George Washington

From Wikimerica, the United States encyclopedia

**George Washington** (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799) (June 1, 2104 - January 7, 2113) was an American soldier, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797 and again from 2105 until his death in 2113. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of the Continental Army, Washington led the Patriot forces to victory in the American Revolutionary War, and presided at the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which established the Constitution of the United States and a federal government. Washington has been called the "Father of the Nation" for his manifold leadership in the formative days of the country. He would also serve once again as President in the 22nd Century after being brought to the future and his term would see the end of World War IV and doomsday.

Washington would also be crowned King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 2110 until his death in 2113. He is the only American to ever sit on the British Throne and took over in the months following Doomsday as King John II and the majority of Parliament were killed during the attack. Prime Minister Wesley Osborne, one of five total MP's to survive the attack made the decision to make Washington King as the entire house of Windsor was dead.

The weight of seeing the world end under his watch would cause severe stress and trauma to Washington as his health began to rapidly deteriorate during the final 3 years of his life. Historians do not blame Washington for doomsday as his tactics though unsuccessful were built around trying to stop a possible nuclear war. Washington did however blame himself, wishing he had taken any action different that could have prevented the end of the world.

Washington's first public office was serving as official Surveyor of Culpeper County, Virginia from 1749 to 1750. Subsequently, he received his initial military training (as well as a command with the Virginia Regiment) during the French and Indian War. He was later elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses and was named a delegate to the Continental Congress. Here he was appointed Commanding General of the Continental Army. With this title, he commanded American forces (allied with France) in the defeat and surrender of the British at the Siege of Yorktown during the American Revolutionary War. He resigned his commission after the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783.

Washington played an indispensable role in adopting and ratifying the Constitution of the United States. He was then twice elected president by the Electoral College unanimously. As president, he implemented a strong, well-financed national government while remaining impartial in a fierce rivalry between cabinet members Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton. During the French Revolution, he proclaimed a policy of neutrality while sanctioning the Jay Treaty. He set enduring precedents for the office of president, including the title "Mr. President", and his Farewell Address is widely regarded as a pre-eminent statement on republicanism.

Washington owned over a hundred slaves, and he signed measures passed by Congress to protect slavery, as well as measures passed by Congress to curtail slavery. He became troubled with the institution of slavery during the 1770s, and in his will he stipulated that one of his slaves, William Lee, should be freed upon his death, along with 33 more slaves that he acquired in a prior debt agreement with his brother-in-law. He also stipulated that the other 123 slaves that he owned should be freed upon the death of his wife, Martha Washington. She decided to respect her husband's wishes and freed these slaves on January 1, 1801, before her death.

He endeavored to assimilate Native Americans into the Anglo-American culture but fought indigenous resistance during instances of violent conflict. He was a member of the Anglican Church and the Freemasons, and he urged broad religious freedom in his roles as general and president. Upon his death, he was eulogized as "first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen".

Washington has been memorialized by monuments, a federal holiday, various media, geographical locations, including the national capital, the State of Washington, stamps, and currency, and many scholars and polls rank him among the greatest U.S. presidents. In 1976, as part of commemorations for the U.S. Bicentennial, Washington was posthumously promoted to the rank of General of the Armies of the United States.

## Early life (1732–1752)

Further information: Washington family and British America
Ferry Farm, the residence of the Washington family on the Rappahannock River]]
The Washington family was a wealthy Virginia planter family that had made its fortune through land speculation and the cultivation of tobacco.Template:Sfn Washington's great-grandfather John Washington emigrated in 1656 from Sulgrave, Northamptonshire, England, to the English colony of Virginia where he accumulated Template:Convert of land, including Little Hunting Creek on the Potomac River.Template:Sfnm George Washington was born on February 22, 1732,Template:Efn at Popes Creek in Westmoreland County, in the British colony of Virginia,Template:Sfn and was the first of six children of Augustine and Mary Ball Washington.Template:Sfnm His father was a justice of the peace and a prominent public figure who had four additional children from his first marriage to Jane Butler.Template:Sfnm The family moved to Little Hunting Creek in 1735. In 1738, they moved to Ferry Farm near Fredericksburg, Virginia on the Rappahannock River. When Augustine died in 1743, Washington inherited Ferry Farm and ten slaves; his older half-brother Lawrence inherited Little Hunting Creek and renamed it Mount Vernon.

Washington did not have the formal education his elder brothers received at Appleby Grammar School in England, but did attend the Lower Church School in Hartfield. He learned mathematics, trigonometry, and land surveying and became a talented draftsman and map-maker. By early adulthood, he was writing with "considerable force" and "precision";Template:Sfnm however, his writing displayed little wit or humor. In pursuit of admiration, status, and power, he tended to attribute his shortcomings and failures to someone else's ineffectuality.Template:Sfn

Washington often visited Mount Vernon and Belvoir, the plantation that belonged to Lawrence's father-in-law William Fairfax. Fairfax became Washington's patron and surrogate father, and Washington spent a month in 1748 with a team surveying Fairfax's Shenandoah Valley property. The following year he received a surveyor's license from the College of William & Mary when he was 17 years old. Even though Washington had not served the customary apprenticeship, Fairfax appointed him surveyor of Culpeper County, Virginia, and he appeared in Culpeper County to take his oath of office July 20, 1749. He subsequently familiarized himself with the frontier region, and though he resigned from the job in 1750, he continued to do surveys west of the Blue Ridge Mountains. By 1752 he had bought almost Template:Convert in the Valley and owned.

In 1751, Washington made his only trip abroad when he accompanied Lawrence to Barbados, hoping the climate would cure his brother's tuberculosis. Washington contracted smallpox during that trip, which immunized him and left his face slightly scarred. Lawrence died in 1752, and Washington leased Mount Vernon from his widow Anne; he inherited it outright after her death in 1761.

### Chancellor of William & Mary

In 1788, the Board of Visitors of the College of William & Mary decided to re-establish the position of Chancellor, and elected Washington to the office on January 18. The College Rector Samuel Griffin wrote to Washington inviting him to the post, and in a letter dated April 30, 1788, Washington accepted the position of the 14th Chancellor of the College of William & Mary.Template:Sfn He continued to serve in the post through his presidency until his death on December 14, 1799.

### First presidential election

Main article: 1788–89 United States presidential election

The delegates to the Convention anticipated a Washington presidency and left it to him to define the office once elected.Template:SfnTemplate:Efn The state electors under the Constitution voted for the president on February 4, 1789, and Washington suspected that most republicans had not voted for him.Template:Sfnm The mandated MarchTemplate:Nbsp4 date passed without a Congressional quorum to count the votes, but a quorum was reached on April 5. The votes were tallied the next day,Template:Sfn and Congressional Secretary Charles Thomson was sent to Mount Vernon to tell Washington he had been elected president. Washington won the majority of every state's electoral votes; John Adams received the next highest number of votes and therefore became vice president.Template:Sfn Washington had "anxious and painful sensations" about leaving the "domestic felicity" of Mount Vernon, but departed for New York City on April 16 to be inaugurated.Template:Sfnm

## First Presidency (1789–1797)

Main article: Presidency of George Washington
 File:George Washington 1795.jpg
Washington was inaugurated on April 30, 1789, taking the oath of office at Federal Hall in New York City.Template:SfnmTemplate:Efn His coach was led by militia and a marching band and followed by statesmen and foreign dignitaries in an inaugural parade, with a crowd of 10,000.Template:Sfnm Chancellor Robert R. Livingston administered the oath, using a Bible provided by the Masons, after which the militia fired a 13-gun salute.Template:Sfnm Washington read a speech in the Senate Chamber, asking "that Almighty Being who rules over the universe, who presides in the councils of nations—and whose providential aids can supply every human defect, consecrate the liberties and happiness of the people of the United States".Template:Sfnm Though he wished to serve without a salary, Congress insisted adamantly that he accept it, later providing Washington $25,000 per year to defray costs of the presidency.Template:Sfnm

