George Washington

George Washington was an American military officer and statesman who served as the first President of the United States. He led the Continental Army to victory in the American Revolutionary War and presided over the Constitutional Convention, and he is known as the Father of His Country.

Early Life

Washington was born in 1732 in Virginia into a family of planters. He worked as a surveyor and served in the colonial militia during the French and Indian War.

He became a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses and was a delegate to the Continental Congress. His military experience and his reputation for integrity made him the natural choice to command the Continental Army.

The Revolutionary War

Washington assumed command of the Continental Army in 1775. He faced the task of creating an army from untrained militia and of sustaining it through years of hardship.

He avoided decisive defeat, kept the army in the field, and won the decisive victory at Yorktown in 1781 with the assistance of the French. His leadership and his determination were essential to the success of the American cause.

The Constitution

After the war, Washington presided over the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which drafted the Constitution of the United States. His presence lent authority to the proceedings and helped to secure the ratification of the document.

He was unanimously elected president under the new Constitution and served two terms. He established many of the precedents that govern the office, including the cabinet and the two-term tradition.

Presidency

As president, Washington established the machinery of the federal government and asserted the authority of the executive. He responded firmly to the Whiskey Rebellion, and he issued a proclamation of neutrality in the war between Britain and France.

He retired after two terms and returned to his estate at Mount Vernon, where he died in 1799. His farewell address warned against the dangers of faction and of foreign entanglements.

Legacy

Washington's legacy is central to American history. His leadership in war and in peace, his willingness to surrender power, and his personal integrity established the model for the presidency.

He is commemorated in monuments, in place names, and in the capital city that bears his name. He remains a symbol of the founding of the American republic.

The French and Indian War

Washington's military career began in the French and Indian War, when he served as an officer in the Virginia militia. He was involved in the early engagements of the war, and his account of the fighting made him known.

The experience gave him a knowledge of military affairs and a reputation for courage and leadership. It also gave him a distaste for the British treatment of colonial officers, which contributed to his later support for independence.

The Continental Army

Washington assumed command of the Continental Army in 1775, and he held the position throughout the war. He faced the task of creating an army from untrained militia and of sustaining it through years of hardship.

His strategy was to avoid decisive defeat and to keep the army in the field, and he won the decisive victory at Yorktown in 1781. His leadership and his determination were essential to the success of the American cause.

The Constitutional Convention

Washington presided over the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which drafted the Constitution. His presence lent authority to the proceedings and helped to secure the ratification of the document.

He was unanimously elected president under the new Constitution and served two terms. He established many of the precedents that govern the office, including the cabinet and the two-term tradition.

The Presidency

As president, Washington established the machinery of the federal government and asserted the authority of the executive. He responded firmly to the Whiskey Rebellion, and he issued a proclamation of neutrality in the war between Britain and France.

He retired after two terms and returned to Mount Vernon, where he died in 1799. His farewell address warned against the dangers of faction and of foreign entanglements.

Summary

Washington was the commander of the Continental Army and the first president of the United States. His leadership in war and in peace, and his willingness to surrender power, established the model for the American republic.

The Constitutional Convention

Washington presided over the Constitutional Convention at Philadelphia in 1787. His presence lent authority to the proceedings, and his support was essential to the ratification of the Constitution.

The Convention produced a document that established a federal government with separated powers and a system of checks and balances. Washington's prestige helped to overcome the opposition to the new frame of government.

He was elected president of the United States by the electoral college, and he was inaugurated in New York in 1789. He took office with a sense of the gravity of the experiment.

The Presidency

Washington established many of the precedents that have governed the office. He created the cabinet, asserted the authority of the president over the departments, and insisted on the primacy of the federal government.

He appointed Alexander Hamilton as secretary of the treasury and Thomas Jefferson as secretary of state, and he tried to hold the balance between their rival visions. He supported Hamilton's financial programme.

He also had to deal with the wars of the French Revolution, and he issued a proclamation of neutrality. He put down the Whiskey Rebellion, and he signed the Jay Treaty with Britain, which was unpopular but preserved the peace.

Retirement and Legacy

Washington declined a third term and delivered his Farewell Address in 1796. In it he warned against factions and against permanent alliances with foreign powers, and he called for the preservation of the union.

He retired to Mount Vernon, and he died there in 1799. His death was mourned throughout the country, and he was honoured as the father of his country.

His legacy includes the peaceful transfer of power and the subordination of the military to the civil authority. He is remembered as the model of the citizen who serves the republic and then returns to private life.

See also

• Abraham Lincoln
• American Revolution
• United States Constitution