He hated it when people divided into hostile groups, and he tried to avoid taking sides during political disputes. As president of the Constitutional Convention in , he contributed almost nothing to the heated debates that took place.
Instead, he used his considerable prestige to calm people down and get them back to their main job: creating a new form of government for the United States.
When it came time during the Convention to design the executive branch of the federal government Article II of the Constitution , virtually everyone assumed Washington would become the first president. Indeed, the writers of the Constitution created the office of president with Washington in mind.
For his part, Washington reluctantly accepted the presidency. Jefferson told him: "We cannot, Sir, do without you. Washington became the first and only president to be unanimously elected. Shortly before he was inaugurated, George Washington wrote: "My movement to the chair of government will be accompanied by feelings not unlike those of a culprit who is going to the place of execution.
Washington could have retired at Mount Vernon a military hero. Instead, he chose the more difficult role of national leader. While he was a proven commander of men on the battlefield, his ability to lead an entire nation was as yet untested. Washington was inaugurated as president on April 30, He dedicated himself to being leader for the whole country, not for just one region, one economic class, or one political group.
He usually spent a lot of time asking people for their advice before he made up his mind. His two closest advisers were Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson and Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton, two men who bitterly disagreed almost daily over every important issue facing the nation. At the end of these arguments, however, it was Washington who decided what was best for the country and all the people.
A majority of Americans welcomed this news, many believing that the revolutionaries in France were continuing the fight for liberty that began on American soil in This caused more rejoicing among Americans.
People flew the French revolutionary flag and sang the "La Marseillaise," the anthem of the French Revolution. President Washington responded by authorizing Secretary of State Jefferson to formally recognize the new revolutionary government of France. More news from Europe changed the picture: France and England were at war! After all, the French had helped the Americans win their liberty.
Was it not right to return the favor? Thomas Jefferson agreed with this argument. Naturally, Alexander Hamilton took the opposite view. He advised Washington that America needed to remain friendly with England in order to encourage trade and commerce between the two countries.
Washington looked at the issue quite differently. He realized that the United States was weak. Most of the soldiers who had fought in the revolution had left the army long ago. The United States did not have a navy. Economically, the United States could ill afford to fight in Europe or even at home if the British decided to invade. To Washington, the choice was a clear one. Washington later explained that it was "the sincere wish of the United States to. Washington did not escape criticism of his policy.
Many newspapers accused Washington of turning his back on a friend and ally. Members of Congress, especially the followers of Jefferson now calling themselves Republican-Democrats charged that Washington had no constitutional power to issue such a proclamation. After a hard-won approval by Congress, Washington signs the bill on February 25, Congress approves its first internal revenue law, creating fourteen revenue districts and placing a tax on all distilled spirits.
Commissioners name the territory within the District of Columbia and the future seat of the Federal Government the city of Washington in honor of the nation's first President. Clair at the cost of American lives. The Washington Administration had sent St.
Clair to the Ohio country with the hope that his presence would clear the way for American settlers. The states officially ratify the first ten amendments to the Constitution, also known as the Bill of Rights.
President Washington had called for their ratification in his first inaugural address. John Adams is elected for a second term as Vice President. President Washington issues a proclamation of neutrality, warning Americans to avoid aiding either side in the emerging conflict between Britain and revolutionary France.
Washington fears that Genet wants to enlist U. He arrived in the country in April and journeyed to Philadelphia, stopping to celebrate along the way with adoring, supportive crowds. France and the United States had maintained friendly relations since signing an alliance in When the French Revolution turned violent in , however, many Americans re-evaluated that friendship.
Republicans, including Thomas Jefferson, sympathized with the revolution, seeing it as an emulation of America's own freedom struggle. Alexander Hamilton and his fellow Federalists feared that the chaos and violence would spread to the United States and destroy the young republic. When revolutionary France and Britain went to war in early , Washington declared the United States neutral, warning Americans to avoid aiding either side in the emerging European conflict.
However, this proclamation of neutrality only deepened domestic partisan divisions over the tenor of Franco-American relations. Edmond Charles Genet arrived in the United States in April with instructions to persuade the President to observe the treaty by supporting the French war effort.
Twisting Washington's definition of neutrality, Genet immediately set to work attempting to use American commercial ports as French military bases. He cultivated support against neutrality and tried to stir up agitation in the western United States against the Spanish territories of Louisiana and Florida. Even Jefferson, initially a supporter of Genet, tried to restrain the Frenchman, but to no avail. When Washington refused to cooperate with Genet's schemes, Genet threatened to appeal directly to the American people.
Washington and Hamilton believed Genet's activities constituted a threat to the stability of the American republic. Hamilton and other Federalists worked to discredit Genet, and Republicans tried to distance themselves from him. In August , Washington and his cabinet unanimously agreed to request that France recall Genet. However, a new government had come to power in France during Genet's absence, and it had decided that his actions were hurting its cause and called for his arrest.
Fearing for the Frenchman's safety, Washington allowed Genet to remain in the country as a private resident; he lived in New York until his death in Genet's activities in sharpened the existing divisions between Federalists and Republicans, adding to the growing political partisanship that marked the s.
As the American citizenry became further politicized, President Washington's ability to promote consensus quickly eroded and his ability to govern was compromised. Washington's second term stalled under intense partisan political turmoil, one of the reasons he happily retired to Mount Vernon when his presidency ended.
American relations with Britain begin to deteriorate rapidly after the British government issues secret orders for the Royal Navy to confiscate any vessels trading with French possessions in the Caribbean. The Royal Navy seizes more than American ships. Thomas Jefferson resigns as secretary of state. President Washington appoints Edmund Randolph as his successor.