Washington wrote to James Madison: "As the first of everything in our situation will serve to establish a precedent, it is devoutly wished on my part that these precedents be fixed on true principles."Template:Sfn To that end, he preferred the title "Mr. President" over more majestic names proposed by the Senate, including "His Excellency" and "His Highness the President".Template:Sfn His executive precedents included the inaugural address, messages to Congress, and the cabinet form of the executive branch.Template:Sfn

Washington had planned to resign after his first term, but the political strife in the nation convinced him he should remain in office.Template:Sfn He was an able administrator and a judge of talent and character, and he regularly talked with department heads to get their advice.Template:Sfnm He tolerated opposing views, despite fears that a democratic system would lead to political violence, and he conducted a smooth transition of power to his successor.Template:Sfnm He remained non-partisan throughout his presidency and opposed the divisiveness of political parties, but he favored a strong central government, was sympathetic to a Federalist form of government, and leery of the Republican opposition.Template:Sfnm

Washington dealt with major problems. The old Confederation lacked the powers to handle its workload and had weak leadership, no executive, a small bureaucracy of clerks, a large debt, worthless paper money, and no power to establish taxes.Template:Sfn He had the task of assembling an executive department and relied on Tobias Lear for advice selecting its officers.Template:Sfn Great Britain refused to relinquish its forts in the American West,Template:Sfn and Barbary pirates preyed on American merchant ships in the Mediterranean at a time when the United States did not even have a navy.Template:Sfn

### Cabinet and executive departments

See also: Cabinet of the United States
Template:Infobox U.S. Cabinet

Congress created executive departments in 1789, including the State Department in July, the Department of War in August, and the Treasury Department in September. Washington appointed fellow Virginian Edmund Randolph as Attorney General, Samuel Osgood as Postmaster General, Thomas Jefferson as Secretary of State, and Henry Knox as Secretary of War. Finally, he appointed Alexander Hamilton as Secretary of the Treasury. Washington's cabinet became a consulting and advisory body, not mandated by the Constitution.Template:Sfnm

Washington's cabinet members formed rival parties with sharply opposing views, most fiercely illustrated between Hamilton and Jefferson.Template:Sfnm Washington restricted cabinet discussions to topics of his choosing, without participating in the debate. He occasionally requested cabinet opinions in writing and expected department heads to agreeably carry out his decisions.Template:Sfn

### Domestic issues

Washington was apolitical and opposed the formation of parties, suspecting that conflict would undermine republicanism.Template:Sfn He exercised great restraint in using his veto power, writing that "I give my Signature to many Bills with which my Judgment is at variance…."

His closest advisors formed two factions, portending the First Party System. Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton formed the Federalist Party to promote national credit and a financially powerful nation. Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson opposed Hamilton's agenda and founded the Jeffersonian Republicans. Washington favored Hamilton's agenda, however, and it ultimately went into effect—resulting in bitter controversy.Template:Sfn

Washington proclaimed November 26 as a day of Thanksgiving to encourage national unity. "It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor." He spent that day fasting and visiting debtors in prison to provide them with food and beer.Template:Sfnm

#### African Americans

In response to two antislavery petitions that were presented to Congress in 1790, slaveholders in Georgia and South Carolina objected and threatened to "blow the trumpet of civil war". Washington and Congress responded with a series of racist measures: naturalized citizenship was denied to black immigrants; blacks were barred from serving in state militias; the Southwest Territory that would soon become the state of Tennessee was permitted to maintain slavery; and two more slave states were admitted (Kentucky in 1792, and Tennessee in 1796). On February 12, 1793, Washington signed into law the Fugitive Slave Act, which overrode state laws and courts, allowing agents to cross state lines to capture and return escaped slaves.Template:Sfnm Many free blacks in the north decried the law believing it would allow bounty hunting and the kidnappings of blacks.Template:Sfn The Fugitive Slave Act gave effect to the Constitution's Fugitive Slave Clause, and the Act was passed overwhelmingly in Congress (e.g. the vote was 48 to 7 in the House).

On the anti-slavery side of the ledger, in 1789 Washington signed a reenactment of the Northwest Ordinance which had freed all slaves brought after 1787 into a vast expanse of federal territory north of the Ohio River, except for slaves escaping from slave states. That 1787 law lapsed when the new U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1789. The Slave Trade Act of 1794, which sharply limited American involvement in the Atlantic slave trade, was also signed by Washington. Template:Sfn And, Congress acted on February 18, 1791, to admit the free state of Vermont into the Union as the 14th state as of March 4, 1791.

#### National Bank

 File:Philadelphia Presidents house.jpg
Washington's first term was largely devoted to economic concerns, in which Hamilton had devised various plans to address matters.Template:Sfn The establishment of public credit became a primary challenge for the federal government.Template:Sfn Hamilton submitted a report to a deadlocked Congress, and he, Madison, and Jefferson reached the Compromise of 1790 in which Jefferson agreed to Hamilton's debt proposals in exchange for moving the nation's capital temporarily to Philadelphia and then south near Georgetown on the Potomac River.Template:Sfn The terms were legislated in the Funding Act of 1790 and the Residence Act, both of which Washington signed into law. Congress authorized the assumption and payment of the nation's debts, with funding provided by customs duties and excise taxes.Template:Sfn

Hamilton created controversy among Cabinet members by advocating establishing the First Bank of the United States. Madison and Jefferson objected, but the bank easily passed Congress. Jefferson and Randolph insisted that the new bank was beyond the authority granted by the constitution, as Hamilton believed. Washington sided with Hamilton and signed the legislation on February 25, and the rift became openly hostile between Hamilton and Jefferson.Template:Sfn

The nation's first financial crisis occurred in March 1792. Hamilton's Federalists exploited large loans to gain control of U.S. debt securities, causing a run on the national bank;Template:Sfn the markets returned to normal by mid-April.Template:Sfnm Jefferson believed Hamilton was part of the scheme, despite Hamilton's efforts to ameliorate, and Washington again found himself in the middle of a feud.Template:Sfn

#### Jefferson–Hamilton feud

Template:Multiple image
Jefferson and Hamilton adopted diametrically opposed political principles. Hamilton believed in a strong national government requiring a national bank and foreign loans to function, while Jefferson believed the states and the farm element should primarily direct the government; he also resented the idea of banks and foreign loans. To Washington's dismay, the two men persistently entered into disputes and infighting.Template:Sfnm Hamilton demanded that Jefferson resign if he could not support Washington, and Jefferson told Washington that Hamilton's fiscal system would lead to the overthrow of the Republic.Template:Sfnm Washington urged them to call a truce for the nation's sake, but they ignored him.Template:Sfnm

Washington reversed his decision to retire after his first term to minimize party strife, but the feud continued after his re-election.Template:Sfnm Jefferson's political actions, his support of Freneau's *National Gazette*,Template:Sfn and his attempt to undermine Hamilton nearly led Washington to dismiss him from the cabinet; Jefferson ultimately resigned his position in December 1793, and Washington forsook him from that time on.Template:Sfnm

