George Washington

George Washington is called "the father of his country" for his crucial role in fighting for, creating and leading the United States of America in its earliest days. George Washington was a surveyor, farmer and soldier who rose to command the Colonial forces in the Revolutionary War. He held the ragtag Continental Army together -- most famously during a frigid encampment at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania during the winter of 1777-78 -- and eventually led them to victory over the British. His success in the war made him a tremendously popular figure in America even after he retired to his farm at Mount Vernon in 1783. He was the natural choice to serve as the country's first president in 1789 after the new United States Constitution was ratified. He served two terms, refused a third, and returned to his Virginia plantation. In 1798, George Washington was again commissioned as Commander in Chief of the Army, a title he held until his death 18 months later. He was succeeded as president by John Adams. George Washington married the widow Martha Dandridge Custis in 1759, and she was First Lady during his years as president. They had no children together, but George Washington adopted Martha’s children John and Martha.