Washington - A Life Part 2

Among his first purchases, Was.h.i.+ngton ordered ruffles, silk stockings, and gold and scarlet sword knots to complete his elegant costume as commander. He had already sketched out uniforms for his officers, telling them in vivid terms what they should don: blue coats with scarlet cuffs and facings, scarlet waistcoats trimmed with silver lace, and "every one to provide himself with a silver-laced hat of a fas.h.i.+onable size."4 From London, Was.h.i.+ngton also ordered two handsome livery suits, emblazoned with his coat of arms, for his servants. In several details, including the scarlet waistcoats and silver-laced hats, the livery suits matched the officers' uniforms, making it clear that Was.h.i.+ngton planned to ride about in high style, accompanied by fancily dressed servants and soldiers. From London, Was.h.i.+ngton also ordered two handsome livery suits, emblazoned with his coat of arms, for his servants. In several details, including the scarlet waistcoats and silver-laced hats, the livery suits matched the officers' uniforms, making it clear that Was.h.i.+ngton planned to ride about in high style, accompanied by fancily dressed servants and soldiers.

As chief of the Virginia Regiment, Was.h.i.+ngton confronted an awesome task, having to police a frontier 350 miles long against "the cruel incursions of a crafty, savage enemy," as he put it.5 He had to supervise fifty officers and a few hundred men and groused about "indolent" officers and "insolent" soldiers. He had to supervise fifty officers and a few hundred men and groused about "indolent" officers and "insolent" soldiers.6 As regimental commander, Was.h.i.+ngton received a comprehensive education in military skills, running the gamut from building barracks to arbitrating pay disputes. As he supervised every aspect of his operation, his phenomenal capacity for detail became apparent. A young man with a mission, Was.h.i.+ngton wanted to prove that he could transform colonial recruits into buffed and polished professionals on a par with anything England could muster. As always, he worked a.s.siduously at self-improvement, perusing Humphrey Bland's As regimental commander, Was.h.i.+ngton received a comprehensive education in military skills, running the gamut from building barracks to arbitrating pay disputes. As he supervised every aspect of his operation, his phenomenal capacity for detail became apparent. A young man with a mission, Was.h.i.+ngton wanted to prove that he could transform colonial recruits into buffed and polished professionals on a par with anything England could muster. As always, he worked a.s.siduously at self-improvement, perusing Humphrey Bland's A Treatise of Military Discipline, A Treatise of Military Discipline, a manual popular in the British Army. a manual popular in the British Army.

As he set up camp at Fort Dinwiddie in Winchester, Virginia, Was.h.i.+ngton ran into such a chaotic situation that he threatened to resign less than two months after taking the post. He told Dinwiddie that he couldn't commandeer a single horse in the area without threatening the inhabitants. The House of Burgesses had exempted property owners from the draft, leaving poor men to bear the common burden. Was.h.i.+ngton had a dreadful time raising troops in this rough, brawling area, where settlers resented coercive recruiting methods. In one letter, he gave a sharp tongue-las.h.i.+ng to a recruiting officer who had resorted to terror to collar men, chiding him for "forcibly taking, confining and torturing those who would not voluntarily enlist" and noting that this "not only cast a slur upon your own character, but reflect[ed] dishonour upon mine."7 Despite such warnings, Was.h.i.+ngton inspired considerable fear in the region, although he vowed to Dinwiddie that he would persevere until the inhabitants "execute what they threaten, i.e. 'to blow out my brains.'" Despite such warnings, Was.h.i.+ngton inspired considerable fear in the region, although he vowed to Dinwiddie that he would persevere until the inhabitants "execute what they threaten, i.e. 'to blow out my brains.'"8 When one captain informed Was.h.i.+ngton that, contrary to regimental rules, his company included two blacks and two mulattoes, the short-handed Was.h.i.+ngton allowed them to remain in an auxiliary capacity. When one captain informed Was.h.i.+ngton that, contrary to regimental rules, his company included two blacks and two mulattoes, the short-handed Was.h.i.+ngton allowed them to remain in an auxiliary capacity.

Once herded into service, the men deserted in droves, taking clothing and arms with them. Was.h.i.+ngton responded by clapping deserters into chains, throwing them into a "dark room," and flogging them vigorously. The only way to avert costly desertions, Was.h.i.+ngton avowed, was to "terrify the soldiers from such practices."9 In October 1755 he and Dinwiddie lobbied the Virginia a.s.sembly for a bill to permit the death sentence for mutiny, desertion, and willful disobedience. Although Was.h.i.+ngton wasn't a martinet, neither was he squeamish about meting out harsh punishment. His policy was to be tough but scrupulously fair, and his inflexible sense of justice didn't shrink from applying lashes to deserters. In 1756 he decreed the death penalty for one Henry Campbell, whom he labeled "a most atrocious villain" who "richly merits an ignominious death." In October 1755 he and Dinwiddie lobbied the Virginia a.s.sembly for a bill to permit the death sentence for mutiny, desertion, and willful disobedience. Although Was.h.i.+ngton wasn't a martinet, neither was he squeamish about meting out harsh punishment. His policy was to be tough but scrupulously fair, and his inflexible sense of justice didn't shrink from applying lashes to deserters. In 1756 he decreed the death penalty for one Henry Campbell, whom he labeled "a most atrocious villain" who "richly merits an ignominious death."10 Campbell had not only deserted but encouraged seven others to do so. Was.h.i.+ngton made a point of hanging people in public to deter others. His frontier experience only darkened his view of human nature, and he saw people as motivated more by force than by kindness. "Lenity, so far from producing its desired effects, rather emboldens them in these villainous undertakings," he told Dinwiddie. Campbell had not only deserted but encouraged seven others to do so. Was.h.i.+ngton made a point of hanging people in public to deter others. His frontier experience only darkened his view of human nature, and he saw people as motivated more by force than by kindness. "Lenity, so far from producing its desired effects, rather emboldens them in these villainous undertakings," he told Dinwiddie.11 Was.h.i.+ngton's methods, seemingly cruel to modern eyes, were standard practice in the British Army of his day. Was.h.i.+ngton's methods, seemingly cruel to modern eyes, were standard practice in the British Army of his day.

