With nothing but a pair of glasses and his matchless prestige, General George Washington prevented a military coup and saved the American Revolution from ruin at a tense meeting with the officers of the Continental Army in the Temple of Virtue, the officers’ assembly hall at the army’s encampment in the Newburgh-New Windsor area of New York on March 15, 1783. The dawning of the year 1783 found the officers of the Continental Army on the verge of revolt against the Confederati

Character, duty, honor, country, trust, and responsibility. Those are six of the most important words that define the life and legacy of George Washington. America’s revolutionary generation knew that the storybook of mankind was replete with examples of ambitious men who took advantage of unique moments in history to seize power for themselves and to never give it up. With the massive popularity and power that he wielded as the commander and chief of the Continental Army dur

After learning of the crushing Union defeat at the Battle of Fredericksburg in December 1862, President Abraham Lincoln said that “if there is a worse place than hell I am in it.” When Pennsylvania Governor Andrew G. Curtin described the terrible scenes of slaughter from that battle, Lincoln, his face “darkened with pain,” “moaned and groaned in anguish,” “showed great agony of spirit,” and “walked the floor, wringing his hands and uttering exclamations of grief.” In that gri

Author Jonathan Horn has written some terrific works of history. In honor of Horn’s birthday this week, here are a few thoughts on the great volumes he has produced so far. After almost two decades of uninterrupted service to his country during the Revolutionary War, at the Constitutional Convention, and as America’s first president, George Washington was ready to spend his final days in ease at his beloved home of Mount Vernon in Virginia. As much as he looked forward to his