In 1792, Lafayette became an enemy of the French when he was seen as responsible for the Champs de Mars Massacre and labeled as such by Danton and Robespierre. Likewise, he had been accused of attempting a coup and was labeled the French equivalent to Cromwell. These actions forced Lafayette to flee France in hopes of keeping his head, which he did only to later be captured and imprisoned by Prussia.

This obviously lowered Lafayette's public standing in France from a young, teenage hero to an enemy of the Revolution and a Royalist. Lafayette was later released under Bonaparte when he forced Prussia to do so, and he slipped back into France having dropped the "Marquis de Lafayette" title. Nobility was a no-no in France at this point.

When he returned he was broke and simply retired to his farm. In 1802 Lafayette voted no for Napoleon's emperorship, but nonetheless was put on the Senate by Bonaparte. Lafayette declined the position, due to his distaste for undemocratic governments. In France, Lafayette was not special. He retreated to his farm at La Grange after this and developed an even closer relationship with Thomas Jefferson.

All seemed kind of hopeless until Louis-Phillippe. This man was to be the next King, following Napoleon'a defeat. Lafayette worked closely with him to make an agreement to reform the role of "King of the French" and make a fairer government. By the end of their negotiations, Lafayette was satisfied. Unfortunately, as Louis-Phillippe reigned he slowly unraveled those negotiations and turned into a regular King, one of which Lafayette was not happy with. He publicly spoke out against Louis-Philippe until his death in 1834.

In America, Lafayette was given the same funeral that George Washington had received. In France, he was given a silent military funeral in order to ban the public from coming. Several crowds formed in protest but nothing was done.

Over time, Lafayette really became forgotten. He was overshadowed by the bigger figures such as Desmoulins, Mirabeau, Robespierre, Marat and Danton. As history shapes people, Lafayette became seen more and more as a symbol against the revolution, or as someone who was responsible for the collapse of the French government. He is disliked by the more liberal parties in France, especially, however many on the right and center don't really care. In 1989 and poll was taken and Lafayette received 57% public approval, which isn't bad.

To answer your question in a sentence (or TL;DR): Lafayette is a largely forgotten figure in modern France, remembered as an important, yet problematic figure for the shaping of France during the revolution.

**If you would like more books on Lafayette, try "Lafayette" by Harlow Giles Unger. It focuses equally on his time in the United States and in France. "Adrienne: The Life" (might be "A Life") focuses on his wife, and is 2/3 or more about his time in France as opposed to america. That book probably won't be available in a bookstore but there is a pdf. file of the entire thing on Google.

Also, look for books on the French Revolution as a whole, as they will approach Lafayette from a different angle.

I wanted to ask a follow-up question, if it is allowed: what was Lafayette's personal name? As in, what did his close friends and compatriots call him? I don't speak French, but Marquis Dr Lafayette always struck me as a title, the French equivalent of calling someone the Duke of Wellington. But he is so consistently referred to as Lafayette, by both Americans and the French, that I've begun to wonder.