It is January 22nd. Welcome to Episode 22 of History in a Year. Today, the long war finally ends. We watch the British fleet sail out of New York Harbor, leaving behind a greased flagpole as a final insult. We witness the tearful, silent farewell between George Washington and his “Band of Brothers” at Fraunces Tavern. But the true climax comes in Annapolis, Maryland, where the American Cincinnatus walks into the State House to do what no victorious general in history had ever done: give up absolute power and go home.
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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 January 22nd. Welcome to Episode 22. Yesterday, we watched George Washington stop a military coup at Newburgh with a pair of reading glasses. He saved the soul of the Revolution, but the war itself was still dragging on in a strange twilight.
LEAH:
By the summer of 1783, everyone was just waiting. The fighting had stopped, but the diplomats in Paris were still arguing over the fine print.
STEPHEN:
Finally, on September 3, 1783, the Treaty of Paris was signed. It was a triumph for the Americans. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay had negotiated an incredible deal.
LEAH:
Britain recognized the United States as a sovereign, independent nation. They agreed to remove all their troops. And they gave the U.S. a massive amount of territory—everything from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River. The United States instantly became one of the largest countries in the world.
STEPHEN:
But signing a paper is one thing. Getting the British Army to actually leave New York City was another.
LEAH:
New York had been occupied for seven years. It was the British headquarters. There were thousands of troops, and thousands of Loyalists who were terrified of being left behind. Sir Guy Carleton, the British commander, had to organize a massive evacuation fleet to take these refugees to Canada and England.
STEPHEN:
It took months. But finally, the date was set. November 25, 1783. “Evacuation Day.”
LEAH:
It was a cold, clear morning. George Washington marched his army down from Harlem to the outskirts of the city. He waited at the barrier on the Bowery until exactly 1:00 PM, when the British rear guard marched toward the boats.
STEPHEN:
As the British left, the Americans marched in. But there was one final, petty insult waiting for them.
LEAH:
At Fort George, at the tip of Manhattan (where the Battery is today), the Americans wanted to raise the Stars and Stripes as the British ships sailed away. But when they got to the flagpole, they found the halyards (the ropes) had been cut. The cleats had been knocked off. And the pole itself had been slathered in grease.
STEPHEN:
The British sailors were laughing from their ships, thinking, “Let’s see you raise your flag now.”
LEAH:
But they underestimated American ingenuity. A sailor named John Van Arsdale ran to a nearby ironmonger’s shop. He grabbed some cleats, a hammer, and some nails. He tied the nails around his neck, grabbed the greasy pole, and started to climb.
STEPHEN:
He nailed a cleat, climbed up, nailed another, climbed up. It took a while, but he made it to the top. He rigged a new rope and raised the American flag. The crowds below cheered. The British cannons fired a sullen salute, and then they sailed over the horizon. The war was physically over.
LEAH:
Washington stayed in the city for a few days for the celebrations. There were fireworks, dinners, and toasts. But Washington wasn’t in a partying mood. He was exhausted. He just wanted to go home.
STEPHEN:
On December 4, 1783, he gathered his officers for one last time. They met at Fraunces Tavern on Pearl Street. The building is actually still there today—you can go have lunch in the same room.
LEAH:
It was the “Long Room” on the second floor. A table was set with wine and food. But nobody was eating. The room was filled with the men who had been with him since the beginning. Henry Knox. Baron von Steuben. Benjamin Lincoln. Alexander Hamilton.
STEPHEN:
These men had grown gray together. They had seen their friends die. They had starved together. They were a “Band of Brothers” long before that phrase was famous.
LEAH:
Washington entered the room. He was usually so stoic, so controlled. But on this day, he was overcome with emotion. His voice broke.
STEPHEN:
He poured a glass of wine and said: “With a heart full of love and gratitude, I now take leave of you. I most devoutly wish that your latter days may be as prosperous and happy as your former ones have been glorious and honorable.”
LEAH:
He drank the wine. Then he said, “I cannot come to each of you, but shall feel obliged if each of you will come and take me by the hand.”
STEPHEN:
Henry Knox, the big artilleryman who had dragged the cannons from Ticonderoga, was the closest. He stepped forward. Washington gripped his hand, and then, unable to help himself, he hugged him. Both men were weeping.
LEAH:
One by one, the officers came forward. Steuben, McDougall, Tallmadge. Washington hugged each one and kissed them on the cheek. No one said a word. The only sound in the room was weeping.
STEPHEN:
After the last man, Washington turned, walked to the door, and raised his hand in a silent wave. He walked out of the tavern, through a line of light infantry, and boarded a barge at Whitehall.
LEAH:
He was leaving the army. But he still had one last job to do. He had to resign his commission.
STEPHEN:
He rode south to Annapolis, Maryland, where the Continental Congress was meeting. He arrived on December 19th.
LEAH:
This is the moment that makes the American Revolution different from almost every other revolution in history.
STEPHEN:
Usually, the victorious general keeps the power. Caesar crossed the Rubicon and became Dictator. Cromwell became Lord Protector. Napoleon became Emperor. Power is addictive. And Washington had absolute power. The army worshipped him. The people adored him. He could have been King George I of America very easily.
LEAH:
King George III in London asked the painter Benjamin West what Washington would do now. West said, “They say he will return to his farm.”
STEPHEN:
The King was stunned. He said, “If he does that, he will be the greatest man in the world.”
LEAH:
On December 23, 1783, the Annapolis State House was packed. The gallery was full of ladies. The delegates sat with their hats on—a symbol that the civilian authority was superior to the military.
STEPHEN:
At noon, Washington entered. He bowed to the Congress. They bowed back, but did not take off their hats.
LEAH:
Washington took his speech out of his pocket. His hands were shaking. You can actually see the original manuscript today at the Library of Congress—it trembles in his handwriting.
STEPHEN:
He spoke for only a few minutes. He thanked the army. He commended his officers. And then he reached the climax.
LEAH:
He said: “Having now finished the work assigned me, I retire from the great theatre of Action; and bidding an Affectionate farewell to this August body under whose orders I have so long acted, I here offer my Commission, and take my leave of all the employments of public life.”
STEPHEN:
He pulled the parchment commission—the piece of paper they had given him in 1775—from his coat. He handed it to the President of Congress, Thomas Mifflin.
LEAH:
It was done. In that second, the most powerful man in America became a private citizen.
STEPHEN:
Observers said there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. It was the ultimate act of civic virtue. He gave it all back.
LEAH:
He walked out of the State House, mounted his horse, and rode for Mount Vernon. It was Christmas Eve.
STEPHEN:
He arrived home at twilight. The candles were lit. Martha was waiting at the door. For the first time in eight years, he wasn’t “The General.” He was just “George.”
LEAH:
He wrote to a friend a few days later: “I am become a private citizen on the banks of the Potomac, and under the shadow of my own Vine and my own Fig-tree, free from the bustle of a camp and the busy scenes of public life.”
STEPHEN:
He truly believed he was done. He thought the American Revolution was over, and he could live out his days as a farmer.
LEAH:
But history wasn’t done with George Washington. Because the government he left behind—the Articles of Confederation—was a disaster waiting to happen.
STEPHEN:
The United States was free, yes. But it wasn’t united. It was thirteen squabbling little countries held together by a “Rope of Sand.”
LEAH:
Join us tomorrow for Episode 23. We enter the “Critical Period” of the 1780s. We see a nation collapsing under debt, trade wars, and worthless money. And we see why the American experiment almost failed before it even really began.
STEPHEN:
I’m Leah.
LEAH:
And I’m Stephen.
STEPHEN:
You can find every episode at PointedWords.com. And this… is our story.