George Washington: A Life from Beginning to End (Biographies of US Presidents)

by Henry Freeman

When King George III of Great Britain learned that, after his military achievements, George Washington planned to return home rather than seize power in the nation which was so clearly in his debt, the monarch said, “If he does that, he will be the greatest man in the world.”

This was not an insignificant event in a colonial backwater; it became an international incident which helped to ignite the start of the Seven Years’ War, also known as the French and Indian War,

had learned that in order for an army to succeed, the government needed to provide financial and moral support. He would not forget those lessons. The French and Indian War was George Washington’s military university, and he graduated with honors.

she once wrote, in a letter to a relative, that "I know now that the worthy man is to be preferred to the high-born."

Custis had died without a will, which left his widow as the executor of his estate, giving her a freedom few women had and even providing her with some of the same legal rights possessed by men, including the right to buy and sell property, make contracts and bring a legal suit to court.

British rule saw that the purpose of the colonies was to supply the other country with raw materials and, in turn, import English goods.

the colonists, not only were they being denied the freedom to venture west, but they were charged with the payment for the force which denied them the freedom to move.

The British could not, or would not, improvise their battle plan if they were unable to perform according to their established training,