George Washington took the oath of office to become the first President of the United States of America on April 30, 1789. Yet his influence on the history and development of the United States and on its office of President started some 35 years earlier, when, as a young man, he led a small force of militia men into a battle later called a massacre. Had one only this beginning to go on, one would likely not expect to find that the rash military leader who broke the rules of war to kill a few French military scouts would become both the storied, inspiring general who led the Continental Army to win the American Revolutionary War, and the thoughtful, fair-minded political leader who would set careful precedents that have allowed the United States Presidency to become one of the most powerful political positions in the world today. As both the...
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