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What Made George Washington a Good Military Leader?
—Curriculum Unit Overview—
…tactics…is only a small part of generalship. For a general must also be capable of furnishing military equipment and providing supplies for the men; he must be resourceful, active, careful, hardy and quick-witted; he must be both gentle and brutal, at once straightforward and designing, capable of both caution and surprise, lavish and rapacious, generous and mean, skilful in defense and attack; and there are many other qualifications, some natural, some acquired, that are necessary to one who would succeed as a general.
—Attributed to Socrates in The Memorabilia (3.1.5-3.1.6) by Xenophon
on the EDSITEment resource The Perseus Digital Library
I cannot insist too strongly how I was surprised by the American Army. It is truly incredible that troops almost naked, poorly paid, and composed of old men and children and Negroes should behave so well on the march and under fire.
—Attributed to a French Officer in George Washington: Life Before the Presidency
on the EDSITEment-reviewed website The American President
Introduction
George Washington's early military career (1754-1758)—during the Seven Years' War—was not uniformly successful. In his first battle, he and his men were ambushed and forced to surrender Fort Necessity on the Pennsylvania frontier. Washington's reputation for leadership and courage was based on his actions in another defeat at the hands of the French. In that battle, at Fort Duquesne (1755, often called the "Battle of the Wilderness" or "Braddock's Defeat"), Washington had two horses shot from under him and eventually had to assume command from the mortally wounded General Edward Braddock. Washington led the surviving British and Colonial soldiers on a successful retreat.
Later (1775-1783), Washington would lead the Patriots to a surprising victory over Great Britain, "…the best-trained, best-equipped fighting force in the Western world. …Although he lost most of his battles with the British, year after year he held his ragtag, hungry army together"—from the EDSITEment resource The American President.
What combination of experience, strategy, and personal characteristics enabled Washington to succeed as a military leader?
In this unit, students will read the Continental Congress's resolutions granting powers to General Washington; analyze some of Washington's wartime orders, dispatches, and correspondence in terms of his mission and the characteristics of a good general; and study—with frequent reference to primary material—four battles. In the final lesson in the unit, students will take one last measure of Washington. They will examine his words in response to a proposal that he become the head of a military dictatorship and a movement among some disaffected soldiers to circumvent civilian authority.
Guiding Questions
- What qualities made George Washington an effective military leader? These
qualities should be reflected in discussions of the following:
- What was Washington's military background before the American Revolution?
- What was Washington's approach to military discipline?
- What was Washington's basic strategy for defeating the British?
- What were some specific tactics Washington employed in battle?
- How important was Washington's personal charisma to the success of the
Patriots?
- How were the responsibilities of the Commander-in-Chief affected by conditions
during the Revolutionary War?
- How did Washington's responses to these challenges demonstrate his ability
to handle a wide range of problems? These conditions included:
- The uneasy relationship between civil authorities and the military, including
the inability of the military or the Continental Congress to compel individual
states to assist the war effort.
- The advantages of fighting on home soil.
- The problem of keeping troops supplied.
- The presence of many colonists loyal to the British crown.
- The difficulty of defeating the powerful British.
Learning Objectives
After completing the lessons in this unit, students will be able to:
- List qualities they believe made George Washington an effective military leader.
- List some practical lessons Washington may have learned from his early military experiences.
- Discuss some difficulties Washington faced as Commander-in-Chief.
- Discuss how Washington responded to the difficulties he faced as the leader of the Continental Army.
- Give examples of Washington's leadership during one or more Revolutionary War battles.
- Summarize briefly the Newburgh Conspiracy.
- Describe Washington's response to the Newburgh Conspiracy.
Preparing to Teach This Curriculum Unit
- Review the lesson plan. Locate and bookmark suggested materials and other
useful websites. Download and print out documents you will use and duplicate
copies as necessary for student viewing.
- Download the blackline masters
for this lesson, available here as a PDF file. Print out and make an appropriate
number of copies of any handouts you plan to use in class.
- For a general introduction to George Washington, the man, read The
Surprising George Washington by Richard Norton Smith from Prologue Online
Magazine, Spring 1994, Vol. 26, No. 1, available on the EDSITEment resource
Digital Classroom.
For a condensed but complete summary of the life and achievements of George
Washington, read the complete entry for George
Washington on the EDSITEment-reviewed website The
American President.
- For background on the nature of the Revolutionary War, read the essay The
Wars of the American Revolution on Liberty!
The American Revolution, a link from the EDSITEment resource American
Memory. You may wish to have students read this essay as well, particularly
if they have not had recent background on the Revolutionary War.
- The qualities that make anyone an effective leader, military or otherwise,
are difficult to pinpoint. Washington's many leadership successes commanding
the Continental Army, heading the Constitutional Convention, and serving as
President of the United States make him an obvious choice as a subject for
analysis. But there is no comprehensive list of Washington's leadership qualities
to use as a standard to evaluate student responses. The process of historical
research is at the center of this unit. Students will benefit in other ways
as well. In scrutinizing the challenges Washington faced, they will better
understand the Revolutionary War, especially the problems faced by the Patriots.
- In this unit, students read and analyze a variety of primary documents.
