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George Washington: The Political Rise of America's Founding Father

Review

George Washington: The Political Rise of America's Founding Father

There can be no doubting the importance of George Washington to our nation’s founding and early survival. Eighteenth-century colonial America had no business becoming the United States of America. It would be challenging to create a more different group of states. To bring them together would take a master politician, and to the good fortune of the colonies they had just such a man. David O. Stewart notes, “Master politicians place the good of the people at the center of their efforts.”

As 21st-century readers, we have endured the tales of cherry trees and Washington’s inability to lie, only to watch our first president grow into an almost mythical persona. As a result, we try to strip away those myths and find an honest portrayal of the man, warts and all.

"GEORGE WASHINGTON is a great tribute to this seminal figure in American history. Stewart’s attention to detail and consummate research make it a must read."

Stewart introduces us to a young man who is rough around the edges but filled with a sense of destiny. We learn about his early life as a soldier and a landowner, his first foray into politics, his evolution into a man who could be a national figure, and finally the leader who would end up a legend in every American child’s imagination. This book is a testament to the research that Stewart has done. So many factors affected Washington’s life and our history --- including the deaths of loved ones, illnesses and financial difficulties --- and he does an excellent job of bringing these details into the narrative. Who knows what would have happened to our nation had a brother lived, Mount Vernon burned or an election was lost

My favorite parts of the book are the two titanic struggles that Washington was able to overcome: holding both the Continental Army and the new nation together. Valley Forge has lost all meaning to the average American, and the Continental Congress has been reduced to a test question in high school history. These challenges had to be met, though, for the nation to succeed, and they are unparalleled in our present life. We can no more fathom what they endured at Valley Forge than we can grasp that these men did so without pay. Stewart notes, “On the day the army arrived, the Valley Forge camp became the third largest city in America, but it was a city with no food stored for the winter, one that produced no goods and had little income.”

He goes on to write that the march to Valley Forge was a congressionally declared day of thanksgiving. But with little food and less clothing, no one was feeling thankful. A soldier noted that his ration that day was “a dollop of rice and tablespoon of vinegar, followed by a sermon, topped off with a leg of nothing and no turnips.” Maybe the only thing harsher than the lack of food was the cold. Men were tracked by the blood they left behind as they marched.

Stewart tells us that these hardships resulted in the attempted desertion of 75% of the army and the death of another 20%. However, the army lived due to General Washington’s efforts and personality. The same will be true of the Constitutional Convention and the following eight years of our republic. Without President Washington, we may not have even come into being, let alone survived.

I couldn’t shake the feeling that this book is a bit of a missed opportunity --- to articulate the improbability that one man, within a short period of time, could win a war against the most powerful empire on earth, relinquish that power, bring 13 disparate colonies together, stand as their first leader, and ensure the new nation’s survival. We search history in vain for another man to accomplish similar feats, and I think this warranted more of the book’s attention.

Still, GEORGE WASHINGTON is a great tribute to this seminal figure in American history. Stewart’s attention to detail and consummate research make it a must read.

Reviewed by John Vena on April 9, 2021

George Washington: The Political Rise of America's Founding Father
by David O. Stewart