Tom Plott

The publication of the Farewell Address was a momentous occasion for the young United States. In it, Washington established the most significant precedent of his presidency: the two-term limit. By giving up power, Washington ensured a peaceful transition for the next president. He sent the message that the presidency was not a lifetime appointment. And he did so willingly. In the final episode of Inventing the Presidency, we discuss Washington's final moments in office and reflect on his lead...

Ona Maria Judge was twenty years old when the young enslaved woman walked out the doors of the Presidential mansion and never returned. Judge's courageous act of self-emancipation launched a national search and tested Washington's commitment to gradual abolition on the national stage. In this episode of Inventing the Presidency, Dr. Bruce Ragsdale and Ramin Ganeshram discuss abolition, slavery, and the remarkable stories of Ona Judge and Hercules Posey.

In 1794, the United States was on the brink of war. But the British weren't the only ones on the offensive. An incendiary printer with a famous grandfather would soon accuse Washington of treason, tyranny, even murder. In this episode, Joseph Adelman and Lindsay Chervinsky discuss the backlash surrounding the Jay Treaty and the controversial newspaper run by Benjamin Franklin Bache.

In 1793, a charismatic young Frenchman would arrive on American shores. His goal? To recruit American support for France’s War against Britain. As his popularity with Americans soared, Washington faced a new crisis that would pit him between two mighty European nations. Refuse the French, and the United States risked destroying one of their few alliances. Defy the British and the American experiment would be over.

St. Clair’s Defeat in 1791 was—and remains—the worst defeat of the US army by Native American forces in American history, but it was just one incident in the complex relationship between the United States and the independent sovereign Indigenous nations who lived on lands claimed by the new country. In this episode, hear from Dr. Colin Calloway, Dr. Greg Ablavsky, and Dr. Lindsay Chervinsky about George Washington’s “Indian Policy” and the lead up to one of the worst disasters in US military his...

After the first presidential inauguration in 1789, George Washington faced the daunting prospect of starting a presidency from scratch. Every action he took would set a precedent. Ramin Ganeshram, Dr. Sara Georgini, Dr. Sandra Moats, and Dr. Patrick Spero explain the challenges of Washington’s first year in office, from his levees and tours to the deadly illness that almost took his life.

In the early days of June, 1787, in the thick of the Constitutional Convention, a debate unfolded that would test the fate of the young American nation. Four years after the end of the American Revolution, the United States still had no functioning Executive branch. The Convention sought a solution that would eventually create one of the most hallowed institutions of the United States government: the presidency. In this episode, join Rick Atkinson, Dr. Lindsay Chervinsky, Dr. Bruce Ragsdale, Dr. Patrick Spero, and Dr. Peter Kastor to explore the foundations of the American presidency and the first presidential election.