, 1777.  the american revolutionary war was from 1775–1783 and the king of france at the time was louis xvi.   louis xvi (august 23, 1754, versailles – january 21, 1793, paris) was king of france and navarre from 1774 until 1791, and then king of the french from 1791 to 1793.