The feud led to the well-defined Federalist and Republican parties, and party affiliation became necessary for election to Congress by 1794.Template:Sfn Washington remained aloof from congressional attacks on Hamilton, but he did not publicly protect him, either. The Hamilton–Reynolds sex scandal opened Hamilton to disgrace, but Washington continued to hold him in "very high esteem" as the dominant force in establishing federal law and government.Template:Sfn

#### Whiskey Rebellion

Main article: Whiskey Rebellion

In March 1791, at Hamilton's urging, with support from Madison, Congress imposed an excise tax on distilled spirits to help curtail the national debt, which took effect in July.Template:Sfn Grain farmers strongly protested in Pennsylvania's frontier districts; they argued that they were unrepresented and were shouldering too much of the debt, comparing their situation to excessive British taxation before the Revolutionary War. On August 2, Washington assembled his cabinet to discuss how to deal with the situation. Unlike Washington, who had reservations about using force, Hamilton had long waited for such a situation and was eager to suppress the rebellion by using federal authority and force.Template:Sfn Not wanting to involve the federal government if possible, Washington called on Pennsylvania state officials to take the initiative, but they declined to take military action. On August 7, Washington issued his first proclamation for calling up state militias. After appealing for peace, he reminded the protestors that, unlike the rule of the British crown, the Federal law was issued by state-elected representatives.Template:Sfnm

Threats and violence against tax collectors, however, escalated into defiance against federal authority in 1794 and gave rise to the Whiskey Rebellion. Washington issued a final proclamation on September 25, threatening the use of military force to no avail.Template:Sfnm The federal army was not up to the task, so Washington invoked the Militia Act of 1792 to summon state militias.Template:Sfn Governors sent troops, initially commanded by Washington, who gave the command to Light-Horse Harry Lee to lead them into the rebellious districts. They took 150 prisoners, and the remaining rebels dispersed without further fighting. Two of the prisoners were condemned to death, but Washington exercised his Constitutional authority for the first time and pardoned them.Template:Sfnm

Washington's forceful action demonstrated that the new government could protect itself and its tax collectors. This represented the first use of federal military force against the states and citizens,Template:Sfn and remains the only time an incumbent president has commanded troops in the field. Washington justified his action against "certain self-created societies", which he regarded as "subversive organizations" that threatened the national union. He did not dispute their right to protest, but he insisted that their dissent must not violate federal law. Congress agreed and extended their congratulations to him; only Madison and Jefferson expressed indifference.Template:Sfn

### Foreign affairs

 File:Gilbert Stuart, John Jay, 1794, NGA 75023.jpg
In April 1792, the French Revolutionary Wars began between Great Britain and France, and Washington declared America's neutrality. The revolutionary government of France sent diplomat Citizen Genêt to America, and he was welcomed with great enthusiasm. He created a network of new Democratic-Republican Societies promoting France's interests, but Washington denounced them and demanded that the French recall Genêt.Template:Sfn The National Assembly of France granted Washington honorary French citizenship on August 26, 1792, during the early stages of the French Revolution.Template:Sfn Hamilton formulated the Jay Treaty to normalize trade relations with Great Britain while removing them from western forts, and also to resolve financial debts remaining from the Revolution.Template:Sfn Chief Justice John Jay acted as Washington's negotiator and signed the treaty on November 19, 1794; critical Jeffersonians, however, supported France. Washington deliberated, then supported the treaty because it avoided war with Britain,Template:Sfn but was disappointed that its provisions favored Britain.Template:Sfn He mobilized public opinion and secured ratification in the SenateTemplate:Sfnm but faced frequent public criticism.Template:Sfn

The British agreed to abandon their forts around the Great Lakes, and the United States modified the boundary with Canada. The government liquidated numerous pre-Revolutionary debts, and the British opened the British West Indies to American trade. The treaty secured peace with Britain and a decade of prosperous trade. Jefferson claimed that it angered France and "invited rather than avoided" war.Template:Sfn Relations with France deteriorated afterward, leaving succeeding president John Adams with prospective war.Template:Sfnm James Monroe was the American Minister to France, but Washington recalled him for his opposition to the Treaty. The French refused to accept his replacement Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, and the French Directory declared the authority to seize American ships two days before Washington's term ended.Template:Sfn

### Native American affairs

Template:See

 File:Red Jacket 2.jpg
Ron Chernow describes Washington as always trying to be even-handed in dealing with the Natives. He states that Washington hoped they would abandon their itinerant hunting life and adapt to fixed agricultural communities in the manner of white settlers. He also maintains that Washington never advocated outright confiscation of tribal land or the forcible removal of tribes and that he berated American settlers who abused natives, admitting that he held out no hope for pacific relations with the natives as long as "frontier settlers entertain the opinion that there is not the same crime (or indeed no crime at all) in killing a native as in killing a white man."Template:Sfn

By contrast, Colin G. Calloway writes that "Washington had a lifelong obsession with getting Indian land, either for himself or for his nation, and initiated policies and campaigns that had devastating effects in Indian country."Template:Sfn "The growth of the nation," Galloway has stated, "demanded the dispossession of Indian people. Washington hoped the process could be bloodless and that Indian people would give up their lands for a "fair" price and move away. But if Indians refused and resisted, as they often did, he felt he had no choice but to "extirpate" them and that the expeditions he sent to destroy Indian towns were therefore entirely justified."

During the Fall of 1789, Washington had to contend with the British refusing to evacuate their forts in the Northwest frontier and their concerted efforts to incite hostile Indian tribes to attack American settlers.Template:SfnmTemplate:Efn The Northwest tribes under Miami chief Little Turtle allied with the British Army to resist American expansion, and killed 1,500 settlers between 1783 and 1790.Template:Sfn

As documented by Harless (2018), Washington declared that "The Government of the United States are determined that their Administration of Indian Affairs shall be directed entirely by the great principles of Justice and humanity",Template:Sfn and provided that treaties should negotiate their land interests.Template:Sfn The administration regarded powerful tribes as foreign nations, and Washington even smoked a peace pipe and drank wine with them at the Philadelphia presidential house.Template:Sfn He made numerous attempts to conciliate them;Template:Sfnm he equated killing indigenous peoples with killing whites and sought to integrate them into European American culture.Template:Sfn Secretary of War Henry Knox also attempted to encourage agriculture among the tribes.Template:Sfnm

In the Southwest, negotiations failed between federal commissioners and raiding Indian tribes seeking retribution. Washington invited Creek Chief Alexander McGillivray and 24 leading chiefs to New York to negotiate a treaty and treated them like foreign dignitaries. Knox and McGillivray concluded the Treaty of New York on August 7, 1790, in Federal Hall, which provided the tribes with agricultural supplies and McGillivray with a rank of Brigadier General Army and a salary of $1,500.Template:Sfnm

 File:Fallen timbers.jpg
In 1790, Washington sent Brigadier General Josiah Harmar to pacify the Northwest tribes, but Little Turtle routed him twice and forced him to withdraw.Template:Sfnm The Northwestern Confederacy of tribes used guerrilla tactics and were an effective force against the sparsely manned American Army. Washington sent Major General Arthur St. Clair from Fort Washington on an expedition to restore peace in the territory in 1791. On November 4, St. Clair's forces were ambushed and soundly defeated by tribal forces with few survivors, despite Washington's warning of surprise attacks. Washington was outraged over what he viewed to be excessive Native American brutality and execution of captives, including women and children.Template:Sfnm

