Our First Sixteen Presidents: 1 George Washington

Our First Sixteen
Presidents

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George Washington
by Gilbert Stuart, c. 1804

GEORGE WASHINGTON, the First President of the United States, was born In Westmoreland County, Virginia, February 22nd, 1732. He became a land surveyor; and in 1751 entered military life as adjutant general, and attained the rank of colonel. As aide to Braddock, he was at the defeat of that ill-fated officer. He was a member of the House of Burgesses of Virginia for several years from 1760, and of the first and second Continental Congresses in 1774 and 1775. He was chosen Commander-in-chief of the army in the War of the Revolution, which he conducted to a successful issue. He was President of the Convention that formed the Constitution; and in 1789 became the First President of the United States, which office he held eight years. He died at Mount Vernon, December 14th, 1799.

With due allowance for that propensity in human nature which exalts most public characters to a position above their real merit, Washington is justly entitled to a place among the great personages in history. His qualities were not of the brilliant kind. Prudence, courage, firmness, and a spotless integrity were the strong points in his character. He was endowed with a physical organization nearly perfect, to which he owed much of his success. As President, while placed in situations of great difficulty, he maintained his position with honor and credit to himself. In public life he was above party, and retired to private life with his reputation for wisdom and goodness undimmed, — a destiny vouchsafed to none of his successors.

The hero, like his humbler brother, cannot choose his birthplace. The great man, however, may make the place of his birth what he will by virtue of its association with his genius and fame, for the most unattractive spot on earth may thus arouse a human interest more wide-spread and abiding than any sentiment inspired by mere beauty of situation or surroundings. So it is that the tract of land on Bridge's Creek, in old Virginia, has a charm for the American, and many another, because here, in the one-story farm-house overlooking the Potomac, was born, February 22, 1732, George Washington, the first President of our United States. The homestead has disappeared, but the place in Westmoreland County where the famous general was a "baby new to earth and sky" is still pointed out to the inquiring traveler. The family removed from this farm-house soon after the new life had been added to the circle, to another farm near Fredericksburg, and on high ground overlooking the waters of the Rappahannock River. Here and at Mount Vernon, then owned by his half brother, Lawrence Washington, and at Belvoir, the home of William Fairfax, all situated comparatively near together and close to Fredericksburg, the lad spent his boyhood days. The youth, George Washington, was very much as other boys are, if a pure-minded, healthy, intelligent lad be a type. He lived an out-door life, had a perfect physical being, a manly frame and bearing, and added to this was a training of books and the influence of a refined home, so that the boy, while lacking some of the advantages offered the youth of to-day, had much to help him in his preparation for the future, whatever that might bring. Doubtless his admiration for William Fairfax, and the frequency with which he visited that cultured home, instilled into his heart a love for books and study, and a desire to form a literary style as correct and polished as that of his friend, who had been a comrade of Addison and a contributor to the columns of the Spectator. Washington could never have been the great man he was, had not this foundation been laid; and his country and the world owe a debt

George Washington in a colonel’s uniform of the Virginia Regiment during the French and Indian War
by Charles Willson Peale, 1772

of gratitude to his family and friends who trained the boyish frame and the boyish mind to meet the trials and the emergencies which great leaders are called to endure.

Washington was not long allowed to remain a boy; he took upon himself responsibilities at an early age. Lord Fairfax, owning vast lands, unexplored, in the region around the Blue Ridge Mountains, suggested that young Washington should make a survey of the district and report its condition. This was done, and he gained much knowledge concerning the country, Indian life, and many other things useful in the warfare and campaigns which followed. Then came the time when a person was chosen to be sent on a mission to the French outposts and among the Indians on the frontier, and Governor Dinwiddie selected George Washington, though he had but recently attained his majority. The mission required discretion, courage, and skill on the part of its leader, and the demand was met. The young man showed tact and wisdom, and the expedition, perilous to the extreme, was successful, besides revealing the capabilities and powers of the man, and preparing him by another step for his life-work.

The French aggressions continued throughout the year 1754, and Colonel Washington, in command of Virginia troops, rendered excellent service, displaying military genius and the essential qualities of successful leadership, remarkable in a young man but twenty-two years of age. Declining the chief command, Washington volunteered as aide, and accompanied General Braddock on his expeditions. This English officer, a man of some renown, and possessed of much technical military knowledge, was utterly unskilled in the methods of Indian warfare, and being somewhat opinionated, listened to no advice, and pursued his own plans, so unsuitable to the country and the foes to be encountered. Washington warned Braddock against the dangers of Indian ambuscades, but the warning of the colonial colonel was unheeded, and when the English army was near Fort Duquesne, on the shore of the Monongahela River, July 9, 1755, Braddock's command was surprised by the French and Indians, and suffered a terrible and humiliating defeat, Braddock himself being killed and the greater part of his officers killed or wounded. Washington showed great courage and skill, seeming to bear a charmed life, for bullets passed through his garments and two horses were shot under him, leaving

him unhurt. By his coolness after the catastrophe, he saved the forces from absolute ruin, and practically assumed command of the disorganized remnant of the troops. Soon after, Governor Dinwiddie, never very friendly to Washington, appointed him commander of the Virginia forces, and he remained in command until the close of the French and Indian War. During this part of his military career he met with many troubles, could not carry out his desired plans, suffered in bodily health, endured hardships and fatigue, was misunderstood and at variance with Governor Dinwiddie and others. He yet proved himself a distinguished military leader, and was the most popular officer in Virginia. The victory of Wolfe at Quebec, September 13, 1759, practically closed the French war, and ended for a time Washington's military career.

