14. George Washington deserved the chance to observe the future he helped lay the foundations for
Initially, an officer in the Virginian militia, fighting in and arguably causing the French and Indian War, following rejection by the British Army for a commission George Washington turned to farming. Establishing himself as a prominent member of the Virginian aristocracy, upon the creation of the Continental Army on June 14, 1775, Washington was nominated by the Adams brothers to serve as commander-in-chief as a unifying figure over the presumed favorite of John Hancock. Leading with distinction, albeit personally achieving a mixed military record during the Revolutionary War, Washington oversaw victory and independence for the Thirteen Colonies.
Drawn from retirement back into politics to preside over the Constitutional Convention in 1787, Washington was unanimously elected as the 1st President of the United States in 1788. Serving for two terms, during which time he defined the role and responsibilities of the office, Washington not only oversaw the creation of the federal government but instilled precedents that would last through the ages. Dying in 1799, less than three years after resuming his retirement, Washington, despite his personal foibles and shortcomings, deserves the right to pass judgment over the country he helped to build and observe its progress in the more than two hundred years since his day.