General George Washington’s Finest Hour

On December 4, 1783, General Washington gathered his officers together at Fraunces Tavern and bid them an emotional farewell. The next task was to resign his commission, no small matter for the man who had led the nation since June 1775. Washington recognized it was critical to the preservation of our republic that he relinquish his military power to civilian authority. Consequently, on December 23, Washington addressed Congress, then meeting in Annapolis, to resign his commission.

Tom Hand, creator and publisher of Americana Corner, discusses George Washington’s finest hour, and why it still matters today.

Images courtesy of Brown University Library, Library of Congress, National Portrait Gallery - Smithsonian Institution, The New York Public Library, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library, Yale University Art Gallery, Wikipedia.


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Aftermath of the Newburgh Conspiracy