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His Excellency: George Washington is a 2004 biography of the first President of the United States, General George Washington. It is written by Joseph Ellis, a professor of History at Mount Holyoke College.
Content
Background
Through examination of the George Washington Papers, among other sources, Ellis indicates that his purpose in writing the text was to explore periods in Washington's life in order to offer a profile of the man "first in War, first in Peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen." Indeed Ellis states that his goal in writing His Excellency was to produce a work that examined not George Washington's life, but his personality and how his life shaped it .Events and themes
In the text, Ellis focuses on three main areas of Washington's life:- his military adventures during the French and Indian War
- his generalship in the American Revolution
- his time as the first President of the United States.
According to Ellis, Washington was constantly searching for a means to control his inner passions and his destiny. He fumed under the control that the British hold over him during the Colonial America period. In particular, he was frustrated by the lack of respect offered for his military achievements to granting land claim rights in the west. As a general, he bemoaned the lack of control the fledgling Continental Congress had over the colonies which composed it (later as president, he created acts to ensure control by the Federal government over the states).
As a man forced to make his own destiny, the theme of control would become a central issue for him. This was particularly true in the case of his beloved Mount Vernon.
Reference
Ellis, His Excellency, xiv.
External links
2004 books | American biographies | George Washington | History books | Biographies of George Washington
"His Excellency: George Washington"