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George Washington born February
22, 1732, died December 14, 1799. George Washington is commonly
known as the Father of the United States of America.
He led America's Continental Army
to victory over Britain in the American Revolutionary War
(1775–1783), and in 1789 was elected the first President of the
United States of America. He served two four-year terms from 1789 to
1797, winning reelection in 1792.
Henry Lee said that of all
Americans, he was "first in war, first in peace, and first in the
hearts of his countrymen." Scholars perennially rank him among the
top three U.S. Presidents along with
Abraham Lincoln and
Franklin D. Roosevelt.
The Life of George Washington
George Washington was born on February 22, 1732 (February 11,
1731, O.S.), the first son of Augustine Washington and his second
wife, Mary Ball Washington, on the family's Pope's Creek Estate near
present-day Colonial Beach in Westmoreland County, Virginia.
In his youth, Washington worked
as a surveyor of rural lands and acquired what would become
invaluable knowledge of the terrain around his native state of
Virginia. Washington embarked upon a career as a planter and in 1748
was invited to help survey Baron Fairfax's lands west of the Blue
Ridge. In 1749, he was appointed to his first public office,
surveyor of newly created Culpeper County, and through his
half-brother, Lawrence Washington, he became interested in the Ohio
Company, which aimed to exploit Western lands. After Lawrence's
death in 1752, George inherited part of his estate and took over
some of Lawrence's duties as adjutant of the colony.
In the early 1750s, Washington was sent as an ambassador to the
French traders and Indians as far north as present day Erie,
Pennsylvania. Competition between the English colonies and France
for the area led to a war fought both in Europe and the Americas,
the French and Indian War (1754–1763), in which forces under
Washington's command fired some of the first shots.
As district adjutant, which made him Major Washington at the age of
20 in December 1752, he was charged with training the militia in the
quarter assigned him. At age 21, in Fredericksburg, Washington
became a Master Mason in the organization of Freemasons, a fraternal
organization that was a lifelong influence.
During the French Indian War,
Washington and his troops ambushed a French scouting party of some
30 men, led by Joseph Coulon de Jumonville. At daybreak on May 28,
1754, Washington with 40 men stole up on the French camp near
present Jumonville, Pennsylvania. Without warning, Washington gave
the order to fire. The French were swiftly overwhelmed. Jumonville
was struck down by Tanacharison while trying to discuss terms with
Washington. Washington built Fort Necessity, which shortly proved
inadequate, as he was soon compelled to surrender to a larger French
and Indian force. The surrender terms that Washington signed
included an admission that he had assassinated Jumonville. The
French claimed that Jumonville's party had been on a diplomatic
(rather than military) mission, and the "Jumonville affair" became
an international incident—helping to ignite a wider war. Washington
was released by the French when he promised not to return to the
Ohio Country for one year. Back in Virginia, Governor Dinwiddie
broke up the Virginia Regiment into independent companies;
Washington resigned from active military service rather than accept
a demotion to captain.
In 1755, British General Edward Braddock headed a major effort to
retake the Ohio Country. Washington eagerly volunteered to serve as
one of Braddock's aides, although the British officers held the
colonials in contempt. Though the expedition ended in disaster at
the Battle of the Monongahela, Braddock was killed in the action,
Washington distinguished himself. He had two horses shot out from
under him, and four bullets pierced his coat, yet he
sustained no injuries (see the One Step Beyond video clip above)
and maintained composure under fire. While Washington's role during
the battle has been debated, biographer Joseph Ellis asserts that
Washington rode back and forth across the battlefield, rallying the
remnant of the British and Virginian forces to a retreat. Washington
became a hero in Virginia where he was referred to as the Hero of
the Monongahela.
In fall 1755, Governor Dinwiddie
appointed Washington commander in chief of all Virginia forces, with
the rank of colonel and responsibility for defending 300 miles (480
km) of mountainous frontier with about 300 men. In 1758, he took
part in the Forbes Expedition, which successfully drove the French
from Fort Duquesne.
In 1758, Washington resigned from active military service and spent
the next sixteen years as a Virginia planter and politician
Virginia, the Second Continental Congress chose him, in 1775, as the
commander-in-chief of the American revolutionary forces. In 1776, he
forced the British out of Boston, but, later that same year, was
defeated, and nearly captured, when he lost New York City. However,
he revived the patriot cause by
crossing the Delaware River in New Jersey and defeating the
surprised enemy units. As a result of his strategy, Revolutionary
forces captured the two main British combat armies, first at
Saratoga in 1777 and then at Yorktown in 1781. Negotiating with
Congress, the colonial states, and French allies, he held together a
tenuous army and a fragile, nascent nation amid the threats of
disintegration and failure. Following the end of the war in 1783,
Washington retired to his plantation on Mount Vernon. More on
the
American Revolutionary War
He presided over the
Constitutional Convention that drafted the United States
Constitution in 1787. In 1789, Washington became President of the
United States .
Washington's Farewell Address was
a primer on republican virtue and a stern warning against
involvement in foreign wars.
George Washington Painting by Rembrandt Peale
click the image for larger version
Rembrandt Peale works of art for sale
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