George Washington was the indispensable figure of American independence, serving as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, president of the Constitutional Convention, and first President of the United States. A Virginia planter and surveyor, Washington gained military experience in the French and Indian War before becoming a reluctant revolutionary.
Washington's greatest achievements may have been what he didn't do. He held together an army that was often starving and unpaid, avoiding decisive defeat until victory at Yorktown. At war's end, he resigned his commission and returned to farming—an act of republican virtue that astonished the world. His decision to step down after two presidential terms established a precedent that lasted until FDR.
As president, Washington navigated between Hamilton's Federalists and Jefferson's Republicans, establishing executive precedents and keeping the fragile nation neutral in European wars. His Farewell Address warned against partisan faction and foreign entanglements. He freed his slaves in his will—a gesture complicated by the fact that he didn't free them during his lifetime.