Washington was imperfect. In strictly military terms, he does not merit comparisons that have sometimes been made between him and generals like Marlborough, Frederick the Great, Napoleon, or Robert E. Lee. Yet he remains a remarkable man, one of those Tolstoyan figures whose acts determine the course of history. James Thomas Flexner has called him the indispensable man.
Nobody — not Nathanael Green or Henry Knox, and certainly not Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, or John Adams — united the military, political, and personal skills that made Washington unique ... without George Washington there could have been no victory in the Revolutionary War, no United States. As a soldier he was erratic but competent. As a man he was impulsive, vindictive, brave, hardworking, intelligent, and virtuous. And as a leader he was great. Those who mourned Washington’s passing in 1799 were right to regard him, for all his flaws, as the savior of his country.
Paul Revere (1734—1818)
by Paul Revere (1734—1818)
Silver; 21.9 x 18.4 x 13 cm (8 5/8 x 7 1/4 x 5 1/8 in). Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT.
by Paul Revere (1734—1818)
Silver; H: 3.7 cm (1 7/16 in), Diameter: 5.1 cm (2 in). Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT.
Engraving and print by Paul Revere (1734—1818)
Full title: A View of Part of the Town of Boston in New-England and Brittish Ships of War Landing Their Troops! 1768
by Paul Revere (1734—1818)
Used in the trial of eight British soldiers who were prosecuted in November 1770; six were acquitted.
by Paul Revere (1734—1818)
Engraved print; 13.4 x 11 cm (5 1/4 x 4 5/16 in). Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT.
General George Washington: A Military Life (2005)