Was.h.i.+ngton remained a stickler for discipline, which he identified as "the soul of an army," and he encouraged military discipline even in private matters.12 Scornful of Virginia's licentious culture of gambling, whoring, and drinking, which was especially disruptive in an army, he set down strict moral standards for his men, and his use of corporal punishment gradually expanded. Unwilling to tolerate swearing, he warned that offenders would receive twenty-five lashes for uttering an oath, with more severe punishment reserved for second offenses. He was so upset by men "incessantly drunk and unfit for service" that he ordered fifty lashes for any man caught drinking in Winchester gin shops. Scornful of Virginia's licentious culture of gambling, whoring, and drinking, which was especially disruptive in an army, he set down strict moral standards for his men, and his use of corporal punishment gradually expanded. Unwilling to tolerate swearing, he warned that offenders would receive twenty-five lashes for uttering an oath, with more severe punishment reserved for second offenses. He was so upset by men "incessantly drunk and unfit for service" that he ordered fifty lashes for any man caught drinking in Winchester gin shops.13 As an antidote to such behavior, Was.h.i.+ngton lobbied for the appointment of a regimental chaplain. "Common decency, sir, in a camp calls for the services of a divine," Was.h.i.+ngton informed the Governor's Council, stating that such an appointment "ought not to be dispensed with, although the As an antidote to such behavior, Was.h.i.+ngton lobbied for the appointment of a regimental chaplain. "Common decency, sir, in a camp calls for the services of a divine," Was.h.i.+ngton informed the Governor's Council, stating that such an appointment "ought not to be dispensed with, although the world world should be so uncharitable as to think us void of religion and incapable of good instructions." should be so uncharitable as to think us void of religion and incapable of good instructions."14 With a sovereign faith in leaders.h.i.+p by example, Was.h.i.+ngton believed that courage and cowardice originated from the top of an army. As he wrote during the American Revolution: "This is the true secret . . . that wherever a regiment is well officered, the men have behaved well-when otherwise, ill-the [misconduct] or cowardly behavior always originating with the officers, who have set the example."15 Like his mother, Was.h.i.+ngton tended to stint on praise, reflecting his stoic belief that officers didn't need encouragement since they were simply doing their duty. When he offered praise, he was careful to direct it not at individuals, but at the regiment as a whole. Like his mother, Was.h.i.+ngton tended to stint on praise, reflecting his stoic belief that officers didn't need encouragement since they were simply doing their duty. When he offered praise, he was careful to direct it not at individuals, but at the regiment as a whole.

In his correspondence at the time, Was.h.i.+ngton comes across as a young man who couldn't step back, laugh at himself, or leaven responsibility with humor. Nevertheless he proved popular among his officers, who valued his courage, dignity, and even-handed treatment. "Our colonel is an example of fort.i.tude in either danger or hards.h.i.+ps and by his easy, polite behavior has gained not only the regard but affection of both officers and soldiers," wrote one officer.16 At the same time Was.h.i.+ngton's code of leaders.h.i.+p stipulated that, for maximum effect, the commander should be cordial but not too familiar, producing respect instead of affection. As one writer later summed up this strategy: "Power required distance, he seems to have reasoned, familiarity and intimacy eroded it." At the same time Was.h.i.+ngton's code of leaders.h.i.+p stipulated that, for maximum effect, the commander should be cordial but not too familiar, producing respect instead of affection. As one writer later summed up this strategy: "Power required distance, he seems to have reasoned, familiarity and intimacy eroded it."17 This view of leaders.h.i.+p unfortunately had a way of distancing Was.h.i.+ngton from his subordinates and preventing relaxed camaraderie. This view of leaders.h.i.+p unfortunately had a way of distancing Was.h.i.+ngton from his subordinates and preventing relaxed camaraderie.

From a strategic standpoint, Was.h.i.+ngton was frustrated by the wartime role that the a.s.sembly had a.s.signed to his regiment. While he advocated an offensive posture to end frontier raids by marching on Fort Duquesne, the a.s.sembly opted for a purely defensive stance, creating a string of frontier outposts. This, Was.h.i.+ngton noted cynically, was done "more with a view to quiet the fears of the inhabitants than from any expectation of giving security on so extensive a line to the settlements." 18 18 It thrust him into the untenable position of combating raids that never ended. In the meantime, the British s.h.i.+fted the major focus of the war to Canada and points north, leaving the Ohio Valley as a sideshow. This experience of being set up for failure, as he saw it, haunted Was.h.i.+ngton for the rest of his life. It thrust him into the untenable position of combating raids that never ended. In the meantime, the British s.h.i.+fted the major focus of the war to Canada and points north, leaving the Ohio Valley as a sideshow. This experience of being set up for failure, as he saw it, haunted Was.h.i.+ngton for the rest of his life.

While Was.h.i.+ngton was suffering from notoriety caused by tough recruiting methods, he stood for election to the House of Burgesses in Frederick County, which included Winchester. He was qualified to run there because his Bullskin Plantation lay in the region. Later in his career, the word defeat defeat never appeared in the Was.h.i.+ngton lexicon, but he took a sound drubbing in this first election. His friends entered his name at the last minute, which may account for his poor showing. Already interested in running for office, Was.h.i.+ngton may not have known that his friends had placed him in contention. At the time it was thought unseemly for candidates to engage in electioneering, so they relied on proxies, professing all the while a saintly indifference to power. Luckily for Was.h.i.+ngton, the age frowned upon direct, backslapping politics, which would never have suited his reticent style. never appeared in the Was.h.i.+ngton lexicon, but he took a sound drubbing in this first election. His friends entered his name at the last minute, which may account for his poor showing. Already interested in running for office, Was.h.i.+ngton may not have known that his friends had placed him in contention. At the time it was thought unseemly for candidates to engage in electioneering, so they relied on proxies, professing all the while a saintly indifference to power. Luckily for Was.h.i.+ngton, the age frowned upon direct, backslapping politics, which would never have suited his reticent style.

At the time there were no secret ballots. While an open voting system was thought to prevent corruption, it enhanced the power of landowners who could personally monitor how their tenants voted. Voters stepped forward to announce their votes, which were then recorded by clerks seated at a table. At the election in Winchester on December 10, 1755, Was.h.i.+ngton was crushed by his two opponents; Hugh West received 271 votes, Thomas Swearingen 270, and Was.h.i.+ngton a mere 40. His friend and fellow officer Adam Stephen tried to soften the blow by blaming his eleventh-hour entry into the race. "I think your poll was not despicable, as the people were a stranger [to] your purpose until the election began," he wrote.19 For future use, Was.h.i.+ngton pocketed a sheet with the voting tally, as if resolved to fare better next time. For future use, Was.h.i.+ngton pocketed a sheet with the voting tally, as if resolved to fare better next time.

As we recall, Was.h.i.+ngton had refrained from standing for election in Fairfax County because it would have pitted him against George William Fairfax, Sally's husband. According to legend, Was.h.i.+ngton attended the Fairfax County election and ended up in a heated exchange about George William with one William Payne, who favored an opposing candidate. Their confrontation grew so angry that Payne struck Was.h.i.+ngton with a stick, knocking him to the ground. When Was.h.i.+ngton got to his feet, he had to be restrained from a.s.saulting Payne. In the prevalent honor culture of the day, Was.h.i.+ngton might have been expected to issue an invitation to a duel. Instead, he sent Payne an apology forthwith. Whether true or apocryphal, the story squares with the fact that Was.h.i.+ngton never fought a duel and usually tried to harmonize differences after even the most withering arguments.

