ABSTRACT
George Washington's military leadership in the American Revolution ensured victory over British forces and the secure establishment of the American republic. His moderate civilian leadership as first president of the United States ensured the nation's survival. In 1758 Washington was elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses, a colonial assembly, where he gained political skills that would serve him in the future. The policies of the British government toward the colonies, especially regarding taxation, began to trouble Washington in the late 1760s and early 1770s. In 1774 he was appointed as a Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress convened in Philadelphia to discuss the colonists’ response to the British. The result was open conflict. Despite defeats in New York in 1776, Washington was able to rally the remnants of his army to win battles at Trenton and Princeton, New Jersey, but subsequently lost two battles in 1777, which cost the Americans Philadelphia.
