Coming Soon: October 10, 2023To Rescue the Constitution
Bret Baier, the #1 New York Times bestselling author and Fox News Channel’s Chief Political Anchor, presents To Rescue the Constitution.
George Washington rescued the nation and the Constitution three times: first by winning the Revolutionary War, second by presiding over the Constitutional Convention and ushering the Constitution through a fractious ratification process, and third by leading the nation as president in its first years. There is no doubt that the struggling new nation needed to be rescued.
After the victorious war, when a spirit of unity and patriotism might have been expected, instead the nation was broken. The states were no more than a loosely knit and contentious confederation, with no strong central union. They were in constant conflict. A frustrated Washington wrote to James Madison, “We are either a united people, or we are not… If we are not, let us no longer act a farce by pretending to it…” It was an urgent matter, and led to the calling of a Constitutional Convention.
Setting aside his plan to retire to Mount Vernon, where he had a happy family life and was fully engaged in his farming enterprises, Washington agreed to be a delegate at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. There he was unanimously elected president of the convention. After successfully bringing the Constitution into being, Washington then sacrificed any hope of returning to private life by accepting the unanimous election to be the nation’s first president. Washington was not known for brilliant oratory or prose, but his quiet, steady leadership gave life to the Constitution by showing how it should be enacted. He not only helped write the nation’s blueprint; he lived it.
In this colorful and moving portrait of America’s early struggles, when the fight for survival was constant, Baier captures the dramatic moments when Washington’s leadership brought the nation from the brink of collapse. Baier exposes an early America that is grittier and far more divided than it is often portrayed—one we can see reflected in today’s conflicts.
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The site of Washington’s Virginia birthplace signifying the beauty and promise of the new world.
Artist: J.G. Chapman. The Miriam and Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
Washington had a difficult but ultimately loving relationship with his mother, Mary Ball Washington. She lived to see him become president but died soon after in August 1789. This illustration depicts Washington’s last visit before her death.
The Miriam and Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
Beautiful, vivacious, and intelligent, Martha Dandridge first caught the eye of the wealthy Daniel Parke Custis, who would suffer an early death. A widow with two children, she was courted by many before she and Washington found each other.
The Miriam and Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
The wedding of George Washington and Martha Dandridge Custis. Martha’s children are also pictured.
Artist: Junius B. Stearns. The Miriam and Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
Washington, Martha and the children at Mount Vernon. Although Washington never had children of his own, he became a loving stepfather to Jacky and Patsy.
The Miriam and Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
This illustration depicts General George Washington standing on a bluff above the Hudson River, with his enslaved valet William Lee on horseback to his right. Lee remained with Washington for life, and Washington freed him with an annuity in his will.
Artist: John Trumbull. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Bequest of Charles Allen Munn, 1924.
Whenever she could, Martha visited Washington at his headquarters, spreading welcome warmth and support to his men. Other officers’ wives sometimes joined her. This illustration depicts her arriving at Washington’s headquarters in Morristown, New Jersey.
The Miriam and Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
The Quaker patriot Nathanael Greene became one of Washington’s most skilled officers, and a strong bond formed between the two men.
Artist: Valentine Green. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution.
On June 28, 1776, Thomas Jefferson presented a draft of the Declaration of Independence to John Hancock at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia.
Artist: John Trumbull. Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of International Business Machines Corporation.
On Christmas Eve 1776, Washington prepared to lead his men across the Delaware River. The campaign was a desperate effort by a beleaguered army to gain an advantage. Washington’s call sign for the campaign was “Victory or Death.”
Artist: After John Cameron. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Bequest of Adele S. Colgate.
“Hour of Victory”: The march to Trenton.
Artist: Edward Percy Moran. Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.
During a brutal winter at Valley Forge, as Washington struggled to restore the strength of his exhausted force, he welcomed the arrival of a young French officer the Marquis de Lafayette, who would become a valuable officer and a devoted friend.
The Miriam and Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
Washington and his staff at Valley Forge. The officers on horseback are the Marquis de Lafayette, Nathaniel Greene, Anthony Wayne, and Henry Knox. Standing in the background on the right is Col. John Brooks.
Artist: Vernon Fletcher. Mabel Brady Garvan Collection, Yale University Art Gallery.
The British surrender their arms to Washington. Among those shown are Benjamin Lincoln, Lafayette and British General Charles Cornwallis—although Cornwallis had refused to attend the ceremony and was not present.
The Miriam and Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
On December 4, 1783, Washington resigned his commission and bid farewell to his men “with a heart full of love and gratitude.”
The Miriam and Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
A replica of the Assembly Room of the Pennsylvania State House where the Constitution was debated in 1787.
National Park Service.
The Rising Sun chair. The mahogany armchair with a carved sun in the top crest rail was made by John Folwell for the Speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly. During the Constitutional Convention it became Washington’s seat as he served as the convention president.
National Park Service.
James Madison, known as the chief architect of the Constitution, was a dedicated federalist who would become the nation’s fourth president.
Library of Congress.
The signing of the Constitution was a somber occasion. In this depiction Washington presides over the process. Benjamin Franklin, seated in front, had reservations about the Constitution, but he urged everyone to sign for the sake of unity.
By Howard Chandler Christy, 1940. House Wing, East Stairway, U.S. Capitol Building. Architect of the Capitol.
On April 30, 1789, George Washington took the presidential oath of office for the first time. The location was Federal Hall in New York City.
National Park Service.
Vice President John Adams. Adams’s contribution to the birth of the nation is without parallel. After serving two terms as Washington’s vice president, he would become the nation’s second president.
Library of Congress
Alexander Hamilton.
Artist: John Trumbull. Gift of Henry G. Marquand, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The first cabinet (l to r) Henry Knox, Secretary of War, Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of State, Edmund Randolph, Attorney General, Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury, and President Washington.
The Miriam and Ira Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
The plan of the city of Washington in the territory of Columbia, which was ceded by Virginia and Maryland to the United States to become the seat of its government.
Library of Congress
The west front of Mount Vernon.
Artist: Edward Savage. Mount Vernon Ladies Association.
George Washington’s autograph.
Manuscripts and Archives Division, The New York Public Library.
Photo of Bret and Doug Bradburn, President & CEO of George Washington’s Mt. Vernon