The following materials from EDSITEment resources may be useful to teachers
seeking expert advice on the use of primary documents:
Unit Lessons
Selected EDSITEment Websites
- American Memory
[http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amhome.html]
- 1st
Virginia Regiment to George Washington, December 31, 1758
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(lw030097))]
- A
Spy is Sent to Trenton: George Washington to William Alexander,
Lord Stirling,
et al, December 14, 1776
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw060282))]
- George Washington
Papers
[http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gwhtml/gwhome.html]
- George
Washington to Charles Cornwallis, October 18, 1781
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw230258))]
- George
Washington to Continental Congress, December 14, 1777
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw100167))]
- George
Washington to Continental Congress, December 23, 1777
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw100200))]
- George
Washington to Continental Congress, November 14, 1779
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw170141))]
- George
Washington to Continental Congress, November 5, 1779
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw170107))]
- George
Washington to Continental Congress, October 16, 1781
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw230248))]
- George
Washington to Continental Congress, October 19, 1781
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw230265))]
- George
Washington to Continental Congress, September 11, 1777:
Report on the Battle
of Brandywine
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw090211))]
- George
Washington to Continental Congress, September 8, 1780
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw200022))]
- George
Washington to David Waterbury, June 13, 1781
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw220235))]
- George
Washington to Israel Putnam, December 25, 1776
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw060334))]
- George
Washington to John Armstrong, January 10, 1783
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field(DOCID+@lit(gw260041))]
- George
Washington to Marquis de Lafayette, June 25, 1778
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw120150))]
- George
Washington to William Heath, June 13, 1781
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw220230))]
- George
Washington, October 3, 1777, General Orders
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw090316))]
- George
Washington, October 5, 1777, General Orders
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw090319))]
- George
Washington, September 3, 1777, General Orders
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw090175))]
- George
Washington, September 4, 1777, General Orders
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw090184))]
- George
Washington, September 6, 1777, General Orders
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw090194))]
- George
Washington, September 7, 1777, General Orders
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw090197))]
- Journals
of the Continental Congress, 1774-1789: Friday, December 27, 1776
(Congress
Expands Washington's Powers)
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/hlaw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(jc00661))]
- Lesson:
George Washington: First in War, First in Peace,
and First in the Hearts
of His Countrymen
[http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpedu/lessons/gw/gw1.html]
- Letter
to Governor William Greene, June 2, 1781
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/collection/war_1781jun2.html]
- Report
to Congress on the Battle of Trenton: George Washington to Continental Congress,
January 5, 1777
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw060360))]
- Series 3 Letterbooks.
Varick Transcripts: Continental Army Papers. 1775-1783
[http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gwhtml/gwseries3.html]
- Series 4 General
Correspondence 1697-1799
[http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gwhtml/gwser4.html]
- Something
Must Be Attempted to Revive Our Expiring Credit: George Washington to Joseph
Spencer, December 22, 1776
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw060324))]
- Trenton:
The Plan of Attack
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw060334))]
- Washington
Accepting His Commission
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=lljc&fileName=002/lljc002.
db&recNum=91]
- Washington
Describes the Battle of Trenton to Alexander McDougall,
December 28, 1776
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mgw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(gw060341))]
- Washington's
Commission
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=lljc&fileName=002/lljc002.
db&recNum=95]
- Washington's
Instructions
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=lljc&fileName=002/lljc002.
db&recNum=99]
- American Memory:
Sources
[http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/sources.html]
- PBS: Liberty! The
American Revolution
[http://www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/index.html]
- Before
the Battle of Trenton
[http://www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/chronicle_trenton1776.html]
- Miraculous
Convergence
- [http://www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/chronicle_yorktown1781.html]
- Yorktown
is Won
[http://www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/chronicle_yorktown1781.html]
- PBS: Rediscovering George
Washington
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/]
- Gilder
Lehman Document Collection:
George Washington, Revolutionary War Years
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/collection/revolutionary_war.html]
- Letter
to Governor William Greene, June 2, 1781
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/collection/war_1781jun2.html]
- Letter
to Henry Knox, November 16, 1775
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/collection/war_1775nov16.html]
- Letter
to Henry Laurens, December 14, 1777
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/collection/war_1777dec14.html]
- Letter
to John Taylor, December 11, 1775
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/collection/war_1775dec11.html]
- Letter
to Lewis Nicola (text/audio read by Charlton Heston)
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/multimedia/heston/lewis_nicola.html]
- Letter
to the General Officers of the Army, October 26, 1777
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/collection/war_1777oct26.html]
- Letter
to the President of the Convention of New Hampshire, January 23, 1777
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/collection/war_1777jan23.html]
- Letter
to the State of New Hampshire, December 29, 1777
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/collection/war_1777dec29.html]
- Speech
to Officers at Newburgh (multimedia background in audio/text of speech)
[http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/multimedia/arnn/newburgh.html]
- The American President
[http://www.americanpresident.org/]
- George
Washington
[http://www.americanpresident.org/history/GeorgeWashington/]
- America's
First Hero
[http://www.americanpresident.org/history/GeorgeWashington/biography/
resources/articles/kunhardtwashingtonbio.article.shtml]
- Life
Before the Presidency
[http://www.americanpresident.org/history/GeorgeWashington/biography/
LifeBeforePresidency.common.shtml]
- Domestic
Affairs
[http://www.americanpresident.org/history/GeorgeWashington/biography/
DomesticAffairs.common.shtml]
- Foreign
Affairs
[http://www.americanpresident.org/history/GeorgeWashington/biography/
ForeignAffairs.common.shtml]
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