George Washington

by Henry Cabot Lodge

Originally published in 1889, George Washington is the first volume in a series of biographies of the Founding Fathers and succeeding generations of like-minded Americans to be reissued. This is a welcome opportunity to remind this generation of leaders of the great story of liberty. In an age when politicians abound but statesmen are all too rare, Henry Cabot Lodge's portrayal of Washington is timelier than ever. According to the majority of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century historians, the most remarkable event during America's founding era did not take place on battlefields, during the course of the great constitutional debates, or in the midst of diplomatic negotiations with European powers. It occurred instead when the field commander of the Continental army--Gen. George Washington--surrendered his commission to congressional authorities at Annapolis in a humble demonstration of what it means to be a leader who serves the nation instead of himself. At the time, Washington was the idol of the country and his soldiers. The army was unpaid, and the veteran troops, well-armed and fresh from their victory at Yorktown, were eager to have him take control of the disordered country. Some wanted to make him a king. Others thought to make him a dictator--like Cromwell had been a century earlier in England. It was clear to all that Washington was first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen.""""

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, Presidents

588 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1889

About the author

Henry Cabot Lodge, Ph.D. (History, Harvard University, 1876; M.A., Harvard; LLB, Harvard, 1874; B.A., Harvard College, 1972) was a historian and biographer who was elected U.S. Senator for Massachusetts on the Republican ticket six times, where he served as the first de facto Senate Majority Leader, a position first formally held by his immediate successor, Charles Curtis.

Lodge served on the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution. He held the Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 1919 until his death, and his staunch opposition to Woodrow Wilson's Treaty of Versailles ensured that the United States never joined the League of Nations and influenced the structure of the later United Nations, to which his grandson, Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., served as U.S. Ambassador, 1953–60.

Reviews

[Doreen Petersen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good read!!!

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best biography of George Washington I've read. Lodge does a fantastic job of providing insight into the character of Washington, and counters some of the popular misconceptions of Washington being a snob and a gold-digger. It's a long book and can be a challenge because of the writing style. It made George Washington become my all-time hero.

[Joseph · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a real good account about George Washington written by an author at the turn of the 1900's. So the book was written over 100 years ago, but it seemed really fresh and easy to read. The author seemed to really like and admire Washington.

I enjoyed it because I wanted to read more biographies about people and I figure the first should go to America's first true hero. What he accomplished just amazed me. I knew most of what he did, but I got a better appreciation of him and what he did to lead us against Britain rule and his sacrifices into the early stages of independence. Just remarkable.

The only down turn of the book was the author used so many last names of US generals and British generals/people that you pretty much had to remember history or you could not really get lost, but you wouldn't know who these people were. I remembered some from school, but not everyone. A couple names I just had to say ok, I guess someone from Britian... The other part was the chapters were very long, especially the last one of over 60 pages (in all it is 490 pages). Most of that is just the author writing about this or that and most of it I skipped.

But overall a good book.

[Emily]

Still at this one because it's huge but it's really well written and possibly one of the best biographies I've ever read.

[Sandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started off interesting, but didn't hold my interest.

[Leslie]

I found this on the following website.

https://www.questia.com/read/9012542/...