History Book: The father of the republic

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JENNY ROUGH, HOST: Today is Monday, September 15th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Jenny Rough.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher. Up next, the WORLD History Book.

Long before monuments bore his name, George Washington’s leadership carved the very office of the presidency into history.

WORLD’s Emma Eicher reports.

EMMA EICHER: On September 17th, 1787, George Washington signs his own name to a newly adopted Constitution, the first man to do so after months of intense debate. Here’s biographer Walter Isaacson in The First American documentary.

WALTER ISAACSON: There’s something very deep about understanding the people who founded our country, because they’re the ones who imprinted our DNA. They’re the ones who said, ‘Here are our values.’

Founding Fathers and state delegates fall in line behind him to add their own signatures.

ISAACSON: And we’ve become the greatest Republic in the history of the earth, and it’s because of the values that they imparted to us.

Washington presides over the Constitutional Convention, drafting a new charter over the course of several months. He hopes this might be his last act of public service. He’s tired after seven years of the Revolutionary War and just wants to tend to his farm.

Gay Hart Gaines is a former vice regent for the historic site of Washington’s home, Mount Vernon.

GAY HART GAINES: He didn’t want to do it. And they begged him, because they knew they needed his gravitas when he entered the room, that he was the hero, and with him in the room it might happen. And finally he said, ‘I’ll do it, but only if we succeed.’

When the Convention wraps up, Washington prepares to head home. But his friends won’t let him go just yet. They ask him to make one more sacrifice to be President of a young United States.

Joseph Ellis is a historian specializing in the American founding.

JOSEPH ELLIS: I would say that no president in American history did not want to be president more than George Washington. He didn’t think of the presidency as the capstone to his career, he thought of it as an epilogue. And if he could’ve gotten out of doing it, he would have.

Washington spends the next 8 years building a new government from the ground up. Literally. It’s up to Washington to define what the presidential office should look like and where it should be located.

In 1790, Congress gives Washington the power to find a permanent home for the federal government. Maryland and Virginia give land for the eventual capital of the United States.

At first, it’s called Columbia. But in 1791, city officials rename it in George Washington’s honor.

Jane Hampton Cook is an author and former White House staffer.

JANE COOK: The Constitution was vague enough on how the executive should be organized, so Washington put pillars into the building.

On September 18th, 1793, crowds gather for a parade—complete with two brass bands—going from the White House construction site to the Capitol Building site. In a ceremony, Washington lays the cornerstone for the Capitol Building with an inscribed silver plate underneath.

That silver plate has never been found, and 232 years later, the current Architect of the Capitol is still looking for it.

Washington travels often to oversee construction in D.C. But the buildings are largely unfinished by the time Washington drafts his farewell address on September 17th, 1796. It’s the end of his second term, and even though citizens beg him for a third, he refuses.

H.W. Brands is an American historian.

H.W. BRANDS: Washington could have remained in office as long as he wanted, but by voluntarily stepping down, and this at a time when the Constitution did not require that, he said, ‘Two is enough.” And this set a precedent for presidents right down to the 20th century.

Washington’s presidency is marked by his own principles and spiritual beliefs. He’s a lifelong Anglican, but encourages religious tolerance during his presidency. And in his Farewell Address, he emphasizes the importance of religion.

Here’s Newt Gingrich, a former American politician and professor of history.

NEWT GINGRICH: He writes, ‘Of all the dispositions and habits that lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.’

Washington warns against dividing into political parties which would pit Americans against each other. And he discourages partisanship, fearing it would cause a spirit of revenge.

In March of 1797, Washington returns to his farm, Mount Vernon. By day he oversees the plantation, and by night he and his wife Martha entertain guests.

Washington updates his will by the end of 1799, not knowing his life will soon be over. One of the most notable provisions is that all his slaves he owned at Mount Vernon will be freed after Martha’s death.

Edward Lengel is an author and military historian.

EDWARD LENGEL: He is more important for us in the 21st century as an example than he was perhaps at any time since was alive.

On December 14th, Washington unexpectedly passes away from an illness at 67 years-old. And to this day, his legacy endures as the founder of the capital, and then as the Father of America.

LENGEL: I think Americans need him now as a unifying force of what it means to serve, what it means to sacrifice for the nation.

That’s this week’s WORLD History Book. I’m Emma Eicher.

ROUGH: All audio from the documentary The First American, produced by the Gingrich Foundation and Peace River company.

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