As the first President of the United States, George Washington developed lasting traditions that helped shape the role of the executive branch. Washington knew he needed to establish an effective executive role, but also understood the importance of the sovereignty of the individual and limited government.

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th president of the United States and is regarded as one of America’s greatest heroes due to his role as savior of the Union and emancipator of enslaved people. His rise from humble beginnings to achieving the highest office in the land is a remarkable story.

During the American Revolution, he led the colonial forces to victory over the British and became a national hero. In 1787, he was elected president of the convention that wrote the U.S. Constitution. Two years later, Washington became America’s first president.

He begins his warnings to the American people by stressing that their independence, peace at home and abroad, safety, prosperity, and liberty are all dependent upon unity among the states.

A hero of the American Revolution, Washington is acclaimed for his daring surprise attack on British-aligned Hessian mercenaries on Christmas evening 1776. Led by Washington himself, the Continental Army triumphed by crossing the icy Delaware River and attacking the enemy camp in Trenton, New Jersey.

Supported by the French army and navy, Washington’s forces defeated Lord Charles Cornwallis’ veteran army dug in at Yorktown, Virginia. This victory led directly to the peace negotiations that ended the war in 1783.

The Continental Congress commissioned George Washington as Commander in Chief of the Continental Army on June 19, 1775. Washington was selected over other candidates such as John Hancock based on his previous military experience and the hope that a leader from Virginia could help unite the colonies.

The Battle of Saratoga, comprising two significant battles during September and October of 1777, was a crucial victory for the Patriots during the American Revolution and is considered the turning point of the Revolutionary War.

Delaware River

The war ended after Lord Cornwallis’ surrendered at Yorktown in 1781. The Peace Treaty was then signed in September 1783 at Versailles. The 13 American colonies became the independent United States of America. After America became independent, Britain remained in control of Canadian territories.

Without the help of Spain, the Netherlands, and especially France, it’s unlikely the colonists would have prevailed. Ultimately, the Americans prevailed due to their spirit and the fact that they were fighting for something they believed in. Popular support for the Revolutionary War was overwhelming.

The Declaration of Independence, 1776. By issuing the Declaration of Independence, adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, the 13 American colonies severed their political connections to Great Britain. The Declaration summarized the colonists’ motivations for seeking independence.

Perhaps the single most important reason for the patriot victory was the breadth of popular support for the Revolution. The Revolution would have failed miserably without the participation of thousands of ordinary farmers, artisans, and laborers who put themselves into the line of fire.

The Treaty of Paris granted the United States title to an extraordinarily vast expanse of land. The fledgling nation stretched from the sparsely settled Atlantic Coast in the east, to the Mississippi River in the west; from the Great Lakes in the north, to near the Gulf of Mexico in the south.