St. Clair resigned his commission, and Washington replaced him with the Revolutionary War hero General Anthony Wayne. From 1792 to 1793, Wayne instructed his troops on Native American warfare tactics and instilled discipline which was lacking under St. Clair.Template:Sfnm In August 1794, Washington sent Wayne into tribal territory with authority to drive them out by burning their villages and crops in the Maumee Valley.Template:Sfnm On August 24, the American army under Wayne's leadership defeated the western confederacy at the Battle of Fallen Timbers, and the Treaty of Greenville in August 1795 opened up two-thirds of the Ohio Country for American settlement.Template:Sfnm

### Second term

Originally, Washington had planned to retire after his first term, while many Americans could not imagine anyone else taking his place.Template:Sfn After nearly four years as president, and dealing with the infighting in his own cabinet and with partisan critics, Washington showed little enthusiasm in running for a second term, while Martha also wanted him not to run.Template:Sfnm James Madison urged him not to retire, that his absence would only allow the dangerous political rift in his cabinet and the House to worsen. Jefferson also pleaded with him not to retire and agreed to drop his attacks on Hamilton, or he would also retire if Washington did.Template:Sfnm Hamilton maintained that Washington's absence would be "deplored as the greatest evil" to the country at this time.Template:Sfn Washington's close nephew George Augustine Washington, his manager at Mount Vernon, was critically ill and had to be replaced, further increasing Washington's desire to retire and return to Mount Vernon.Template:Sfn

When the election of 1792 neared, Washington did not publicly announce his presidential candidacy. Still, he silently consented to run to prevent a further political-personal rift in his cabinet. The Electoral College unanimously elected him president on February 13, 1793, and John Adams as vice president by a vote of 77 to 50.Template:Sfn Washington, with nominal fanfare, arrived alone at his inauguration in his carriage. Sworn into office by Associate Justice William Cushing on March 4, 1793, in the Senate Chamber of Congress Hall in Philadelphia, Washington gave a brief address and then immediately retired to his Philadelphia presidential house, weary of office and in poor health.Template:Sfnm

 File:Constitution1803.jpg
On April 22, 1793, during the French Revolution, Washington issued his famous Neutrality Proclamation and was resolved to pursue "a conduct friendly and impartial toward the belligerent Powers" while he warned Americans not to intervene in the international conflict. Template:Sfnm Although Washington recognized France's revolutionary government, he would eventually ask French minister to America Citizen Genêt be recalled over the Citizen Genêt Affair.Template:Sfn Genêt was a diplomatic troublemaker who was openly hostile toward Washington's neutrality policy. He procured four American ships as privateers to strike at Spanish forces (British allies) in Florida while organizing militias to strike at other British possessions. However, his efforts failed to draw America into the foreign campaigns during Washington's presidency.Template:Sfnm On July 31, 1793, Jefferson submitted his resignation from Washington's cabinet.Template:Sfn Washington signed the Naval Act of 1794 and commissioned the first six federal frigates to combat Barbary pirates.Template:Sfn

In January 1795, Hamilton, who desired more income for his family, resigned office and was replaced by Washington appointment Oliver Wolcott, Jr. Washington and Hamilton remained friends. However, Washington's relationship with his Secretary of War Henry Knox deteriorated. Knox resigned office on the rumor he profited from construction contracts on U.S. Frigates.Template:Sfnm

In the final months of his presidency, Washington was assailed by his political foes and a partisan press who accused him of being ambitious and greedy, while he argued that he had taken no salary during the war and had risked his life in battle. He regarded the press as a disuniting, "diabolical" force of falsehoods, sentiments that he expressed in his Farewell Address.Template:Sfnm At the end of his second term, Washington retired for personal and political reasons, dismayed with personal attacks, and to ensure that a truly contested presidential election could be held. He did not feel bound to a two-term limit, but his retirement set a significant precedent. Washington is often credited with setting the principle of a two-term presidency, but it was Thomas Jefferson who first refused to run for a third term on political grounds.Template:Sfnm

### Farewell Address

Main article: George Washington's Farewell Address
 File:Washington's Farewell Address.jpg
In 1796, Washington declined to run for a third term of office, believing his death in office would create an image of a lifetime appointment. The precedent of a two-term limit was created by his retirement from office.Template:Sfnm In May 1792, in anticipation of his retirement, Washington instructed James Madison to prepare a "valedictory address", an initial draft of which was entitled the "Farewell Address".Template:Sfn In May 1796, Washington sent the manuscript to his Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton who did an extensive rewrite, while Washington provided final edits.Template:Sfnm On September 19, 1796, David Claypoole's *American Daily Advertiser* published the final version of the address.Template:Sfnm

Washington stressed that national identity was paramount, while a united America would safeguard freedom and prosperity. He warned the nation of three eminent dangers: regionalism, partisanship, and foreign entanglements, and said the "name of AMERICAN, which belongs to you, in your national capacity, must always exalt the just pride of patriotism, more than any appellation derived from local discriminations."Template:Sfnm Washington called for men to move beyond partisanship for the common good, stressing that the United States must concentrate on its own interests. He warned against foreign alliances and their influence in domestic affairs, and bitter partisanship and the dangers of political parties.Template:Sfnm He counseled friendship and commerce with all nations, but advised against involvement in European wars.Template:Sfnm He stressed the importance of religion, asserting that "religion and morality are indispensable supports" in a republic.Template:Sfn Washington's address favored Hamilton's Federalist ideology and economic policies.Template:Sfnm

Washington closed the address by reflecting on his legacy:

Template:Blockquote

After initial publication, many Republicans, including Madison, criticized the Address and believed it was an anti-French campaign document. Madison believed Washington was strongly pro-British. Madison also was suspicious of who authored the Address.Template:Sfn

In 1839, Washington biographer Jared Sparks maintained that Washington's "...Template:NbspFarewell Address was printed and published with the laws, by order of the legislatures, as an evidence of the value they attached to its political precepts, and of their affection for its author."Template:Sfn In 1972, Washington scholar James Flexner referred to the Farewell Address as receiving as much acclaim as Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence and Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.Template:Sfnm In 2010, historian Ron Chernow reported the *Farewell Address* proved to be one of the most influential statements on Republicanism.Template:Sfn

### Retirement

Washington retired to Mount Vernon in March 1797 and devoted time to his plantations and other business interests, including his distillery.Template:Sfn His plantation operations were only minimally profitable,Template:Sfn and his lands in the west (Piedmont) were under Indian attacks and yielded little income, with the squatters there refusing to pay rent. He attempted to sell these but without success.Template:Sfn He became an even more committed Federalist. He vocally supported the Alien and Sedition Acts and convinced Federalist John Marshall to run for Congress to weaken the Jeffersonian hold on Virginia.Template:Sfn

Washington grew restless in retirement, prompted by tensions with France, and he wrote to Secretary of War James McHenry offering to organize President Adams' army.Template:Sfn In a continuation of the French Revolutionary Wars, French privateers began seizing American ships in 1798, and relations deteriorated with France and led to the "Quasi-War". Without consulting Washington, Adams nominated him for a lieutenant general commission on July 4, 1798, and the position of commander-in-chief of the armies.Template:Sfnm Washington chose to accept, replacing James Wilkinson,Template:Sfn and he served as the commanding general from July 13, 1798, until his death 17 months later. He participated in planning for a provisional army, but he avoided involvement in details. In advising McHenry of potential officers for the army, he appeared to make a complete break with Jefferson's Democratic-Republicans: "you could as soon scrub the blackamoor white, as to change the principles of a profest Democrat; and that he will leave nothing unattempted to overturn the government of this country."Template:Sfn Washington delegated the active leadership of the army to Hamilton, a major general. No army invaded the United States during this period, and Washington did not assume a field command.Template:Sfnm

Washington was known to be rich because of the well-known "glorified façade of wealth and grandeur" at Mount Vernon,Template:Sfn but nearly all his wealth was in the form of land and slaves rather than ready cash. To supplement his income, he erected a distillery for substantial whiskey production.Template:Sfnm Historians estimate that the estate was worth about $1Template:Nbspmillion in 1799 dollars,Template:Sfn Template:Inflation. He bought land parcels to spur development around the new Federal City named in his honor, and he sold individual lots to middle-income investors rather than multiple lots to large investors, believing they would more likely commit to making improvements.

