A Summary of the Life of George Washington

George Washington was born in Westmoreland County, Virginia into a family of Virginia planters on February 22, 1732. His father's name was Augustine Washington and his mother's name was Mary Ball Washington. As a young man, George Washington's favorite interests were western expansion and military arts. By the year 1754, Washington had helped survey the lands of Shenandoah and had been commissioned into the Army as a Lieutenant Colonel. By 1759, Washington had returned to manage his home, Mount Vernon, and to to serve in the House of Burgesses in Virginia. Washington married a widow by the name of Martha Dandrdige Custis who already had two children.

In June 1775, George Washington represented the Virginia in the Second Continental Congress where he was elected Commander in Chief of the Continental Army. He took command of fourteen thousand men on July 3, 1775 in Boston. By March 17, 1776, Washington forced the British out of Dorchester Heights. From there he moved his army to New York City, but his supplies were running short. Washington eventually lost the battle in New York and the city fell into the hands of the British. Washington's reputation suffered only a little due to the loss of the city of New York while Benedict Arnold and Horatio Gates had secured wins in the Revolutionary battle. Washington's reputation soared again after leading his men through a bitter Valley Forge winter. By then, Washington had learned of that the French supported the American cause for freedom and Washington was able to secure aid from the French. During the war, Washington developed a strategy for which he became known to slowly pull back and then surprise his enemy with an attack. The final major battle of the Revolutionary War involved Washington's defeat, with help from French forces, of Cornwallis at the Battle of Yorktown. When the new Constitution was ratified at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787, George Washington was unanimously elected as the first President of the United States.

One of President Washington's primary concerns was foreign policy. He desired to keep a neutral position during the French Revolution which sparked a war between England and France. His neutral position was made difficult because two of his cabinet members were split on the issue. Washington's Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson, supported the French while his Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, supported England.

Due largely in part to the disagreements between Jefferson and Hamilton, two parties began to develop in the new country which disappointed Washington. It is said that George Washington grew weary of politics by the end of his second term of office. During his farewell address, he warned against excessive political party politics.

Three years after Washington's retirement and return to his Mount Vernon home, George Washington died of an infection of the throat which is thought to have been acute laryngitis. He died on December 14, 1799.