Gilbert Stuart Williamstown Portrait of George Washington, March 20, 1797

The first President of the United States, but he would not take office until 1789. Washington served as the Commander-in-Chief of the continental army during the American Revolution.

Washington feared the Rebellion in Massachusetts. He had hoped the “mischiefs” would self-terminate but he realized that was wishful thinking. [1] Encouraged by other founding fathers, like James Madison, Washington realized he had to come out of retirement and be an example of a strong national leader.

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[1] Leonard L. Richards, Shays’s Rebellion: The American Revolution’s Final Battle (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2002), 3.