FROM HIS LOFTY PERCH atop the Virginia Regiment, Was.h.i.+ngton kept bucking for a royal commission. His frustration crested in late 1755, when he clashed with a man named John Dagworthy at Fort c.u.mberland on the Maryland frontier. As a colonial captain from Maryland, Dagworthy held a rank that seemed inferior to Was.h.i.+ngton's, but he claimed superior authority based on an old royal commission. Writing to Dinwiddie, Was.h.i.+ngton threatened to resign if he had to truckle to the hated Dagworthy. Dinwiddie appealed to Governor William s.h.i.+rley of Ma.s.sachusetts, a barrister who had succeeded Braddock as supreme commander of British forces in North America. Aiming at deeper inst.i.tutional change, Was.h.i.+ngton also wanted s.h.i.+rley to absorb his regiment into the regular British Army, removing the two-tiered system that had bedeviled him. Governor Dinwiddie granted him permission to travel to Boston so that he could confront s.h.i.+rley in person. When he set off for Boston in February 1756, Was.h.i.+ngton was accompanied by two aides and two slaves who sported the fine livery custom-made in London. In Philadelphia the young colonel, very das.h.i.+ng in his blue regimentals, enjoyed his first taste of a northern city and embarked on a shopping spree for clothing, hats, jewelry, and saddles. He was pleased by the clean, well-ordered town, which a friend was to tout to him as the peaceful home "of many nations and religions," while expressing admiration for "that great man Mr. Penn."20 Christopher Gist had already notified him that his fame had spread to the city. "Your name is more talked of in Philadelphia than that of any other person in the army," he had written the previous fall . Christopher Gist had already notified him that his fame had spread to the city. "Your name is more talked of in Philadelphia than that of any other person in the army," he had written the previous fall .21 In New York, Was.h.i.+ngton socialized with his friend Beverley Robinson, son of the powerful speaker of the Virginia House of Burgesses, and he may have entered into a romantic dalliance with Robinson's sister-in-law, Mary "Polly" Philipse. The twenty-six-year-old Polly would have been a prime catch for an upwardly mobile young man: she was slim, dark-haired, beautiful, and heiress to a colossal fortune. Unsubstantiated legend claims that Was.h.i.+ngton proposed marriage; if so, he lost out to Major Roger Morris, son of an English architect, who had fought with Was.h.i.+ngton at Braddock's defeat.

By the time he moved on to Boston, Was.h.i.+ngton's triumphal journey attracted considerable interest. When he arrived, the Boston Gazette Boston Gazette saluted him as "the Hon. Colonel Was.h.i.+ngton, a gentleman who has deservedly a high reputation of military skill, integrity, and valor, though success has not always attended his undertakings." saluted him as "the Hon. Colonel Was.h.i.+ngton, a gentleman who has deservedly a high reputation of military skill, integrity, and valor, though success has not always attended his undertakings." 22 22 Aside from Was.h.i.+ngton's military renown, Governor s.h.i.+rley may have had sentimental reasons for seeing him: his son had also acted as an aide to Braddock and was killed during the campaign. In presenting his grievances to the governor on March 5, 1756, Was.h.i.+ngton met with only mixed success. Although s.h.i.+rley confirmed that he possessed superior rank to Dagworthy, he wouldn't budge on other matters and rebuffed a pet.i.tion signed by Was.h.i.+ngton's officers for inclusion in the royal establishment. He also disappointed his young visitor by appointing Governor Sharpe of Maryland to lead the next campaign against Fort Duquesne-a military honor about which young George Was.h.i.+ngton already harbored a rich fund of fantasies. On his way home, the disappointed colonel stopped to confer with Sharpe, an interview that left him so dispirited that he "fully resolved to resign my commission." Aside from Was.h.i.+ngton's military renown, Governor s.h.i.+rley may have had sentimental reasons for seeing him: his son had also acted as an aide to Braddock and was killed during the campaign. In presenting his grievances to the governor on March 5, 1756, Was.h.i.+ngton met with only mixed success. Although s.h.i.+rley confirmed that he possessed superior rank to Dagworthy, he wouldn't budge on other matters and rebuffed a pet.i.tion signed by Was.h.i.+ngton's officers for inclusion in the royal establishment. He also disappointed his young visitor by appointing Governor Sharpe of Maryland to lead the next campaign against Fort Duquesne-a military honor about which young George Was.h.i.+ngton already harbored a rich fund of fantasies. On his way home, the disappointed colonel stopped to confer with Sharpe, an interview that left him so dispirited that he "fully resolved to resign my commission."23 Upon arriving in Williamsburg, he was somewhat a.s.suaged by news that the a.s.sembly had decided to expand Virginia's forces to fifteen hundred men. Upon arriving in Williamsburg, he was somewhat a.s.suaged by news that the a.s.sembly had decided to expand Virginia's forces to fifteen hundred men.

In these dealings with powerful older men, Was.h.i.+ngton hadn't yet developed the tact that would distinguish him in later life, and given his age, he seemed to bristle unduly at being a.s.signed a subordinate position. His emotions were still raw, and he exhibited a naked, sometimes clumsy ambition that he later learned to cloak or conquer. This young careerist brooded interminably over the discrimination leveled against colonial officers and betrayed a heightened sense of personal injustice-feelings that would a.s.sume a more impressive and impersonal ideological form during the American Revolution. Nevertheless there was a gravitas about the young Was.h.i.+ngton, a seriousness of purpose and a fierce determination to succeed, that made him stand out in any crowd.

AS SOON AS WAs.h.i.+NGTON returned to Winchester in early April, he confronted a fresh crisis. Indians had sacked so many settlements and slain so many inhabitants that the dazed surviving families looked to Was.h.i.+ngton as their savior. At first he could barely sc.r.a.pe up a few dozen men to mount a spirited defense and despaired of waging an equal battle with the Indians, telling Governor Dinwiddie that "the cunning and craft" of the Indians "are not to be equalled . . . They prowl about like wolves and, like them, do their mischief by stealth." He despaired of fighting them upon equal terms.24 Feeling embattled, Was.h.i.+ngton issued a plea for intercolonial union that foreshadowed his later stress on national unity. "Nothing I more sincerely wish than a union to the colonies in this time of eminent danger," he told Pennsylvania governor Robert Hunter Morris. Feeling embattled, Was.h.i.+ngton issued a plea for intercolonial union that foreshadowed his later stress on national unity. "Nothing I more sincerely wish than a union to the colonies in this time of eminent danger," he told Pennsylvania governor Robert Hunter Morris.25 Even as a young man, the complex Was.h.i.+ngton seldom had a single reason for his actions. His pursuit of self-interest and selfless dedication to public service were often intermingled, sometimes making it hard to disentangle his true motives. Perhaps for this reason, he could always discern both the base and the n.o.ble sides of human nature. For Was.h.i.+ngton, the French and Indian War presented few elevating ideas beyond the moral superiority of the British side. Nevertheless, his indignation about the savagery he purported to see practiced by his French and Indian foes seems heartfelt. He began to view himself as the self-styled champion of the backwoods people and was moved by their piteous plight. In a remarkable letter to Robert Dinwiddie on April 22, 1756, he made an impa.s.sioned statement about the murder of frontier families and his desire to alleviate their suffering.

I am too little acquainted, sir, with pathetic language to attempt a description of the people's distresses, though I have a generous soul, sensible of wrongs and swelling for redress. But what can I do? If bleeding, dying! would glut their insatiate revenge, I would be a willing offering to savage fury and die by inches to save a people! I see see their situation, their situation, know know their danger, and partic.i.p.ate [in] their their danger, and partic.i.p.ate [in] their sufferings sufferings without having it in my power to give them further relief than uncertain promises . . . The supplicating tears of the women and moving pet.i.tions from the men melt me into such deadly sorrow that I solemnly declare . . . I could offer myself a willing sacrifice to the butchering enemy, provided that would contribute to the people's ease. without having it in my power to give them further relief than uncertain promises . . . The supplicating tears of the women and moving pet.i.tions from the men melt me into such deadly sorrow that I solemnly declare . . . I could offer myself a willing sacrifice to the butchering enemy, provided that would contribute to the people's ease.26 Here one can sense a flood of deep feeling welling up beneath the surface of Was.h.i.+ngton's tightly b.u.t.toned personality. A spark of idealism began to flicker intermittently through his sulking about his personal status-a spark that would someday flare into a bright flame.