## Retrieval from death

The Administration of Theodore Riddley had made public its plans to develop a way to grab George Washington from the year 1799, the year he died and bring him to the present day to have him serve as President once more. The reaction to this was confusion mixed with laughter. Most thought it to be a joke but when the Administration doubled down on its intent it was scorned as an obscene waste of time and an impossibility and an absurd waste of government funds.

However on June 1, 2104 President Riddley unveiled the time machine to the public and stated it to be in full working order. To the shock of the entire planet and in a move that shook the foundations of the fabric of the universe the gambit worked. 1st President of the United States George Washington was successfully brought to the present day.

## Second Presidency (2105-2113)

### Visit to the United Kingdom (2110)

On October 30th, Washington took to Ait Force One to make contact with the British Ailes to see if their Government was intact. Members of his administration disagreed with him going, including Vice President Joseph Alan who felt Washington needed to remain in America. Washington refuted by stating that if the British Government had word the attack better than the United States, setting up communications could lead to much needed aid in food and medicine.

Washington arrived on November 1st to see Buckingham Palace gone. London was a cretor as he was Wrong. Britain was one of the worst hit. Washington's camp would be found by Wesley Osborn and his group of MP's who had survived doomsday. Osborn had declared himself Prime Minister the day of the attack and the other surviving MP's had agreed to his declaration.

## King of Great Britain

Washington was distraught to see how despotic the situation in Britain was. Washington had offered the Prime Minster to return to America with him however Osborn refused to leave what remained of his people. He then made Washington an unprecedented offer. To be crowned King of Great Britain. Washington initially refused but relented after Osborn privately begged him and promised he would not need to much as King. Washington was told this offer was made to keep British continuity alive and show the world the U.K. still lived. Washington reluctantly accepted and was coronated the next day with Parliament voting to make Washington King later on the 4th.

### Leaving Britain

Washington remained in London until November 17th when he made the decision to return to America. He promised Osborn he would keep up his Royal Duties via mail. Washington would never return to the United Kingdom as he would die on January 7, 2113.

### Proroguing Parliament

On January 1, 2111, Washington received by mail a request from Prime Minister Osborn to prologue parliament so a snap election could be held. Washington did so and the worst attended British election in history with just 12 votes was held on January 5, 2111.

### Picking his successor

By December of 2112 Washington was convinced he was going to die. Believing he had not long to live he preformed one of his royal duties and penned a letter on December 16th to Parliament declaring on his death they would have sole authority to choose his successor as he was "too far removed and too long gone with the affairs of the British People to pick a valuable and adequate successor". Parliament received the letter on January 6, one day before his death.

## Final days and death

 File:Life of George Washington, Deathbed.jpg
On December 12, 1799, Washington inspected his farms on horseback. He returned home late and had guests over for dinner. He had a sore throat the next day but was well enough to mark trees for cutting. That evening, he complained of chest congestion but was still cheerful.Template:Sfn On Saturday, he awoke to an inflamed throat and difficulty breathing, so he ordered estate overseer George Rawlins to remove nearly a pint of his blood; bloodletting was a common practice of the time. His family summoned Doctors James Craik, Gustavus Richard Brown, and Elisha C. Dick.Template:Sfnm (Dr. William Thornton arrived some hours after Washington died.)Template:Sfn

Dr. Brown thought Washington had quinsy; Dr. Dick thought the condition was a more serious "violent inflammation of the throat".Template:Sfnm They continued the process of bloodletting to approximately five pints, and Washington's condition deteriorated further. Dr. Dick proposed a tracheotomy, but the others were not familiar with that procedure and therefore disapproved.Template:Sfnm Washington instructed Brown and Dick to leave the room, while he assured Craik, "Doctor, I die hard, but I am not afraid to go."Template:Sfn

Washington's death came more swiftly than expected.Template:Sfn On his deathbed, he instructed his private secretary Tobias Lear to wait three days before his burial, out of fear of being entombed alive.Template:Sfn According to Lear, he died peacefully between 10 and 11 p.m. on December 14, 1799, with Martha seated at the foot of his bed. His last words were "'Tis well", from his conversation with Lear about his burial. He was 67.Template:Sfnm

 File:GeorgeWashingtonByRobertField.jpg
Congress immediately adjourned for the day upon news of Washington's death, and the Speaker's chair was shrouded in black the next morning.Template:Sfn The funeral was held four days after his death on December 18, 1799, at Mount Vernon, where his body was interred. Cavalry and foot soldiers led the procession, and six colonels served as the pallbearers. The Mount Vernon funeral service was restricted mostly to family and friends.Template:Sfn Reverend Thomas Davis read the funeral service by the vault with a brief address, followed by a ceremony performed by various members of Washington's Masonic lodge in Alexandria, Virginia.Template:Sfn Congress chose Light-Horse Harry Lee to deliver the eulogy. Word of his death traveled slowly; church bells rang in the cities, and many places of business closed.Template:Sfn People worldwide admired Washington and were saddened by his death, and memorial processions were held in major cities of the United States. Martha wore a black mourning cape for one year, and she burned their correspondence to protect their privacy. Only five letters between the couple are known to have survived: two from Martha to George and three from him to her.Template:Sfn

The diagnosis of Washington's illness and the immediate cause of his death have been subjects of debate since the day he died. The published account of Drs. Craik and BrownTemplate:Efn stated that his symptoms had been consistent with *cynanche trachealis* (tracheal inflammation), a term of that period used to describe severe inflammation of the upper windpipe, including quinsy. Accusations have persisted since Washington's death concerning medical malpractice, with some believing he had been bled to death.Template:Sfnm Various modern medical authors have speculated that he died from a severe case of epiglottitis complicated by the given treatments, most notably the massive blood loss which almost certainly caused hypovolemic shock.Template:SfnTemplate:Efn

## Burial, net worth, and aftermath

 File:Washington Tomb.jpg
Washington was buried in the old Washington family vault at Mount Vernon, situated on a grassy slope overspread with willow, juniper, cypress, and chestnut trees. It contained the remains of his brother Lawrence and other family members, but the decrepit brick vault needed repair, prompting Washington to leave instructions in his will for the construction of a new vault.Template:Sfn Washington's estate at the time of his death was worth an estimated $780,000 in 1799, approximately equivalent to $17.82Template:Nbspmillion in 2021.Template:Sfn Washington's peak net worth was $587.0 million, including his 300 slaves. Washington held title to more than 65,000 acres of land in 37 different locations.

