George Washington was a Founding Father and the first president of the United States. Born in Virginia, he opposed the perceived oppression of the American colonists by the British Crown and was commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. After being forced to retreat from New York City, he crossed the Delaware River and won the battles of Trenton and Princeton. Washington led a decisive victory at Yorktown, then served as president of the Constitutional Convention that drafted the US Constitution. As president, he set precedents for the office of president, such as republicanism, a peaceful transition, and the two-term tradition. Washington owned many slaves but opposed the practice near the end of his life. His image is an icon of American culture and he has been extensively memorialized. In both popular and scholarly polls, he is consistently considered one of the greatest presidents in American history.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington> _______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries: 1918: World War I: Allied forces led by the Australian general John Monash won the Battle of Hamel, demonstrating the effectiveness of combined-arms techniques in trench warfare. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hamel> 1941: German AB-Aktion in Poland: After capturing Lwów, the Nazis executed professors of the University of Lwów along with their families. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massacre_of_Lw%C3%B3w_professors> 1945: The Brazilian cruiser Bahia was accidentally sunk by one of its own crewmen, killing more than 300 people. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazilian_cruiser_Bahia> 1998: The monster movie Pulgasari, the most-widely-seen North Korean film ever made, premiered in Tokyo, Japan. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulgasari> _____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day: knee-high by the Fourth of July: (US, agriculture) If a corn (maize) crop planted in spring has grown knee-high by the Fourth of July (Independence Day of the United States), a bountiful harvest is expected. <https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/knee-high_by_the_Fourth_of_July> ___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day: O say can you see by the dawn's early light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming, Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight, O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming? And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there; O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave, O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? --Francis Scott Key <https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Francis_Scott_Key> _______________________________________________ Wikipedia Daily Article mailing list. To unsubscribe write to: [email protected] Questions or comments? Contact [email protected]
