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The Election of 1796
After serving two terms as President, George Washington decided to not seek a third and instead retire from public life. His decision led to the country’s first contested presidential election in the fall of 1796, pitting Thomas Jefferson against Vice President John Adams. Arguably, no presidential election in the history of the United States has ever featured a choice between two such American titans.
George Washington, Our Nation’s First President
The federal Constitution, the new law of the land, took effect on March 4, 1789, and had several notable differences with the Articles of Confederation. One of the most significant changes was the creation of a strong executive or President. However, the powerful executive reminded skeptics of the authority held by King George, and they worried the United States could eventually drift towards despotism. Virtually everyone knew that the only man strong enough to lead the nation and conscientious enough to be entrusted with so much power was George Washington.
The Inspiring Legacy of John Adams
John Adams lost the Presidential election of 1800 to Thomas Jefferson after a bitter fight. Adams was terribly disappointed as felt he deserved another term, but he accepted the verdict of the Electoral College.
The Presidency of John Adams
To avoid a war with France, in 1797, President John Adams sent a diplomatic delegation to Paris to calm rising tensions. When our team arrived in France in October 1797, they were approached by three French officials whose code-names were X, Y, and Z. These Frenchmen demanded large bribes from the Americans for themselves and other French officials before negotiations could start.
John Adams and the Presidential Election of 1796
After eight years as Vice President under George Washington, John Adams hoped to succeed the Father of our Country as President of the United States. His successful election in 1796 gave him his chance.
John Adams Dominates Second Continental Congress
John Adams dominated the Second Continental Congress like no other man and was tireless in his efforts to move the assembly towards independence. He sat on ninety committees and chaired twenty-five of them. No other delegate matched his workload.
The Second Continental Congress Convenes
The Second Continental Congress convened in the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia on May 10, 1775, soon after “the shot heard round the world” was fired at the battles of Lexington and Concord. None of the delegates knew it at the time, but John Adams was to dominate the proceedings for much of the next two years.
John Adams Joins the Fight for Independence
After the tragedy of the Boston Massacre on March 5, 1770, British troops were removed from the city of Boston and tempers cooled a bit in Massachusetts. However, Parliament soon got things heated up again when it passed the Tea Act in the spring of 1773.
John Adams, Boston’s Top Attorney
When the French and Indian War ended in 1763, John Adams was single, living on a small farm in Braintree, Massachusetts, and enjoying a flourishing law practice just up the road in Boston. The next year his marital status changed, most would say improved, when he married Abigail Smith. A profitable business and a quiet family life seemed to be in his future, but that soon changed.
John Adams Comes of Age
John Adams was one of America’s greatest Patriots. Besides George Washington, Adams may have contributed more to get America its independence from England than anyone else. However, this Founding Father is not nearly as revered or well-known as the other “Big Six” of the Founding Fathers.
George Washington, First in the Hearts of His Countrymen
President Washington was again unanimously elected in 1792 and sworn in on March 4, 1793. Although he had not wanted a second term, most our country’s leaders, including Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison, felt the nation needed his leadership and would suffer without it. Reluctantly, he had agreed to another four years.
George Washington, The Only Man for the Job
In 1787, congressional delegates met in Philadelphia for a Constitutional Convention and created a new form of government. One key change was the creation of a strong Executive or President. Virtually everyone knew there was only one man strong enough to lead the nation and conscientious enough to be entrusted with so much power. That man, of course, was George Washington.