Congress responds to British aggression by authorizing the production of six warships March 11 and announcing a sixty-day embargo on American shipping March The Washington administration supports both measures. In the hopes of quelling mounting tensions between the United States and Britain, Washington selects Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Jay to serve as a special envoy to Britain, in the hope that he can broker a deal with the British government to improve relations and address American grievances.
Farmers in western Pennsylvania rebel over the strict enforcement of an excise tax on whiskey passed in President Washington issues a proclamation on August 7 ordering the insurgents to return home.
When this fails, he calls up more than 12, militiamen and dispatches them to Pennsylvania, whereupon the insurrection dissolves. The victory helps open the Ohio territory for American settlement and is a defeat for Britain, which had allied with the Native Americans in the region. The treaty, now known as Jay's Treaty, was designed to resolve issues between the United States and Britain.
Although the treaty left some important issues unresolved and its ratification divided politicians in the young federal government, it successfully allowed the United States to avoid war with its more powerful adversary, Britain.
Despite tremendous casualties, Cornwallis was determined to renew the attack the following morning. Unbeknownst to him, Washington decided to attack a smaller British force in Princeton.
Washington left behind a small detachment of infantry and several cannons. These troops fired occasional rounds at British positions, and kept fires burning along Washington's old line to convince Cornwallis that his main force was still there. Following fierce fighting between Lord Charles Cornwallis and Continental troops at the Battle of Second Trenton, George Washington skillfully disengaged along his position at Assunpink Creek during the evening of January 2nd, , in order to attack the British post at Princeton, New Jersey the following morning.
As dawn broke on January 3, , Washington's force was spotted by British troops in Princeton under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Charles Mawhood. Although American troops faltered after fierce fighting with British light infantry, reinforcements and the appearance of George Washington turned the tide. Washington personally led the newly arrived troops into battle, exposing himself to the enemy's fire.
After taking the offensive during the Trenton-Princeton campaign, George Washington shifted to a defensive strategy aimed at preserving his army and destroying resources desperately needed by his opponents.
Known as the Forage War, this period was noted for several small engagements in which Washington's troops attempted to keep British soldiers from securing hay for horses and livestock, in addition to other provisions. Although it consisted of small battles and skirmishes, casualties could still be high. In one engagement, a large detachment made up of three regiments of British regulars and one battalion each of light infantry and grenadiers, clashed with an even larger American force resulting in almost 70 British soldiers killed and wounded.
In August , George Washington was confused. His adversary, General William Howe, left northern New Jersey by ship and Washington was forced to guess his intentions and eventual destination. He was now poised to attack Philadelphia, the capital of the United States. To counter Howe's move towards Philadelphia, Washington positioned his 16, men along Brandywine Creek and its main crossing at Chadds Ford.
While his position was strongest at the center and on the left flank, Washington's right flank was not secured by natural terrain and was vulnerable to attack. Rather than force a crossing with his entire force at Chadds Ford, Howe took advantage of unguarded crossings north of Washington's position to threaten the American right flank.
Although Washington reoriented his right flank to meet Howe's advance, his troops eventually retreated and British forces entered Philadelphia two weeks later.
Although he was defeated at the Battle of Brandywine, George Washington's troops were able to withdraw from the fight in good order, and they continued to shield Philadelphia from the advance of General William Howe. The two opposing armies appeared close to another major battle on September 16, , but a severe thunderstorm coupled with torrential downpours limited the engagement to minor skirmishing before ruined ammunition and washed out roads halted the fighting.
After his defeat at Brandywine and the British capture of Philadelphia, George Washington was looking for an opportunity to strike back at General William Howe's forces. He would have his chance in early October, when Howe divided his army and encamped at Germantown, seven miles northeast of Philadelphia, with 9, troops.
On the night of October 3, , Washington's troops set out on a mile march that he hoped would result in a coordinated attack on the Germantown encampment by four converging columns.
Although initially successful in surprising Howe and pushing his forces back, late arrivals by Washington's flanking columns and stubborn resistance from British soldiers trapped in Cliveden, a mansion they occupied in the rear of the American forces, resulted in an eventual victory for Howe. Just 16 miles from Philadelphia, George Washington positioned his troops in a fortified encampment that allowed him to carefully monitor the situation in British-occupied city.
British General William Howe sought to defeat George Washington's army before it could enter winter quarters, and marched a large column to attack. After inconclusive skirmishing, and a failed flank attack by Howe, Washington withdrew inside his fortifications to await a British assault.
Deciding that Washington's position was too strong to attack, Howe returned to Philadelphia, and General Washington eventually moved his army into winter quarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. George Washington decided that the British retreat from Philadelphia provided his troops with the perfect opportunity to attack.
General Charles Lee would lead an advanced guard of 5, troops meant to harass and occupy the British rear guard until Washington could arrive with another 6, men.
Kennedy , Lyndon Johnson , and Richard Nixon inherited this nightmare. It lasted from through The ultimate death toll included almost 30, Vietnamese civilians and roughly an equal number of American soldiers. With chants of "Not our war! Communist forces took control of Saigon, Vietnam, in President George H.
Bush ordered U. Peace or something like it settled over the Persian Gulf until when Iraq again prompted hostilities in the region.
Bush , successfully invaded Iraq with the help of Great Britain and other members of the coalition. Insurgents took exception to this state of affairs and hostilities broke out again. President Barack Obama eventually oversaw the withdrawal of most American forces from Iraq by December Actively scan device characteristics for identification.
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