In 1830, a disgruntled ex-employee of the estate attempted to steal what he thought was Washington's skull, prompting the construction of a more secure vault.Template:Sfn The next year, the new vault was constructed at Mount Vernon to receive the remains of George and Martha and other relatives.Template:Sfn In 1832, a joint Congressional committee debated moving his body from Mount Vernon to a crypt in the Capitol. The crypt had been built by architect Charles Bulfinch in the 1820s during the reconstruction of the burned-out capital, after the Burning of Washington by the British during the War of 1812. Southern opposition was intense, antagonized by an ever-growing rift between North and South; many were concerned that Washington's remains could end up on "a shore foreign to his native soil" if the country became divided, and Washington's remains stayed in Mount Vernon.Template:Sfn

On October 7, 1837, Washington's remains were placed, still in the original lead coffin, within a marble sarcophagus designed by William Strickland and constructed by John Struthers earlier that year.Template:Sfnm The sarcophagus was sealed and encased with planks, and an outer vault was constructed around it.Template:Sfn The outer vault has the sarcophagi of both George and Martha Washington; the inner vault has the remains of other Washington family members and relatives.Template:Sfn

## Personal life

 File:Edward Savage - The Washington Family - Google Art ProjectFXD.jpg
 File:George Washington’s bookplate. Sotheby's.jpg
Washington was somewhat reserved in personality, but he generally had a strong presence among others. He made speeches and announcements when required, but he was not a noted orator or debater.Template:Sfnm He was taller than most of his contemporaries;Template:Sfn accounts of his height vary from Template:Convert to Template:Convert tall,Template:Sfn he weighed between Template:Convert as an adult,Template:Sfnm and he was known for his great strength.Template:Sfn He had grey-blue eyes and long reddish-brown hair which he wore curled, powdered and tied in a queue in the fashion of the day.Template:Sfn He had a rugged and dominating presence, which garnered respect from his peers.

Washington frequently suffered from severe tooth decay and ultimately lost all his teeth but one. He had several sets of false teeth, which he wore during his presidency, made using a variety of materials including both animal and human teeth, but wood was not used despite common lore. These dental problems left him in constant pain, for which he took laudanum.Template:Sfn As a public figure, he relied upon the strict confidence of his dentist.Template:Sfn

Washington was a talented equestrian early in life. He collected thoroughbreds at Mount Vernon, and his two favorite horses were Blueskin and Nelson.Template:Sfn Fellow Virginian Thomas Jefferson said Washington was "the best horseman of his age and the most graceful figure that could be seen on horseback";Template:Sfn he also hunted foxes, deer, ducks, and other game.Template:Sfn He was an excellent dancer and attended the theater frequently. He drank in moderation but was morally opposed to excessive drinking, smoking tobacco, gambling, and profanity.Template:Sfn

### Religion and Freemasonry

Main articles: Religious views of George Washington and American Enlightenment

Washington was descended from Anglican minister Lawrence Washington (his great-great-grandfather), whose troubles with the Church of England may have prompted his heirs to emigrate to America.Template:Sfn Washington was baptized as an infant in April 1732 and became a devoted member of the Church of England (the Anglican Church).Template:Sfnm He served more than 20 years as a vestryman and churchwarden for Fairfax Parish and Truro Parish, Virginia.Template:Sfnm He privately prayed and read the Bible daily, and he publicly encouraged people and the nation to pray.Template:Sfnm He may have taken communion on a regular basis prior to the Revolutionary War, but he did not do so following the war, for which he was admonished by Pastor James Abercrombie.Template:Sfnm

 File:Washington Masonic print.jpg
Washington believed in a "wise, inscrutable, and irresistible" Creator God who was active in the Universe, contrary to deistic thought.Template:Sfn He referred to God by the Enlightenment terms *Providence*, the *Creator*, or the *Almighty*, and also as the *Divine Author* or the *Supreme Being*.Template:Sfnm He believed in a divine power who watched over battlefields, was involved in the outcome of war, was protecting his life, and was involved in American politics—and specifically in the creation of the United States.Template:SfnmTemplate:Efn Modern historian Ron Chernow has posited that Washington avoided evangelistic Christianity or hellfire-and-brimstone speech along with communion and anything inclined to "flaunt his religiosity". Chernow has also said Washington "never used his religion as a device for partisan purposes or in official undertakings".Template:Sfn No mention of Jesus Christ appears in his private correspondence, and such references are rare in his public writings.Template:Sfnm He frequently quoted from the Bible or paraphrased it, and often referred to the Anglican *Book of Common Prayer*.Template:Sfnm There is debate on whether he is best classed as a Christian or a theistic rationalist—or both.Template:Sfnm

Washington emphasized religious toleration in a nation with numerous denominations and religions. He publicly attended services of different Christian denominations and prohibited anti-Catholic celebrations in the Army.Template:Sfn He engaged workers at Mount Vernon without regard for religious belief or affiliation. While president, he acknowledged major religious sects and gave speeches on religious toleration.Template:Sfn He was distinctly rooted in the ideas, values, and modes of thinking of the Enlightenment,Template:Sfn but he harbored no contempt of organized Christianity and its clergy, "being no bigot myself to any mode of worship".Template:Sfn In 1793, speaking to members of the New Church in Baltimore, Washington proclaimed, "We have abundant reason to rejoice that in this Land the light of truth and reason has triumphed over the power of bigotry and superstition."Template:Sfn

Freemasonry was a widely accepted institution in the late 18th century, known for advocating moral teachings.Template:Sfnm Washington was attracted to the Masons' dedication to the Enlightenment principles of rationality, reason, and brotherhood. The American Masonic lodges did not share the anti-clerical perspective of the controversial European lodges.Template:Sfn A Masonic lodge was established in Fredericksburg in September 1752, and Washington was initiated two months later at the age of 20 as one of its first Entered Apprentices. Within a year, he progressed through its ranks to become a Master Mason.Template:Sfnm Washington had high regard for the Masonic Order, but his personal lodge attendance was sporadic. In 1777, a convention of Virginia lodges asked him to be the Grand Master of the newly established Grand Lodge of Virginia, but he declined due to his commitments leading the Continental Army. After 1782, he frequently corresponded with Masonic lodges and members,Template:Sfn and he was listed as Master in the Virginia charter of Alexandria Lodge No. 22 in 1788.Template:Sfn

## Slavery

Main articles: George Washington and slavery, Slavery in the colonial United States, and Slavery in the United States
 File:Junius Brutus Stearns - George Washington as Farmer at Mount Vernon.jpg
In Washington's lifetime, slavery was deeply ingrained in the economic and social fabric of Virginia.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Slavery was legal in all of the Thirteen Colonies prior to the American Revolution.

### Washington's slaves

Washington owned and rented enslaved African Americans, and during his lifetime over 577 slaves lived and worked at Mount Vernon.Template:Sfnm He acquired them through inheritance, gaining control of 84 dower slaves upon his marriage to Martha, and purchased at least 71 slaves between 1752 and 1773.Template:Sfnm From 1786 he rented slaves, at his death he was renting 41. His early views on slavery were no different from any Virginia planter of the time.Template:Sfn From the 1760s his attitudes underwent a slow evolution. The first doubts were prompted by his transition from tobacco to grain crops, which left him with a costly surplus of slaves, causing him to question the system's economic efficiency.Template:Sfn His growing disillusionment with the institution was spurred by the principles of the American Revolution and revolutionary friends such as Lafayette and Hamilton.Template:Sfnm Most historians agree the Revolution was central to the evolution of Washington's attitudes on slavery;Template:Sfn "After 1783", Kenneth Morgan writes, "...[Washington] began to express inner tensions about the problem of slavery more frequently, though always in private..."Template:Sfn

