George Washington
|
George Washington
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|---|---|
| In office April 30, 1789 – March 3, 1797 |
|
| Vice President | John Adams |
| Succeeded by | John Adams |
|
|
|
| Born | February 22 1732 Westmoreland County, Virginia, British America |
| Died | December 14, 1799 (aged 67) Mount Vernon, Virginia, USA |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | None (1789-93) none (1793-1797) |
| Spouse | Martha Custis Washington |
| Religion | Episcopalian |
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) |
George Washington (February 22, 1732[1][2][3] – December 14, 1799) was the first President of the United States from 1789 to 1797. He was also the commander in chief of all American forces during the American Revolutionary War.[4] For his central role in the beginning of the United States, he is often called the father of his country.[5][6]
Contents |
[change] Early years
His mother was Mary Ball and his father was Augustine Washington. They were teachers at the local university. They lived in Virginia. As a child, Washington did not attend school for very long.
There is an untrue story that Washington cut down his father's cherry tree. When asked, he did not lie and said that he did cut down the tree. This story is supposed to show that Washington was honest. However, it was made up by Parson Weemes in an early biography written about Washington.[7]
[change] Before the Revolutionary War
Washington was a farmer like his father. His large farm, or plantation, was called Mount Vernon. He also worked as a surveyor, someone who measures land.
Washington began his army career during the French and Indian War. He first was a messenger for Virginia. He later led troops against the French. The British did not think soldiers from the colonies were as good as they were, so Washington went home and started to farm again.
In 1759, Washington married Martha Custis Washington. They did not have any children.
[change] The Revolution
- See also: American Revolutionary War
Washington was a delegate to the First Continental Congress, which was created by the Thirteen Colonies to respond to various laws passed by the British government. Washington was chosen by the Second Continental Congress to be the commanding general of the Continental Army. Washington led the army from 1775 until the end of the war in 1783.
Washington is noted for leading troops across the Delaware River on Christmas Day, 1776, in a surprise attack on Hessian mercenaries at Trenton, New Jersey. The British had more troops and more supplies than Washington. However, Washington kept his troops together and won the key battle.
Overall, Washington did not win many battles, but he never let the British destroy his army. With the help of the French navy, Washington made a British army surrender at Yorktown, Virginia in 1781, in the final major battle of the war. The war officially ended with the Treaty of Paris in 1783.
[change] After the war
When the Revolutionary war ended, Washington was a national hero. He was offered what would basically be a dictatorship over the colonies. In a move that surprised everyone, however, Washington said no, quit the army and went home to Mount Vernon. He wanted the colonies to have a strong government, but was tired of leading. He also did not want the U.S. to be run by a tyrant.
A few years later, Washington was called over to host the discussions for the new government. He was voted president of the Constitutional Convention in 1785. Washington wanted the states to ratify the Constitution of the United States and they did, largely thanks to the Federalist Papers, which were written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison.
.jpg)
[change] Presidency
In 1789, Washington was elected president without any competition. Washington was the first President of the United States. Washington helped the government get started. While Washington did not belong to any political party and stayed neutral, he agreed with Federalist policies such as the country having a standing army and a national bank. He was re-elected to a second term. After his second term, Washington decided not to run for reelection even though he was popular enough to probably win in a landslide. His decision set a precedent that every president followed until Franklin D. Roosevelt broke it in 1940. In Washington's farewell address, he warned the country not to divide into political parties and to not get involved in European wars. Washington's isolationist policy was supported by most Americans for over one hundred years. His advice concerning political parties was completely ignored, as parties were already forming at the time of his speech.
[change] Retirement
Washington went back home to Mount Vernon after his second term ended in 1797. He died on December 14, 1799, in Mount Vernon at the age of 67. He was the only leader of the early United States who decided in his will that his slaves were to be freed once he himself and his wife had died. Washington, D.C. and the state of Washington are named after him. He is on the one dollar bill and the quarter coin.
[change] Wealth
From his 20s, George Washington was one of the largest landowners in Virginia. Owning a lot of land was one of the reasons Washington was chosen as a leader. By the 1780s, Washington was one of the largest landowners in the United States. He owned land in several states. Some of this land was given to him by states as thanks for being a general. Some this land he had never seen, and he never made money on that land. In addition to land, Washington also owned more than 100 slaves. However, did not have much money in cash. He actually had to borrow money while he was president. At his death, Washington's estate was worth over $500,000. That would be more than a billion dollars today. George Washington owned about 30.000 acres of land in six states, some of it in the District of Columbia.[8]
[change] Wooden teeth?
Many people think George Washington had wooden teeth, but this is not true. He tried many different ways to replace his teeth, though: for instance, he tried having teeth carved from elk's teeth or ivory.[9][10] George Washington's teeth started falling out when he was about 22, and he had only one tooth left by the time he became president.[9][10] It was hard to talk and hard to eat. At one time, he had fake teeth with a special hole so that the one tooth he still had could poke through;[9][10] he tried to keep them smelling clean by soaking them in wine, but instead they just became mushy and black.[9][10] In 1796, a dentist had to pull out George Washington's last tooth, and he kept his tooth in a gold locket attached to his watch chain.[9] When the time came for the president to have his portrait painted, cotton was pushed under his lips to make him look as if he had teeth.[9][10] But the cotton made his mouth puff out too far, as is seen on the picture on the dollar bill.[10]
[change] References
- ↑ Engber, Daniel (2006).What's Benjamin Franklin's Birthday?. (Both Franklin's and Washington's confusing birth dates are clearly explained.) Retrieved on June 17, 2009.
- ↑ The birth and death of George Washington are given using the Gregorian calendar. However, he was born when Britain and her colonies still used the Julian calendar, so contemporary records record his birth as February 11, 1731. The provisions of the Calendar (New Style) Act 1750, implemented in 1752, altered the official British dating method to the Gregorian calendar with the start of the year on January 1.
- ↑ "Image of page from family Bible". Papers of George Washington. http://gwpapers.virginia.edu/project/faq/bible.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26.
- ↑ Under the Articles of Confederation Congress called its presiding officer "President of the United States in Congress Assembled". He had no executive powers, but the similarity of titles has confused people into thinking there were other presidents before Washington. Merrill Jensen, The Articles of Confederation (1959), 178–9
- ↑ "George Washington". Library of Congress. http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/aa/wash. Retrieved June 27, 2009.
- ↑ "Rediscovering George Washington". Public Broadcasting Service. http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/father/index.html. Retrieved June 27, 2009.
- ↑ Mitnick, Barbara J.; Ayres, William S. (1999). George Washington: American symbol. Hudson Hills. p. 72. ISBN 9781555951481. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=eLxsfeV43-wC&pg=RA1-PA72&dq=%22Parson+Weems%22+washington&lr=&cd=17#v=onepage&q=cherry%20washington&f=false. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
- ↑ Richard Shenkman; Kurt Reiger (1980). One Night Stands with American History. Morrow. pp. 39. ISBN 06880375735.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 Felton, Bruce. One of a Kind. New York: William Morrow and Co., 1992
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 Gray, Ralph, ed. Small Inventions That Make a Big Difference. Washington, D.C.: The National Geographic Society, 1984
|
|||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
