George Washington Biography, History and Facts.
                     George Washington: Biography, 
History and Facts
Who Was George Washington?
George Washington was a Virginia plantation owner 
who served as a general and commander-in-chief of 
the colonial armies during the American 
Revolutionary War, and later became the first 
president of the United States, serving from 1789 
to 1797. 
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Early Life and Family
Washington was born on February 22, 1732, in 
Westmoreland County, Virginia. He was the eldest 
of Augustine and Mary’s six children, all of whom 
survived into adulthood.
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Mount Vernon
In 1735, Augustine moved the family up the Potomac River to 
another Washington family home, Little Hunting Creek 
Plantation later renamed Mount Vernon. 
They moved again in 1738 to Ferry Farm on the Rappahannock 
River, opposite Fredericksburg, Virginia, where Washington 
spent much of his youth.
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Childhood and Education
It is known that from age seven to 15, Washington 
was home-schooled and studied with the local 
church sexton and later a schoolmaster in practical 
math, geography, Latin and the English classics. 
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Pre-Revolutionary Military 
Career
In the early 1750s, France and Britain were at peace. 
However, the French military had begun occupying 
much of the Ohio Valley, protecting the King's land 
interests, particularly fur trappers and French 
settlers. But the borderlands of this area were unclear 
and prone to dispute between the two countries. 
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French and Indian War
On October 31, 1753, Dinwiddie sent Washington to 
Fort LeBoeuf, at what is now Waterford, Pennsylvania, 
to warn the French to remove themselves from land 
claimed by Britain. The French politely refused and 
Washington made a hasty ride back to Williamsburg, 
Virginia's colonial capital. 
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Commander of Virginia Troops
In August 1755, Washington was made commander 
of all Virginia troops at age 23. He was sent to the 
frontier to patrol and protect nearly 400 miles of 
border with some 700 ill-disciplined colonial troops 
and a Virginia colonial legislature unwilling to 
support him
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Martha Washington
A month after leaving the army, Washington 
married Martha Dandridge Custis, a widow, who 
was only a few months older than he. Martha 
brought to the marriage a considerable fortune: an 
18,000-acre estate, from which Washington 
personally acquired 6,000 acres. 
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American Revolution
Though the British Proclamation Act of 1763 
prohibiting settlement beyond the Alleghenies 
irritated Washington and he opposed the Stamp Act of 
1765, he did not take a leading role in the growing 
colonial resistance against the British until the 
widespread protest of the Townshend Acts in 1767. 
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George Washington: Presidency
During the presidential election of 1789, he 
received a vote from every elector to the Electoral 
College, the only president in American history to 
be elected by unanimous approval. He took the 
oath of office at Federal Hall in New York City, the 
capital of the United States at the time
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Accomplishments
During his first term, Washington adopted a series of measures 
proposed by Treasury Secretary Hamilton to reduce the nation's 
debt and place its finances on sound footing. 
His administration also established several peace treaties with 
Native American tribes and approved a bill establishing the 
nation's capital in a permanent district along the Potomac River. 
Source: www.biography.com
Death
On a cold December day in 1799, Washington spent 
much of it inspecting the farm on horseback in a 
driving snowstorm. When he returned home, he 
hastily ate his supper in his wet clothes and then 
went to bed. 
Source: www.biography.com