Faced with Indian raids that depopulated whole settlements, Dinwiddie issued orders calling up the militia in western counties, and Was.h.i.+ngton suddenly found himself at the head of a thousand temporary recruits who bridled at their treatment by highborn officers. Reflecting this resentment, the Virginia Gazette Virginia Gazette blasted Was.h.i.+ngton's officers as "rank novices, rakes, spendthrifts, and bankrupts" who "browbeat and discouraged" the militia and gave them "an example of all manner of debauchery, vice, and idleness." blasted Was.h.i.+ngton's officers as "rank novices, rakes, spendthrifts, and bankrupts" who "browbeat and discouraged" the militia and gave them "an example of all manner of debauchery, vice, and idleness."27 Livid over this bad publicity, Was.h.i.+ngton informed Dinwiddie of numerous warnings he had issued about these vices and promised to "act with a little more rigor than has. .h.i.therto been practiced, since I find it so absolutely necessary." Livid over this bad publicity, Was.h.i.+ngton informed Dinwiddie of numerous warnings he had issued about these vices and promised to "act with a little more rigor than has. .h.i.therto been practiced, since I find it so absolutely necessary."28 Was.h.i.+ngton presented the strange spectacle of a young man chastising dissolute behavior, and Dinwiddie stood solidly behind him. "He is a person much beloved here and has gone through many hards.h.i.+ps in the service and I really think he has great merit." Was.h.i.+ngton presented the strange spectacle of a young man chastising dissolute behavior, and Dinwiddie stood solidly behind him. "He is a person much beloved here and has gone through many hards.h.i.+ps in the service and I really think he has great merit."29 Throughout the spring, Was.h.i.+ngton squawked about the fickle militia, who disappeared whenever an Indian threat materialized. Apparently concerned by the moods of his temperamental protege, Colonel William Fairfax preached a stoic calm in the face of adversity and wrote two letters invoking the military heroes of antiquity. "Your good health and fortune is the toast of every table," he rea.s.sured Was.h.i.+ngton. "Among the Romans such a general acclamation and public regard shown to any of their chieftains was always esteemed a high honor and gratefully accepted." Holding up Caesar and Alexander the Great as models to emulate, Fairfax said that Was.h.i.+ngton shouldn't be disturbed by unreliable militia but should bear such hards.h.i.+ps "with equal magnanimity [as] those heroes remarkably did."30

IN MID - AUGUST, Colonel Was.h.i.+ngton staged a small pageant in Winchester to mark the official start of the French and Indian War, announced in London three months earlier. Escorted by town worthies, he marched three companies to the parade ground and read aloud the declaration of war, urging his men to show "willing obedience to the best of kings and by a strict attachment to his royal commands [to] demonstrate the love and loyalty we bear to his sacred person."31 With that, numerous toasts were drunk and muskets boomed. Nevertheless the absolute power of distant bureaucrats in London preyed on Was.h.i.+ngton's mind. Three weeks earlier he had conveyed greetings to John Campbell, Earl of Loudoun, the new commander of His Majesty's forces in North America. No longer a military novice, Was.h.i.+ngton touted himself as a war veteran and seasoned his welcome with self-promotion: "We humbly represent to your Lords.h.i.+p that we were the first troops in action on the continent on [the] occasion of the present broils and that by several engagements and continual skirmishes with the enemy, we have to our cost acquired a knowledge of them and of their crafty and cruel practices." With that, numerous toasts were drunk and muskets boomed. Nevertheless the absolute power of distant bureaucrats in London preyed on Was.h.i.+ngton's mind. Three weeks earlier he had conveyed greetings to John Campbell, Earl of Loudoun, the new commander of His Majesty's forces in North America. No longer a military novice, Was.h.i.+ngton touted himself as a war veteran and seasoned his welcome with self-promotion: "We humbly represent to your Lords.h.i.+p that we were the first troops in action on the continent on [the] occasion of the present broils and that by several engagements and continual skirmishes with the enemy, we have to our cost acquired a knowledge of them and of their crafty and cruel practices."32 Eager to please his new commander, Was.h.i.+ngton struggled to make his new recruits presentable. He had long been troubled by an inability to clothe them, but in March he procured for each man "a suit of thin sleazy cloth without lining" and some waistcoats of "sorry flannel."33 No sooner had he accomplished this than he found men selling the miserable clothing he had obtained. Indignant, he threatened them with five hundred lashes. Where his men had once deserted two or three at a time, sixteen absconded into the woods in August, and the shortage of men grew more perilous. When a portion of the Augusta County militia was summoned to duty that October, fewer than a tenth even bothered to show up. From these early experiences, Was.h.i.+ngton came to believe devoutly in the need for rigorously trained, professional armies rather than hastily summoned, short-term militia. No sooner had he accomplished this than he found men selling the miserable clothing he had obtained. Indignant, he threatened them with five hundred lashes. Where his men had once deserted two or three at a time, sixteen absconded into the woods in August, and the shortage of men grew more perilous. When a portion of the Augusta County militia was summoned to duty that October, fewer than a tenth even bothered to show up. From these early experiences, Was.h.i.+ngton came to believe devoutly in the need for rigorously trained, professional armies rather than hastily summoned, short-term militia.

All summer and fall Was.h.i.+ngton was exasperated by military arrangements on the western frontier. He objected in strenuous terms to Lord Loudoun's decision in early December to station Virginia troops at Fort c.u.mberland in Maryland, when it made more sense to keep them at Winchester, Virginia. Was.h.i.+ngton's tenacity on this issue led to a clash with Dinwiddie, who sided with Loudoun. Until this point Was.h.i.+ngton had prudently tended his relations.h.i.+p with the royal governor and was exemplary in bowing to civilian control. Now, in a terribly impolitic move, he bypa.s.sed Dinwiddie to lobby House of Burgesses speaker John Robinson, violating a cardinal rule of Virginia politics that the governor had final authority in such matters. The decision also smacked of disloyalty to someone who had consistently boosted Was.h.i.+ngton's career. The young man poured out his frustrations to Robinson, saying his advice to Dinwiddie had been "disregarded as idle and frivolous . . . My orders [from Dinwiddie] are dark, doubtful and uncertain: today approved, tomorrow condemned today approved, tomorrow condemned." 34 The same day Was.h.i.+ngton aggravated matters by telling Dinwiddie that Loudoun had "imbibed prejudices so unfavourable to my character" because he had not been "thoroughly informed."35 Since Dinwiddie had been Loudoun's primary source of information, he would have interpreted this as a direct attack on his own conduct. Since Dinwiddie had been Loudoun's primary source of information, he would have interpreted this as a direct attack on his own conduct.

