George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799) was a member of a leading Virginia family. He served as the commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the Revolution War. He also presided over the Constitutional Convention that produced the charter of American self-governance that replaced the Articles of Confederation. He was the nation’s first President. He was the unanimous choice of all 69 electors in the Electoral College in 1788. He served two 4-year terms as President of the United States before retiring to Mount Vernon. Due to his many accomplishments in our nation’s history, Washington is commonly called the “father of his country.”
Washington was born into the provincial gentry of Colonial Virginia. His wealthy planter family owned tobacco plantations. After both his father and his older half-brother, Lawrence (1718 – 1752), died when he was young, George Washington became personally and professionally attached to the power William Fairfax. Fairfax was an English politician and political appointee of the Crown.
Washington served in the British Army during the French and Indian War. In 1775, the Second Continental Congress appointed him to by Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army. As the commander of the Continental Army, Washington saw striking victories and equally striking defeats of the troops under his command. At the Battle of Yorktown (1781), Washington, with the assistance of the French, defeated the British Army under the command of Charles Lord Cornwallis. After the end of the Revolutionary War, Washington resigned as Commander-in-Chief and returned to Mount Vernon, Virginia.
In 1787, with the weaknesses of the Article of Confederation (1781) clearly visible, Washington presided over the drafting of the Constitution of the United States. The Constitution was ratified in 1788 and went into effect in 1789. George Washington served as the nation’s first President. To this day, many of the traditions he started as President are still practiced.
On January 6, 1759, Washington married Martha Dandridge Custis. She was widowed at 25 and two of her four children grew to early adulthood. She was a few months Washington’s elder. She brought to the marriage a considerable fortune, including an 18,000-acre estate. Washington bought 6,000 acres, and with the land he received for his military service, he became one of the more wealthy landowners in Virginia. His marriage to Martha brought with it her two sons, John (Jacky) and Martha (Patsy). Patsy died just before the Revolution and Jacky passed way during the Revolution. Washington adopted two of Jacky’s children.
During his time in public life, George Washington sought to use the national government to preserve liberty, improve infrastructure, open the west, promote commerce, found a permanent capital for the nation, and promote a spirit of American nationalism. At the time of his death, George Washington was hailed as “first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen.”
Patriot Parchment 