In early 1847, Vârnav's Library welcomed the French republican historian Edgar Quinet; after hearing Quinet speak, Vârnav reportedly stood up and obtained that all Romanians present swear an "oath that they would die for their motherland". By November of that year, Vârnav, Bălcescu, Lecca and Chinezu, alongside Grigore Arghiropol, Dimitrie Brătianu, Ion C. Brătianu and Mihail Kogălniceanu, had founded the semi-legal "Însocierea Lazariană" ("Lazarian Association"). Named in honor of Gheorghe Lazăr, it had a political project to unify and standardize education in both Principalities. This agenda was seen as untimely by other intellectuals, including Alexandru G. Golescu, who refused to participate. Now openly drawn to radical politics, Vârnav became an active participant in the February Revolution. He rallied with the majority of Romanian students who saluted the French Provisional Government, outvoting the more cautious young boyars, including Vasile Alecsandri and Costache Negri. He went on to serve briefly in the National Guard and set up a first-aid station inside his library. As reported by N. Ionescu, the events also saw the creation of a single Romanian tricolor, combining the Wallachian blue-yellow and the Moldavian blue-red.