On January 10, 1757, throwing caution to the wind, Was.h.i.+ngton sent Lord Loudoun a letter so lengthy that it runs to a dozen printed pages in his collected papers. It provides a graphic picture of the twenty-four-year-old Was.h.i.+ngton's ambivalence about the British cla.s.s system. On the one hand, he flattered Loudoun unctuously even as he denied doing so. "Although I have not the honour to be known to Your Lords.h.i.+p, yet Your Lords.h.i.+p's name was familiar to my ear on account of the important services performed to His Majesty in other parts of the world. Don't think My Lord I am going to flatter. I have exalted sentiments of Your Lords.h.i.+p's character and revere your rank . . . my nature is honest and free from guile."36 Was.h.i.+ngton then brashly declared his impatience with "chimney corner politicians" in Williamsburg and cited his failure to win a well-merited promotion in the British Army.37 "In regard to myself, I must beg leave to say [that,] had His Excellency General Braddock survived his unfortunate defeat, I should have met with preferment equal to my wishes. I had his promise to that purpose." "In regard to myself, I must beg leave to say [that,] had His Excellency General Braddock survived his unfortunate defeat, I should have met with preferment equal to my wishes. I had his promise to that purpose."38 Was.h.i.+ngton also mentioned that, after their brave stand at Fort Necessity, his men had expected inclusion in the regular British Army. In sending this letter, Was.h.i.+ngton knew that he had overstepped political boundaries and confessed in closing, "When I look over the preceding pages and find how far I have exceeded my first intention, I blush with shame to think of my freedom." Was.h.i.+ngton also mentioned that, after their brave stand at Fort Necessity, his men had expected inclusion in the regular British Army. In sending this letter, Was.h.i.+ngton knew that he had overstepped political boundaries and confessed in closing, "When I look over the preceding pages and find how far I have exceeded my first intention, I blush with shame to think of my freedom."39 Driven by thwarted ambition, the still-gauche Was.h.i.+ngton resolved to advise Loudoun in person and prevailed upon Dinwiddie to allow him to go to Philadelphia to consult with him. The governors of five colonies flocked there to see him too, but Lord Loudoun, a haughty Scot with a reputation as a martinet, was in no special hurry to see anyone, forcing Was.h.i.+ngton to cool his heels for six weeks. From an aide to Loudoun, Was.h.i.+ngton learned that the general had admired his long letter, but when he met with him, the commander seemed deaf to his opinions. It was clear that Virginia had been a.s.signed a secondary importance in imperial war strategy and that any a.s.sault on Fort Duquesne had been postponed. The only victory that Was.h.i.+ngton could claim was Loudoun's decision that Maryland would take responsibility for Fort c.u.mberland, freeing the Virginia Regiment to man Virginia forts.

Before leaving Philadelphia, Was.h.i.+ngton wrote to Dinwiddie and vented his bitter outrage at the inferior status foisted upon the Virginia Regiment: "We can't conceive that being Americans should deprive us of the benefits of British subjects, nor lessen our claim to preferment. And we are very certain that no body of regular troops ever before served 3 b.l.o.o.d.y campaigns without attracting royal notice. As to those idle arguments which are often times used-namely, 'You are defending your own properties'-I look upon [them] to be whimsical and absurd. We are defending the King's Dominions."40 This statement represented a huge intellectual leap: Was.h.i.+ngton was suddenly a.s.serting that the imperial system existed to serve the king, not his overseas subjects. The equality of an Englishman in London and one in Williamsburg was purely illusory. In time, the Crown would pay dearly for Was.h.i.+ngton's disenchantment with the fairness of the British military. This statement represented a huge intellectual leap: Was.h.i.+ngton was suddenly a.s.serting that the imperial system existed to serve the king, not his overseas subjects. The equality of an Englishman in London and one in Williamsburg was purely illusory. In time, the Crown would pay dearly for Was.h.i.+ngton's disenchantment with the fairness of the British military.

When the bruised young colonel returned to Winchester-the "cold and barren frontiers," as he called them-he applauded one development: several hundred Catawba and Cherokee Indians had enlisted on the British side for the first time since the Fort Necessity debacle, an alliance that promptly embroiled Was.h.i.+ngton in a ghoulish commerce.41 The Virginia a.s.sembly had agreed to pay the Indians ten pounds for every enemy scalp they brought into camp. When a party of Cherokees arrived bearing four scalps and two prisoners, Was.h.i.+ngton hadn't yet received the necessary gifts to reward them. "They are much dissatisfied that the presents are not here," he told Dinwiddie, labeling these new Indian allies "the most insolent, most avaricious, and most dissatisfied wretches I have ever had to deal with." The Virginia a.s.sembly had agreed to pay the Indians ten pounds for every enemy scalp they brought into camp. When a party of Cherokees arrived bearing four scalps and two prisoners, Was.h.i.+ngton hadn't yet received the necessary gifts to reward them. "They are much dissatisfied that the presents are not here," he told Dinwiddie, labeling these new Indian allies "the most insolent, most avaricious, and most dissatisfied wretches I have ever had to deal with."42 The Indians were about to terminate the alliance, when the gifts belatedly arrived. The Indians were about to terminate the alliance, when the gifts belatedly arrived.

During this humiliating period, Was.h.i.+ngton often felt helpless in dealing with his men. Despite being threatened with punishment, more than a quarter of new recruits deserted, and Was.h.i.+ngton's personal grievances fueled his rage at them. When a thousand lashes didn't stop the desertions, he upped the penalty to a draconian fifteen hundred lashes. The historian Fred Anderson has estimated that Was.h.i.+ngton administered an average of six hundred lashes in each flogging, putting him on a par with his most severe British counterparts.43 With icy determination, he even constructed a gibbet tall enough to instill terror in anybody contemplating desertion. "I have a gallows near 40 feet high erected (which has terrified the With icy determination, he even constructed a gibbet tall enough to instill terror in anybody contemplating desertion. "I have a gallows near 40 feet high erected (which has terrified the rest rest exceedingly) and I am determined . . . to hang two or three on it as an example to others," he informed one officer. exceedingly) and I am determined . . . to hang two or three on it as an example to others," he informed one officer.44 That summer Was.h.i.+ngton decided to hang fourteen men for desertion. Fortunately, even as a young man he never acted heedlessly, and he gave way to second thoughts. Knowing his own nature, he let his temper cool. In the end, he pardoned twelve of the men-they had been kept "in a dark room, closely ironed"-and executed only two repeat offenders. "Your honor will, I hope, excuse my hanging instead of shooting them," Was.h.i.+ngton told Dinwiddie. "It conveyed much terror to others and it was for example['s] sake we did it."45 It should be noted that, while Was.h.i.+ngton didn't balk at naked terror, he had already warned that recidivists would be hanged. It should be noted that, while Was.h.i.+ngton didn't balk at naked terror, he had already warned that recidivists would be hanged.

Throughout the summer Was.h.i.+ngton grew quarrelsome in correspondence with Dinwiddie, believing that his former patron was now hostile to him and opposed the regular commission he pursued. Indeed, Dinwiddie's letters were often carping and demeaning in tone. The young officer felt at the mercy of an incompetent governor, who for his part felt powerless in dealing with Lord Loudoun and arbitrary instructions from London. The experience gave Was.h.i.+ngton new insight into the problem of being ruled by people overseas who were ignorant of local conditions.