In the midst of this busy existence Washington found time to woo and win a wife, the beautiful Mrs. Custis, of Virginia. They were married January 6, 1759, and soon after took possession of Mount Vernon, where they resided for nearly sixteen years, probably the happiest period of Washington's life. Although fond of out-door living and agricultural pursuits, it must not be inferred that Washington withdrew himself from all public affairs and patriotic interests. During all the time of his so-called retirement from political life, he was a member of the House of Burgesses and associated with Patrick Henry and other foremost patriots in resisting the claims of Great Britain. England, however, paid no attention to these warnings, and soon the situation became serious, and armed resistance was necessary. In 1774, the first Continental Congress was convened at Philadelphia, and the year following George Washington, representing Virginia, was unanimously elected commander-in-chief of the American Army, forces having already been gathered and blood already shed in the cause of American Independence.

Washington accepted the responsible position to which he was called, and proceeded as expeditiously as possible to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where, under the shadow of the great elm, now standing, he read his commission and assumed command of the American forces. It is difficult to sum up in a few words his conduct and generalship during the war, which lasted between eight and nine years. No meteor flashes of military glory make Washington's name famous. His was the steady courage, the facing

of all obstacles, the unassuming yet determined action, the just dealings, which made the true man and the true soldier, the successful general and the Nation's hero. He was criticised, as all reformers and leaders must be; he had no wealthy government, and but few supplies of war to aid in his movements; he had to contend with ignorance and incapacity on every side, with jealousies of his associates and the interference of Congress. It was the thousand small victories instead of the one grand triumph, the unwavering patriotism and forgetfulness of self, that made George Washington the hero and the leader, whose name the American people reverence, and all other nations respect.

The war of the Revolution virtually came to an end with the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown, October 19, 1781. The closing scene of the war was the withdrawal of the British troops from New York, November 25, 1783. A few days later Washington took farewell of his troops, and in the course of a fortnight formally surrendered his commission as general to the Congress then sitting at Annapolis, Maryland. In accepting the resignation, the president

of the Congress, in his address to Washington, closed with these prophetic words: "The glory of your virtues will descend to remotest generations."

At the close of the war Washington retired to Mount Vernon, and lived there a quiet, peaceful life for nearly three years, all the time keeping up his interest in American politics and watching the struggles of the young nation to establish a form of government. At last affairs were in such a condition, that a convention composed of delegates from the states was held at Philadelphia, and Washington represented Virginia, as a matter of course. He was made president of this convention, which framed the Constitution of the United States. The year following he was elected President of the Nation, and was inaugurated in New York, April 30, 1789. He was re- elected in 1792, and served eight years as President, refusing re- election for the third term, as he felt unable to bear longer the trials and duties of a public life. His administration showed a wise statesmanship at a time when the Nation was testing a new form of government, and there were many difficulties in the way. The Pennsylvania riots, the Indian troubles along the frontier, the

influence of the French Revolution, the criticism and distrust, oftentimes, with which he was regarded by his countrymen, these, and many other troubles came upon Washington, and with all his courage and steadfastness, it is reported that he once said in

desperation: "I would rather be in my grave than be President of the United States." At the close of his administration affairs were comparatively smooth in the land, but it has remained for later years to testify of the wise judgment and the firm hand which guided and ruled our Nation in its infancy, and placed it upon such a foundation of permanence and strength.

In the year 1797, on the 3d of March, Washington gave a farewell dinner to his friends, and among the distinguished guests were the newly-elected President, John Adams, and his wife. Washington at once went to his home at Mount Vernon, and for a brief time enjoyed the tranquil pleasures of a country life in the place he loved so well. His domestic life was singularly happy, and was a soothing balm for the many trials endured in his public career. Death came to him quickly, as he would have chosen, for, with a brief illness of only forty-eight hours, the glorious spirit sought its new and better home, after having "fought a good fight" here on earth and being entitled to the rest and glories of the immortal state. Washington died at Mount Vernon, December 14, 1799.

A thoughtful and just estimate of the character of George Washington reveals a man having the right balance of mind, more valuable as an attribute of successful leadership than brilliant traits of one kind offsetting defects and lack of character in one form or another. Washington's faculties and attributes were evenly developed, and his greatness did not lie in any one form of achievement. He had a noble purpose, a confidence in his own judgment, and while he listened to advice from others, and consulted the accumulated wisdom of the world, he carried out his own plans in the face of all opposition, if they seemed to him best for the prosperity of his beloved nation. Washington had many traits of character which endeared him to those around him, and make his memory precious to the American people. He was manly, and not effeminate; he was true and straight-forward, knowing no deceit and capable of no subterfuges; he was an angler and a hunter, a polished writer and a statesman, a genial host, an agreeable companion, and an affectionate husband and father. When history writes and shall write her praise of George Washington, as President and General, she need not shun the open page that tells of his home life, nor cover it with charity; but she may picture the rounded, symmetrical man, the well-balanced mind, and the life, crowded with duties, yet showing no neglected talents.