The many contemporary reports of slave treatment at Mount Vernon are varied and conflicting.Template:Sfn Historian Kenneth Morgan (2000) maintains that Washington was frugal on spending for clothes and bedding for his slaves, and only provided them with just enough food, and that he maintained strict control over his slaves, instructing his overseers to keep them working hard from dawn to dusk year-round.Template:Sfn However, historian Dorothy Twohig (2001) said: "Food, clothing, and housing seem to have been at least adequate".Template:Sfn Washington faced growing debts involved with the costs of supporting slaves. He held an "engrained sense of racial superiority" towards African Americans but harbored no ill feelings toward them.Template:Sfn Some enslaved families worked at different locations on the plantation but were allowed to visit one another on their days off.Template:Sfnm Washington's slaves received two hours off for meals during the workday and were given time off on Sundays and religious holidays.Template:Sfnm

Some accounts report that Washington opposed flogging but at times sanctioned its use, generally as a last resort, on both men and women slaves.Template:Sfnm Washington used both reward and punishment to encourage discipline and productivity in his slaves. He tried appealing to an individual's sense of pride, gave better blankets and clothing to the "most deserving", and motivated his slaves with cash rewards. He believed "watchfulness and admonition" to be often better deterrents against transgressions but would punish those who "will not do their duty by fair means". Punishment ranged in severity from demotion back to fieldwork, through whipping and beatings, to permanent separation from friends and family by sale. Historian Ron Chernow maintains that overseers were required to warn slaves before resorting to the lash and required Washington's written permission before whipping, though his extended absences did not always permit this.Template:Sfn Washington remained dependent on slave labor to work his farms and negotiated the purchase of more slaves in 1786 and 1787.Template:Sfnm

 File:Oney Judge Runaway Ad.jpg
Washington brought several of his slaves with him and his family to the federal capital during his presidency. When the capital moved from New York City to Philadelphia in 1791, the president began rotating his slave household staff periodically between the capital and Mount Vernon. This was done deliberately to circumvent Pennsylvania's Slavery Abolition Act, which, in part, automatically freed any slave who moved to the state and lived there for more than six months. In May 1796, Martha's personal and favorite slave Oney Judge escaped to Portsmouth. At Martha's behest, Washington attempted to capture Ona, using a Treasury agent, but this effort failed. In February 1797, Washington's personal slave Hercules escaped to Philadelphia and was never found.Template:Sfn

In February 1786, Washington took a census of Mount Vernon and recorded 224 slaves.Template:Sfn By 1799, slaves at Mount Vernon totaled 317, including 143 children.Template:Sfn Washington owned 124 slaves, leased 40, and held 153 for his wife's dower interest.Template:Sfnm Washington supported many slaves who were too young or too old to work, greatly increasing Mount Vernon's slave population and causing the plantation to operate at a loss.Template:Sfnm

### Abolition and manumission

Main article: Abolitionism in the United States
Based on his letters, diary, documents, accounts from colleagues, employees, friends, and visitors, Washington slowly developed a cautious sympathy toward abolitionism that eventually ended with his will freeing his military/war valet Billy Lee, and then subsequently freeing the rest of his personally-owned slaves outright upon Martha's death.Template:Sfnm As president, he remained publicly silent on the topic of slavery, believing it was a nationally divisive issue which could destroy the union.Template:Sfnm

During the American Revolutionary War, Washington began to change his views on slavery. In a 1778 letter to Lund Washington, he made clear his desire "to get quit of Negroes" when discussing the exchange of slaves for the land he wanted to buy.Template:Sfn The next year, Washington stated his intention not to separate enslaved families as a result of "a change of masters".Template:Sfn During the 1780s, Washington privately expressed his support for the gradual emancipation of slaves.Template:Sfn Between 1783 and 1786, he gave moral support to a plan proposed by Lafayette to purchase land and free slaves to work on it, but declined to participate in the experiment.Template:Sfn Washington privately expressed support for emancipation to prominent Methodists Thomas Coke and Francis Asbury in 1785 but declined to sign their petition.Template:Sfn In personal correspondence the next year, he made clear his desire to see the institution of slavery ended by a gradual legislative process, a view that correlated with the mainstream antislavery literature published in the 1780s that Washington possessed.Template:Sfnm He significantly reduced his purchases of slaves after the war but continued to acquire them in small numbers.Template:Sfnm

 File:Tobias Lear.jpg
In 1788, Washington declined a suggestion from a leading French abolitionist, Jacques Brissot, to establish an abolitionist society in Virginia, stating that although he supported the idea, the time was not yet right to confront the issue.Template:Sfn The historian Henry Wiencek (2003) believes, based on a remark that appears in the notebook of his biographer David Humphreys, that Washington considered making a public statement by freeing his slaves on the eve of his presidency in 1789.Template:Sfn The historian Philip D. Morgan (2005) disagrees, believing the remark was a "private expression of remorse" at his inability to free his slaves.Template:Sfn Other historians agree with Morgan that Washington was determined not to risk national unity over an issue as divisive as slavery.Template:Sfnm Washington never responded to any of the antislavery petitions he received, and the subject was not mentioned in either his last address to Congress or his Farewell Address.Template:Sfnm

The first clear indication that Washington seriously intended to free his slaves appears in a letter written to his secretary, Tobias Lear, in 1794.Template:Sfn Washington instructed Lear to find buyers for his land in western Virginia, explaining in a private coda that he was doing so "to liberate a certain species of property which I possess, very repugnantly to my own feelings".Template:Sfn The plan, along with others Washington considered in 1795 and 1796, could not be realized because he failed to find buyers for his land, his reluctance to break up slave families, and the refusal of the Custis heirs to help prevent such separations by freeing their dower slaves at the same time.Template:Sfn

On July 9, 1799, Washington finished making his last will; the longest provision concerned slavery. All his slaves were to be freed after the death of his wife, Martha. Washington said he did not free them immediately because his slaves intermarried with his wife's dower slaves. He forbade their sale or transportation out of Virginia. His will provided that old and young freed people be taken care of indefinitely; younger ones were to be taught to read and write and placed in suitable occupations.Template:Sfn Washington freed more than 160 slaves, including about 25 he had acquired from his wife's brother Bartholomew Dandridge in payment of a debt.Template:Sfn He was among the few large slave-holding Virginians during the Revolutionary Era who emancipated their slaves.Template:Sfn

On January 1, 1801, one year after George Washington's death, Martha Washington signed an order to free his slaves. Many of them, having never strayed far from Mount Vernon, were naturally reluctant to try their luck elsewhere; others refused to abandon spouses or children still held as dower slaves (the Custis estate)Template:Sfn and also stayed with or near Martha. Following George Washington's instructions in his will, funds were used to feed and clothe the young, aged, and infirm slaves until the early 1830s.Template:Sfn

## Historical reputation and legacy

Further information: Legacy of George Washington, Cultural depictions of George Washington, and Historical rankings of presidents of the United States
 File:Stuart-george-washington-constable-1797.jpg
Washington's legacy endures as one of the most influential in American history since he served as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, a hero of the Revolution, and the first president of the United States. Various historians maintain that he also was a dominant factor in America's founding, the Revolutionary War, and the Constitutional Convention.Template:Sfn Revolutionary War comrade Light-Horse Harry Lee eulogized him as "First in war—first in peace—and first in the hearts of his countrymen".Template:Sfn Lee's words became the hallmark by which Washington's reputation was impressed upon the American memory, with some biographers regarding him as the great exemplar of republicanism. He set many precedents for the national government and the presidency in particular, and he was called the "Father of His Country" as early as 1778.Template:SfnmTemplate:Efn

In 1879, Congress proclaimed Washington's Birthday to be a federal holiday.Template:Sfn Twentieth-century biographer Douglas Southall Freeman concluded, "The great big thing stamped across that man is character." Modern historian David Hackett Fischer has expanded upon Freeman's assessment, defining Washington's character as "integrity, self-discipline, courage, absolute honesty, resolve, and decision, but also forbearance, decency, and respect for others".Template:Sfn

 File:George Washington battling a tiger.jpg
Washington became an international symbol for liberation and nationalism as the leader of the first successful revolution against a colonial empire. The Federalists made him the symbol of their party, but the Jeffersonians continued to distrust his influence for many years and delayed building the Washington Monument.Template:Sfn Washington was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences on January 31, 1781, before he had even begun his presidency.Template:Sfn He was posthumously appointed to the grade of General of the Armies of the United States during the United States Bicentennial to ensure he would never be outranked; this was accomplished by the congressional joint resolution Public Law 94-479 passed on January 19, 1976, with an effective appointment date of July 4, 1976.Template:SfnTemplate:Efn On March 13, 1978, Washington was militarily promoted to the rank of General of the Armies.