He ventilated his dismay to his admirer, Speaker Robinson: "I am convinced it would give pleasure to the governor to hear that I was involved in trouble, however undeservedly."46 Dinwiddie must have heard that Was.h.i.+ngton was talking behind his back, because he scolded him that September. "My conduct to yo[u] from the beginning was always friendly, but you know I had g[rea]t reason to suspect yo[u] of ingrat.i.tude, which, I'm convinced, your own conscience and reflection must allow I had reason to be angry. But this I endeavor to forget." Dinwiddie must have heard that Was.h.i.+ngton was talking behind his back, because he scolded him that September. "My conduct to yo[u] from the beginning was always friendly, but you know I had g[rea]t reason to suspect yo[u] of ingrat.i.tude, which, I'm convinced, your own conscience and reflection must allow I had reason to be angry. But this I endeavor to forget."47 The reason that Dinwiddie endeavored to forget was that he was now ailing and had decided to return to England. Was.h.i.+ngton responded to his accusation with hot-tempered indignation: "I do not know that I ever gave your Honor cause to suspect me of ingrat.i.tude, a crime I detest, and would most carefully avoid." The reason that Dinwiddie endeavored to forget was that he was now ailing and had decided to return to England. Was.h.i.+ngton responded to his accusation with hot-tempered indignation: "I do not know that I ever gave your Honor cause to suspect me of ingrat.i.tude, a crime I detest, and would most carefully avoid."48 In the younger man's view, he was merely guilty of speaking openly about policy errors imposed by the governor. The correspondence with Dinwiddie degenerated into petty bickering. When Was.h.i.+ngton asked for a leave of absence to visit Williamsburg, Dinwiddie scoffed that he had already been indulged with too many leaves. Was.h.i.+ngton returned a stinging retort: "It was not to enjoy a party of pleasure I wanted [a] leave of absence." In the younger man's view, he was merely guilty of speaking openly about policy errors imposed by the governor. The correspondence with Dinwiddie degenerated into petty bickering. When Was.h.i.+ngton asked for a leave of absence to visit Williamsburg, Dinwiddie scoffed that he had already been indulged with too many leaves. Was.h.i.+ngton returned a stinging retort: "It was not to enjoy a party of pleasure I wanted [a] leave of absence."49 Was.h.i.+ngton lost his other princ.i.p.al backer that September when Colonel Fairfax died and he made the melancholy journey to Belvoir to attend the funeral. Was.h.i.+ngton lost his other princ.i.p.al backer that September when Colonel Fairfax died and he made the melancholy journey to Belvoir to attend the funeral.

DOUBTLESS DISTURBING HIM that fall was a recurrence of the "b.l.o.o.d.y flux," or dysentery, which had started around midsummer. The symptoms stole upon Was.h.i.+ngton so gradually that he functioned more or less normally at first. With his staunch commitment to work, he kept Governor Dinwiddie in the dark about his condition. Then in early November he felt the full brunt of the illness. As fellow officer Captain Robert Stewart described it, Was.h.i.+ngton was "seized with st.i.tches and violent pleuritic pains . . . his strength and vigour diminished so fast that in a few days he was hardly able to walk."50 After Dr. Craik examined him, he warned Was.h.i.+ngton that his life was endangered and chided him for not seeking treatment sooner, saying that "your disorder hath been of long standing and hath corrupted the whole ma.s.s of blood. It will require some time to remove the cause." After Dr. Craik examined him, he warned Was.h.i.+ngton that his life was endangered and chided him for not seeking treatment sooner, saying that "your disorder hath been of long standing and hath corrupted the whole ma.s.s of blood. It will require some time to remove the cause."51 Craik bled Was.h.i.+ngton several times, which only weakened him further. The doctor prescribed rest, fresh air, and water as offering Was.h.i.+ngton the best chance for recovery. His iron const.i.tution having broken down, he relinquished command to Captain Stewart and set out for home. Craik bled Was.h.i.+ngton several times, which only weakened him further. The doctor prescribed rest, fresh air, and water as offering Was.h.i.+ngton the best chance for recovery. His iron const.i.tution having broken down, he relinquished command to Captain Stewart and set out for home.

Once at Mount Vernon in mid-November, he consulted Dr. Charles Green of Alexandria, who forbade him to eat meats and prescribed a diet of jellies and other soft foods, lubricated with tea or sweet wine. With a lifelong bias against medication, Was.h.i.+ngton preferred to let illness take its course. At first his sister (or possibly sister-in-law) came to nurse him, but when she left and he looked attractively helpless, he attempted to lure Sally Fairfax to his bedside. In a note, he asked if he could borrow a book of recipes to prepare jellies, noting that "my sister is from home and I have no person that has been used to making these kind of things and no directions." 52 52 It seems probable that Sally rose to the bait. It seems probable that Sally rose to the bait.

Every time Was.h.i.+ngton seemed to gain ground, the disease recurred with a vengeance. With some symptoms resembling tuberculosis, he grew terrified that he would follow in brother Lawrence's footsteps. In February he even had to deny reports of his death circulating in Williamsburg. "I have heard of letters from the dead, but never had the pleasure of receiving one till your agreeable favor came to hand the other day," his friend Robert Carter Nicholas told him wryly. "It was reported here that Colo. Was.h.i.+ngton was dead! As you are still alive, I must own myself obliged to the author of that report."53 It said something about Was.h.i.+ngton's high standing in Virginia society that the capital hummed with these rumors. When he left for Williamsburg on February 1, he was soon overcome by fever and had to turn around and return home. The physicians again admonished Was.h.i.+ngton that he jeopardized his life by taking such a journey. On March 4 he described to Colonel John Stanwix the "great injury" already done to his const.i.tution and the need for "the greatest care and most circ.u.mspect conduct" if he was to recover. It said something about Was.h.i.+ngton's high standing in Virginia society that the capital hummed with these rumors. When he left for Williamsburg on February 1, he was soon overcome by fever and had to turn around and return home. The physicians again admonished Was.h.i.+ngton that he jeopardized his life by taking such a journey. On March 4 he described to Colonel John Stanwix the "great injury" already done to his const.i.tution and the need for "the greatest care and most circ.u.mspect conduct" if he was to recover.54 With only a slim chance of securing a regular army commission, the despondent Was.h.i.+ngton thought of "quitting my command and retiring from all public business, leaving my post to be filled by others more capable of the task." With only a slim chance of securing a regular army commission, the despondent Was.h.i.+ngton thought of "quitting my command and retiring from all public business, leaving my post to be filled by others more capable of the task."55 The next day he left for Williamsburg, stopping en route to visit his mother. In the capital, Dr. John Amson a.s.sured him that his fears of consumption were unfounded and that he was indeed recuperating from the dysentery. The next day he left for Williamsburg, stopping en route to visit his mother. In the capital, Dr. John Amson a.s.sured him that his fears of consumption were unfounded and that he was indeed recuperating from the dysentery.

For someone with Was.h.i.+ngton's robust physique, the dysentery must have had a profound psychological effect. His body had suddenly lost the strength and resilience that had enabled him to cross freezing streams and ride through snowy forests. And it was not the first time he had experienced a sense of physical fragility. By the age of twenty-six, he had survived smallpox, pleurisy, malaria, and dysentery. He had not only evaded bullets but survived disease with astounding regularity. If these illnesses dimmed his fervor for a military commission, they may also have reminded him of the forgotten pleasures of domestic life.

