George Washington
the father of his country
Early Life
How he handled crises
Washington was able to boost the morale of his troops and the people of his country to get them to support the war as much as they were able.
The Whiskey Rebellion
As word of the tax was spread to Western Pennsylvania, farmers immediately voiced their disagreements with the law by refusing to pay the tax. The situation eventually worsened until July, 1794, when almost 400 rebelling farmers in Pennsylvania started to get violent with their protests, and set fire to the home of the local tax collector, John Neville.
To put down the rebellion, President Washington organized a militia of about 12,950 men towards Pennsylvania, telling the local people, "not to abet, aid, or comfort the Insurgents aforesaid, as they will answer the contrary at their peril." By the time the militia got to the city, the rebels were no where to be seen, and the militia tried 150 men for treason.
Washington's intended got across, and he successfully survived the first real challenge to governmental authority
The right man at the right time
Precedents he set
- He established a cabinet of advisers for the Presidency (i.e. Sec. of State, Treasury, War, and Attorney General).
- Set standards for the President's social interactions (i.e. meetings with the public).
- Established a firm protocol for the constitutional treaty-making process.
- The President is head over diplomacy and foreign affairs (i.e. remaining neutral in the conflict between the French and Great Britain).
Why he is remembered
- Won the Revolutionary War.
- He helped power his men through the harsh winter at Valley Forge during the war.
- He was really tall.
- First President of the US.
- Set the precedents for the Presidency.
Qualities/Characteristics
- Honorable- set the standard for the Presidency
- Courageous- he fought in the military himself
- Intuitive- figured out how to keep the militia together
- Benevolent- he didn't do things for himself, he did them for others
- Trustworthy- he had good judgement and he did what he said he would
Bibliography
- "Washington, George (1732-1799)." Presidential Administration Profiles for Students. Discovering Collection. Gale. Raymore Peculiar R II School Di. 30 Oct. 2013 <http://find.galegroup.com/srcx/infomark.do?&source=gale&srcprod=DISC&userGroupName=morenetraymore&prodId=DC&tabID=T001&docId=EJ2304100040&type=retrieve&contentSet=GSRC&version=1.0>.
- "Washington, George (1732-1799)." DISCovering Biography. Online ed. Detroit: Gale, 2003.Discovering Collection. Gale. Raymore Peculiar R II School Di. 30 Oct. 2013 <http://find.galegroup.com/srcx/infomark.do?&source=gale&srcprod=DISC&userGroupName=morenetraymore&prodId=DC&tabID=T001&docId=EJ2102101920&type=retrieve&contentSet=GSRC&version=1.0>.
- http://www.mountvernon.org/revolutionarywar
- http://www.mountvernon.org/educational-resources/encyclopedia/whiskey-rebellion