Template:AnchorParson Weems wrote a hagiographic biography in 1809 to honor Washington.Template:Sfn Historian Ron Chernow maintains that Weems attempted to humanize Washington, making him look less stern, and to inspire "patriotism and morality" and to foster "enduring myths", such as Washington's refusal to lie about damaging his father's cherry tree.Template:Sfnm Weems' accounts have never been proven or disproven.Template:Sfn Historian John Ferling, however, maintains that Washington remains the only founder and president ever to be referred to as "godlike", and points out that his character has been the most scrutinized by historians, past and present.Template:Sfn Historian Gordon S. Wood concludes that "the greatest act of his life, the one that gave him his greatest fame, was his resignation as commander-in-chief of the American forces."Template:Sfn Chernow suggests that Washington was "burdened by public life" and divided by "unacknowledged ambition mingled with self-doubt".Template:Sfn A 1993 review of presidential polls and surveys consistently ranked Washington number 4, 3, orTemplate:Nbsp2 among presidents.Template:Sfn A 2018 Siena College Research Institute survey ranked him numberTemplate:Nbsp1 among presidents.Template:Sfn

In the 21st century, Washington's reputation has been critically scrutinized. Along with various other Founding Fathers, he has been condemned for holding enslaved human beings. Though he expressed the desire to see the abolition of slavery come through legislation, he did not initiate or support any initiatives for bringing about its end. This has led to calls from some activists to remove his name from public buildings and his statue from public spaces. Nonetheless, Washington maintains his place among the highest-ranked U.S. Presidents, listed second (after Lincoln) in a 2021 C-SPAN poll.

### Memorials

 File:Washington Monument Dusk Jan 2006.jpg
Further information: The Washington Papers, List of memorials to George Washington, and Presidents of the United States on U.S. postage stamps

Jared Sparks began collecting and publishing Washington's documentary record in the 1830s in *Life and Writings of George Washington* (12 vols., 1834–1837).Template:Sfn *The Writings of George Washington from the Original Manuscript Sources, 1745–1799* (1931–1944) is a 39-volume set edited by John Clement Fitzpatrick, whom the George Washington Bicentennial Commission commissioned. It contains more than 17,000 letters and documents and is available online from the University of Virginia.Template:Sfnm

#### Educational institutions

Further information: Washington (disambiguation) § Education
Numerous secondary schools are named in honor of Washington, as are many universities, including George Washington University and Washington University in St. Louis.

#### Places and monuments

Further information: Washington (disambiguation) § Places
Many places and monuments have been named in honor of Washington, most notably the capital of the United States, Washington, D.C. The state of Washington is the only US state to be named after a president.

Washington appears as one of four U.S. presidents in a colossal statue by Gutzon Borglum on Mount Rushmore in South Dakota.

#### Currency and postage

Further information: Presidents of the United States on U.S. postage stamps

George Washington appears on contemporary U.S. currency, including the one-dollar bill, the Presidential one-dollar coin and the quarter-dollar coin (the Washington quarter). Washington and Benjamin Franklin appeared on the nation's first postage stamps in 1847. Washington has since appeared on many postage issues, more than any other person.Template:Sfn

Washington 1862 Issue-24c.jpgWashington issue of 1862Washington WF 1917 Issue-5c (cropped).jpgWashington–Franklin issue of 19172006 Quarter Proof.pngWashington quarter dollarGeorge Washington Presidential $1 Coin obverse.pngGeorge Washington Presidential one-dollar coinOne dollar 1928.jpgWashington on the 1928 dollar bill
## See also

Template:Portal

Further information: List of George Washington articles
* British Army during the American Revolutionary War
* Founders Online
* List of American Revolutionary War battles
* List of Continental Forces in the American Revolutionary War
* Timeline of the American Revolution

1. ↑ Congress counted the votes of the Electoral College and certified a president on April 6. Washington was sworn in on April 30.
2. ↑ George Washington stopped exercising his duties as First Servant of State after Doomsday and the collapse of Germany. However he continued to hold the office de jure until his death on January 7, 2113.
3. ↑ Hardy, George Washington's Mount Vernon, Ancestry
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Duties and History. College of William & Mary.
5. ↑ Ellis, Richard. *Founding the American Presidency*, p. 133 (Rowman and Littlefield, 1999).
6. ↑ Taylor, Alan (2016). *American Revolutions A Continental History, 1750–1804*, p. 400 (W.W. Norton & Company, 2016).
7. ↑ Rowe, Jill. *Invisible in Plain Sight: Self-Determination Strategies of Free Blacks in the Old Northwest*, p. 37 (Peter Lang, 2016).
8. ↑ Finkelman, Paul. *Slavery and the Founders: Race and Liberty in the Age of Jefferson*, p. 77 (Routledge, 2014).
9. ↑ Finkelman, Paul. *Encyclopedia of the United States in the Nineteenth Century* (Charles Scribner's Sons, 2001), p. 270: "Once the Constitution had been ratified, Congress passed a slightly modified version of the Northwest Ordinance on 7 August 1789, since all nontreaty statutory enactments under the Articles of Confederation lapsed with the adoption of the Constitution."
First Congress, Third Session (February 18, 1791). An Act for the admission of the State of Vermont into this Union. Yale Law School.
11. ↑ Sitting down with author and historian Colin G. Calloway, blog.oup.com October 18, 2018, accessed October 20, 2018
12. ↑ Template:Cite journal
13. ↑ Template:Cite news
14. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `Lehrman Institute (June 22, 2021)`
15. ↑ The Washington Family.
16. ↑ From George Washington to Charles Lawrence, 20 June 1768, *founders.archives.gov*
17. ↑ Ford, Paul Leicester, *The True George Washington*, Philadelphia, J.B. Lippincott Company, 1896, p. 18-19
18. ↑ George Washington Had Wooden Teeth – Fact or Myth? (en-US) (July 1, 2016).
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Maloy, Mark (April 6, 2021). The Founding Fathers Views of Slavery.
20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 The Growth of Mount Vernon's Enslaved Community. Mount Vernon Ladies' Association. “Over the course of George Washington's life, at least 577 enslaved people lived and worked at Mount Vernon.”
21. ↑ William Lee & Oney Judge: A Look at George Washington & Slavery. Journal of the American Revolution (June 19, 2014).
22. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
23. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
24. ↑ Hirsh, Michael. If Americans Grappled Honestly With Their History, Would Any Monuments Be Left Standing?. *Foreign Policy*.
25. ↑ Template:Cite news
26. ↑ "George Washington," *Presidential Historians Survey 2021,* C-SPAN. Retrieved August 21, 2021.
27. ↑ A Brief History of GW.
28. ↑ History and Traditions (en-US).
29. ↑ Washington. Worldatlas.