CHAPTER SEVEN.

A Votary to Love.

AFTER HIS WOUNDING CONFRONTATIONS with the haughty agents of British imperial power-Dinwiddie, s.h.i.+rley, and Loudoun-Was.h.i.+ngton could only have concluded that his dreams of a military career would always be foiled by deep-seated prejudice against colonial officers and that it made more sense to become an independent planter. While posted to the frontier in the summer of 1757, he daydreamed about Mount Vernon and compiled shopping lists of luxury goods to be s.h.i.+pped from London. Though he had never been to England, he tried to imitate the style of an English country gentleman, instructing Richard Was.h.i.+ngton that "whatever goods you may send me, where the prices are not absolutely limited, you will let them be fas.h.i.+onable, neat, and good in their several kinds."1 The young man's social ambitions seemed boundless. He ordered a marble chimneypiece with a landscape painting above the mantel and "fine crimson and yellow papers" for the walls. The young man's social ambitions seemed boundless. He ordered a marble chimneypiece with a landscape painting above the mantel and "fine crimson and yellow papers" for the walls.2 Such rich colors for wallpaper were then thought very fas.h.i.+onable. Though mahogany was an expensive imported wood, Was.h.i.+ngton opted for a mahogany bedstead and dining table and a dozen mahogany chairs. To entertain in regal style, he ordered a complete set of fine china, damask tablecloths and napkins, and silver cutlery whose handles bore the Was.h.i.+ngton crest-a griffin poised above a crown, set above an ornamental s.h.i.+eld with three stars, the whole emblazoned with the Latin motto Such rich colors for wallpaper were then thought very fas.h.i.+onable. Though mahogany was an expensive imported wood, Was.h.i.+ngton opted for a mahogany bedstead and dining table and a dozen mahogany chairs. To entertain in regal style, he ordered a complete set of fine china, damask tablecloths and napkins, and silver cutlery whose handles bore the Was.h.i.+ngton crest-a griffin poised above a crown, set above an ornamental s.h.i.+eld with three stars, the whole emblazoned with the Latin motto Exitus Acta Probat Exitus Acta Probat ("The outcome justifies the deed"). ("The outcome justifies the deed"). 3 3 In his purchases, Was.h.i.+ngton instinctively trod the fine line between showiness and austerity, defining a characteristic style of understated elegance. In his purchases, Was.h.i.+ngton instinctively trod the fine line between showiness and austerity, defining a characteristic style of understated elegance.

Mount Vernon would be George Was.h.i.+ngton's personality writ large, the cherished image he wished to project to the world. Had the estate not possessed profound personal meaning for him, he would never have lavished so much time and money on its improvement. It was Was.h.i.+ngton's fervent attachment to Mount Vernon, its rural beauties and tranquil pleasures, that made his later absences from home so exquisitely painful. He believed in the infinite perfectibility of Mount Vernon, as if it were a canvas that he could constantly retouch and expand. There he reigned supreme and felt secure as nowhere else.

In December 1757 he made his first additions to the property, buying two hundred acres at nearby Dogue Run and another three hundred acres on Little Hunting Creek. This proved the first wave of an expansion that would ultimately culminate in an eight-thousand-acre estate, divided into five separate farms. Since few professional architects existed at the time, Was.h.i.+ngton followed the custom of other Virginia planters and acted as his own architect. He worked from British architectural manuals, coupled with his own observation of buildings in Williamsburg and Annapolis. Drawing on popular cla.s.sical elements, he melded ideas from various places and devised a synthesis uniquely his own.

In 1758 Was.h.i.+ngton doubled the size of the main house and began to convert Lawrence's farmhouse into an imposing mansion. He could have swept away the old foundations and started anew, making the house more symmetrical and architecturally satisfying. Instead, he built on top of earlier incarnations. Whether this stemmed from economy or family reverence is not known. But where Lawrence, a naval officer, had placed the entrance on the east side of the house, facing the water, George, an army officer and a western surveyor, switched the entrance to the west side, presenting an arresting view for visitors arriving by horse or carriage. First glimpsed from afar, the house would impress travelers with its grandeur. At this point, however, it was still boxy and unadorned and devoid of the elements that later distinguished it: the cupola, the piazza with the long colonnade, the formal pediment above the entrance. In a geometric pattern likely copied from Belvoir, Was.h.i.+ngton laid out a pair of rectangular gardens with brick walls in front of the house, allowing visitors to experience his magnificent grounds before alighting at his door. Was.h.i.+ngton also fleshed out the upstairs, making it a full floor, reworked most of the ground-floor rooms, and added a half-story attic, resulting in eight full rooms in all.

In 1758 Was.h.i.+ngton's aspirations still outstripped his means, and he resorted to ruses to make his abode seem more opulent. Unable to afford a stone house, he employed a method known as rusticated boards that created the illusion of a stone exterior. First plain pine boards were cut and beveled in a way that mimicked stone blocks. Then white sand from the Chesapeake Bay was mingled with white paint, which lent the painted wood the rough, granular surface of stone. In many respects, Mount Vernon is a masterpiece of trompe l'oeil. Was.h.i.+ngton used another sleight of hand on his study walls, a technique called "graining" that transformed cheap, locally available woods, such as southern yellow pine or tulip poplar, into something resembling expensive imported hardwoods, such as mahogany or black walnut.

Mount Vernon's history is inseparable from that of its resident slaves, who toiled in its shadows and shaped every inch of it. The mansion renovation absorbed a vast amount of human labor: sixteen thousand bricks were forged for two new chimneys that arose at either end of the house, and slaves scoured nearby woods for the white oak that underlay roof s.h.i.+ngles. For more specialized work, Was.h.i.+ngton typically hired a white craftsman or indentured servant to supervise skilled slaves as a.s.sistants. By the late 1750s Was.h.i.+ngton had a.s.sembled an expert team of seven slave carpenters. During the remodeling, overseer Humphrey Knight a.s.sured Was.h.i.+ngton that he didn't hesitate to apply the lash, if necessary, to these enslaved artisans: "As to the carpenters, I have minded 'em all I posably could and has whipt 'em when I could see a fault."4 It was a relatively rare example in Mount Vernon annals of an overseer confessing that he whipped slaves, a practice Was.h.i.+ngton grew to abhor, though he condoned it on rare occasions. It was a relatively rare example in Mount Vernon annals of an overseer confessing that he whipped slaves, a practice Was.h.i.+ngton grew to abhor, though he condoned it on rare occasions.

