It is February 13th. Welcome to Episode 44 of History in a Year. Today, the Father of the Country decides it is time to go home. After eight grueling years in office, George Washington refuses to run for a third term, setting a precedent that will define the American presidency. We explore the creation of his famous “Farewell Address”—a letter never actually spoken out loud—where he issues a prophetic warning to the American people about the dangers of political parties, the threat of a North-South divide, and the trap of foreign wars.
STEPHEN:
Welcome to History in a Year: America’s First 250 Years.
LEAH:
Join us every single day as we journey from the Revolution of 1776 to the 250th anniversary of the United States.
STEPHEN:
You can find every episode and join the discussion at PointedWords.com. I’m Stephen.
LEAH:
And I’m Leah.
STEPHEN:
It is February 13th. Welcome to Episode 44. Yesterday, we wallowed in the mud of the Reynolds Pamphlet.
LEAH:
We saw Alexander Hamilton destroy his own political future. And while Hamilton was stepping away from the spotlight in disgrace, the man who had held the country together for eight years was preparing his own exit.
STEPHEN:
George Washington.
LEAH:
It is 1796. Washington is 64 years old. And he is exhausted.
STEPHEN:
He had never really wanted to be President in the first place. He had tried to retire back in 1792 after his first term. But Hamilton and Jefferson—who agreed on nothing else—both begged him to stay. They told him the country would fall apart without him.
LEAH:
But by 1796, Washington had had enough. The political climate had become toxic. Remember how he hated factions? Well, now the country was completely split between Federalists and Democratic-Republicans.
STEPHEN:
And the press was brutal. Writers like Philip Freneau and Benjamin Franklin Bache (Ben Franklin’s grandson!) were attacking Washington every day. They called him a monarchist, a hypocrite, and a dictator.
LEAH:
Washington complained that he was being described “in such exaggerated and indecent terms as could scarcely be applied to a Nero, a notorious defaulter, or even to a common pickpocket.”
STEPHEN:
Plus, he was physically declining. His dentures were incredibly painful. His hearing was fading. He just wanted to go back to Mount Vernon and sit under his own vine and fig tree.
LEAH:
So, he made a decision that shocked the world. He decided not to run for a third term.
STEPHEN:
This is arguably his greatest gift to the United States. In a world ruled by kings and emperors who held onto power until they died, Washington voluntarily walked away.
LEAH:
He established the two-term limit—a precedent that every President followed for the next 144 years, until FDR. It proved that the Presidency was an office, not a person.
STEPHEN:
But before he left, he had some things he wanted to say to the American people. A final piece of advice.
LEAH:
He asked Alexander Hamilton to help him draft a letter. (James Madison had actually written a draft four years earlier, and Hamilton used that as a starting point, heavily rewriting it with Washington’s guidance).
STEPHEN:
On September 19, 1796, the letter was published in a Philadelphia newspaper, the American Daily Advertiser.
LEAH:
It is known as Washington’s Farewell Address. And despite the name, he never actually read it out loud as a speech. It was an open letter to the citizens of the United States.
STEPHEN:
It is one of the most important documents in American history. And reading it today is almost eerie, because his warnings are exactly the things that tear us apart now.
LEAH:
He issued three massive warnings.
STEPHEN:
Warning Number One: Sectionalism.
LEAH:
Washington was terrified that the country would split geographically. North vs. South. East vs. West. He begged Americans to realize that what they had in common was far more important than their local differences. He said the name “American” must always exalt the just pride of patriotism.
STEPHEN:
Warning Number Two: Political Parties.
LEAH:
He called them the “baneful effects of the spirit of party.” He warned that political factions would tear the country apart from the inside. He said that eventually, people would care more about their “team” winning than about the good of the nation.
STEPHEN:
He warned that this constant partisan warfare would open the door for a cunning, ambitious tyrant to seize power, not to help the country, but just to punish his political enemies.
LEAH:
(The irony, of course, is that Alexander Hamilton—the leader of the Federalist party—was the one holding the pen as they wrote this warning about parties).
STEPHEN:
And finally, Warning Number Three: Foreign Entanglements.
LEAH:
He said the United States should trade with everyone but form permanent military alliances with no one. He warned that if we attached ourselves to Europe’s hatreds and wars, we would become slaves to their policies.
STEPHEN:
“Our detached and distant situation invites and enables us to pursue a different course,” he wrote. We have an ocean protecting us. Let’s use it.
LEAH:
When the letter was published, the reaction was overwhelming. People openly wept in the streets. For the first time, Americans realized they were going to have to survive without George Washington leading them.
STEPHEN:
The British, who had fought him for years, were stunned by his character. To walk away from absolute power… it was unheard of.
LEAH:
Washington spent his final months in office quietly. And then, he packed his bags for Virginia.
STEPHEN:
But his departure left a massive vacuum. For the first time in American history, there was going to be a real, contested Presidential Election.
LEAH:
The Federalists lined up behind Vice President John Adams. The Democratic-Republicans lined up behind Thomas Jefferson.
STEPHEN:
And the gloves came off.
LEAH:
Join us tomorrow for Episode 45. The Election of 1796. Best friends become bitter enemies. We watch the first true partisan election in American history, a nasty campaign that results in an incredibly awkward outcome: The President and the Vice President are from two different political parties.
STEPHEN:
I’m Stephen.
LEAH:
And I’m Leah.
STEPHEN:
You can find every episode at PointedWords.com. And this… is our story.