![]() Washington died in 1799, and in his funeral oration, Henry Lee said that of all Americans, he was "first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen." Washington has been consistently ranked by scholars as one of the greatest U.S. His devotion to civic virtue made him an exemplary figure among early American politicians. Washington is seen as a symbol of the United States and republicanism in practice. George Washington by Charles Willson Peale, 1772 *This is the earliest known depiction of Washington that art historians have discovered so far Washington's farewell address was a primer on republican virtue and a stern warning against involvement in foreign wars. Although never officially joining the Federalist Party, he supported its programs and was its inspirational leader. Washington avoided the temptation of war and began a decade of peace with Britain via the Jay Treaty in 1795 he used his prestige to get it ratified over intense opposition from the Jeffersonians. He supported plans to build a strong central government by funding the national debt, implementing an effective tax system, and creating a national bank. His Proclamation of Neutrality of 1793 provided a basis for avoiding any involvement in foreign conflicts. ![]() He sought to create a great nation capable of surviving in a world torn asunder by war between Britain and France. Washington became President of the United States in 1789 and established many of the customs and usages of the new government's executive department. Following the end of the war in 1783, Washington retired to his plantation on Mount Vernon.Īlarmed in the late 1780s at the many weaknesses of the new nation under the Articles of Confederation, he presided over the Philadelphia Convention that drafted the United States Constitution in 1787. Negotiating with Congress, the colonial states, and French allies, he held together a tenuous army and a fragile nation amid the threats of disintegration and failure. As a result of his strategy, Revolutionary forces captured the two main British combat armies - Saratoga and Yorktown. He revived the patriot cause, however, by crossing the Delaware River in New Jersey and defeating the surprised enemy units. The following year, he forced the British out of Boston, but was defeated when he lost New York City later that year. Washington was chosen to be the commander-in-chief of the American revolutionary forces in 1775. George Washington was the first President of the United States, (1789-1797), after leading the Continental Army to victory over the Kingdom of Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). ![]() ![]() Washington, 'Madam,' said I, 'the general's in a perilous situation.' 'How, sir?' 'He is beset, madam no less than five upon him at once one aims at his eye another at his nose another is busy with his hair his mouth is attacked by a fourth and the fifth has him by the button in short, madam, there are five painters at him, and you who know how much he has suffered when only attended by one, can judge of the horrors of his situation.George Washington by Gilbert Stuart, 1795 The unusual sittings led to a much-quoted pun by Gilbert Stuart: "I looked in to see how the old gentleman was getting on with the picture, and to my astonishment, I found the general surrounded by the whole family. Charles Willson Peale's brother James (1749-1831) and his sons Raphaelle (1774-1825) and Titian (1780-1798) joined the two artists at the second and third sittings their portraits have not survived. The first sitting was shared by Peale and his son Rembrandt Peale. This portrait, the last that he painted from life, resulted from an unusual series of sittings in 1795, at which several members of the Peale family painted Washington at the same time. Image courtesy the New-York Historical SocietyĬharles Willson Peale fought in the Revolution at Washington's side and became his most employed portrait painter in the 1770s and 1780s, making more than fifty portraits of the general. The New-York Historical Society, New York City George and Martha Washington: Portraits from the Presidential Years ![]()
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