AS GEORGE WAs.h.i.+NGTON introduced new splendor at Mount Vernon, he needed a wife to complete the pretty scene, and Martha Dandridge Custis made her timely appearance. Their speedy courts.h.i.+p began in mid-March 1758, right after Was.h.i.+ngton journeyed to Williamsburg to consult Dr. John Amson, who allayed his medical fright by rea.s.suring him that he was recovering from dysentery. Relieved and elated, Was.h.i.+ngton rode off to nearby New Kent County to stay with his friend Richard Chamberlayne, who introduced him to his neighbor, the widow Custis. Her husband, Daniel Parke Custis, had died the previous July, as had two of her children in early childhood. She now lived with her four-year-old son John Parke (called Jacky) and two-year-old daughter Martha Parke (called Patsy) in baronial splendor on the Pamunkey River at a bucolic mansion known, prophetically enough, as the White House. Family legend suggests a spontaneous romance between George and Martha, but the mutual attraction may well have been antic.i.p.ated. Though this was their first doc.u.mented meeting, their social circles must have crisscrossed in the small, clubby world of the Williamsburg elite.

On leave from the Virginia Regiment, Was.h.i.+ngton courted Martha with the crisp efficiency of a military man laying down a well-planned siege. He spent that first night at the White House before returning to Williamsburg-he tipped the servants liberally to strengthen his image as a wealthy suitor-and dropped by twice more during the first half of 1758. A brisk compet.i.tion had already arisen to snare the wealthy widow. A prosperous tobacco planter and widower named Charles Carter, who was nearly twice her age, had grown enamored of the short, attractive woman with the "uncommon sweetness of temper," as he saw it.5 Carter had sired a dozen offspring in his previous marriage, and Martha, twenty-six, may have been intimidated by the prospect of being stepmother to this numerous brood. Carter faced stiff compet.i.tion from Was.h.i.+ngton, a tall, handsome, young military hero with room both in his heart and in his home for a wife and two children. To a solitary, anxious widow, George Was.h.i.+ngton could only have appeared manly, rock-solid, and utterly fearless. Carter had sired a dozen offspring in his previous marriage, and Martha, twenty-six, may have been intimidated by the prospect of being stepmother to this numerous brood. Carter faced stiff compet.i.tion from Was.h.i.+ngton, a tall, handsome, young military hero with room both in his heart and in his home for a wife and two children. To a solitary, anxious widow, George Was.h.i.+ngton could only have appeared manly, rock-solid, and utterly fearless.

We cannot pinpoint the precise moment when George and Martha agreed to wed, but we do know that within weeks of their first meeting, George was transformed into a giddy man of fas.h.i.+on, urgently ordering expensive fabric for what must have been his wedding outfit. He directed his London agent to s.h.i.+p "as much of the best superfine blue cotton velvet as will make a coat, waistcoat, and breeches for a tall man, with a fine silk b.u.t.ton to suit it and all other necessary tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs and linings, together with garters for the breeches."6 He also ordered six pairs of tony shoes and gloves. A month later he ordered a gold ring from Philadelphia that he doubtless intended to slip on the diminutive widow's finger. Not to be outdone in brightening up a wardrobe, Martha ordered her London tailor to send her "one genteel suit of clothes for myself to be grave but not to be extrava[ga]nt and not to be mourning." He also ordered six pairs of tony shoes and gloves. A month later he ordered a gold ring from Philadelphia that he doubtless intended to slip on the diminutive widow's finger. Not to be outdone in brightening up a wardrobe, Martha ordered her London tailor to send her "one genteel suit of clothes for myself to be grave but not to be extrava[ga]nt and not to be mourning."7 Throwing off her widow's weeds, she packed off a nightgown to London "to be dyed of fas.h.i.+onable color fit for me to wear." Throwing off her widow's weeds, she packed off a nightgown to London "to be dyed of fas.h.i.+onable color fit for me to wear."8 Though such letters may give the unseemly impression of an overly l.u.s.ty widow, it was then routine, as a matter of economic necessity, for the bereaved to remarry quickly. The prolonged mourning rituals that came with the Victorian era would have seemed like futile self-indulgence in the eighteenth century. Though such letters may give the unseemly impression of an overly l.u.s.ty widow, it was then routine, as a matter of economic necessity, for the bereaved to remarry quickly. The prolonged mourning rituals that came with the Victorian era would have seemed like futile self-indulgence in the eighteenth century.

By marrying Martha Dandridge Custis, Was.h.i.+ngton swiftly achieved the social advancement for which he had struggled in the military. Almost overnight he was thrust into top-drawer Virginia society and could dispense with the servility that had sometimes marked his dealings with social superiors. Marriage to Martha brought under his control a small kingdom of real estate tended by dark-skinned human beings. She had a bountiful collection of properties, including thousands of acres around Williamsburg, nearly three hundred slaves, and hundreds of head of cattle, hogs, and sheep. The property came, however, with a significant catch. Inasmuch as Daniel Parke Custis had died intestate, English common law decreed that only one-third of his estate could be claimed directly by Martha during her lifetime. She thus owned only eighty-five slaves, referred to as "dower" slaves, who would revert to Jacky Custis after her death. The other two-thirds of the estate were pledged to the financial support of the Custis children. George would serve as custodian of this wealth, entangling him in legal complications for the rest of his life. It's worth noting that after her husband's death, the practical Martha hadn't thrown herself at the mercy of older male financial advisers but had had the pluck and fort.i.tude to handle his business affairs by herself. Whether sending tobacco to England, placing orders with London merchants, or extending loans to neighbors, she gained an invaluable education in plantation management.

George and Martha Was.h.i.+ngton formed an oddly matched visual pair: she barely cleared five feet, and her hands and feet were as pet.i.te as George's were famously huge. A portrait of Martha done shortly before Daniel died displays nothing especially soft or alluring to set a young man's pulse racing. She wears a low-cut, satiny blue dress, shows a shapely figure and bosom, and wears her dark hair pulled back, adorned with pearls. The small head, set on its elongated neck, isn't especially pretty: the forehead is too low, the hairline receding, the nose too hooked, the mouth too short, the jaw too round. Her hazel eyes are serious and watchful. It is the portrait of a plain, sensible young woman who already seems a trifle matronly. All the same, one suspects that the artist failed to catch the irrepressible warmth and charm that animated her features. The sitter's soul is smothered by the stiff pose of a woman holding a blossom and staring at the viewer. It should also be said that Martha had the reputation of being a beauty in her youth. "She was at one time one of the most beautiful women in America and today there remains something extremely agreeable and attractive about her," recounted a Polish n.o.bleman several years before her death.9 From surviving artifacts, such as the purple satin shoes with high heels and silver sequins that she wore on her wedding day, we know that Martha Custis was a stylish young woman and even something of a clotheshorse. From surviving artifacts, such as the purple satin shoes with high heels and silver sequins that she wore on her wedding day, we know that Martha Custis was a stylish young woman and even something of a clotheshorse.

In the eighteenth century, marriage was regarded more as a practical arrangement than as a vehicle for love, and the Was.h.i.+ngton marriage may never have been a torrid romance. But that aside, in selecting Martha Dandridge Custis, George Was.h.i.+ngton chose even better than he knew. She was the perfect foil to his mother: warm and sociable, always fun to be with, and favored with pleasing manners. She would give George the unstinting love and loyalty that Mary had withheld. By offering her husband such selfless devotion, she solidly anch.o.r.ed his life in an enduring marriage. Martha had the cheerfulness to lighten his sometimes somber personality and was the one person who dared to kid her "Old Man," as she teasingly referred to him. Despite the many people in his eventful life, George Was.h.i.+ngton lacked a large number of close friends or confidants, and Martha alone could cater to all his emotional needs.

In every respect