I'm not really in the mood to discuss the Middle East again...my blog needs more variety than that. You'll all get bored reading it. I wouldn't necessarily get bored writing it, but hey - there's nothing wrong with a little bit of Alternate History.
Anyhow, due to a variety of factors (including some college acceptances), I have the father of our country on the brain. George Washington was, in many ways, the quintessential American. He was an uncouth gentleman (by British standards, at least), a rugged frontiersman, a hardened warrior, and a charismatic leader. Washington's favorite place to be was Mount Vernon, his estate in northern Virginia, away from the hustle and bustle. But the taxes the British imposed on the goods he bought - and sold - spurred him into action in the Revolutionary War. Washington was a major figure in American politics and the young American military, as the Commander-In-Chief of the Continental Army and one of Virginia's delegates to the Continental Congresses. Washington suppressed a mutiny following the war's end, was present as the Constitution was framed (he was made president of the Convention), and was elected the first President of the United States by one of the largest margins of victory in the nation's history. In fact, George Washington is the only man in American history to receive 100% of all the electoral votes. He's certainly deserving of the title "Father of our Country" and worthy of the continued admiration and respect of his countrymen.
But he very nearly wasn't.
As a younger man, as we all know, George Washington served in the Virginia Militia in the Seven Years War (the French and Indian War). Essentially, he was a British soldier. He served in the Ohio River Valley, first delivering messages to the French, then fighting them and their native allies. A few black marks on his record, including an incident of friendly fire, led him to resign his commission. This was a sore point for him, as he'd yearned for a high-ranking position in the British Army from a young age. But his disciplinarian approach to leadership and his natural authority on the battlefield could have scored him that commission, were it not for the several mistakes he'd made in the past. If the British regiment that exchanged fire with Washington's men hadn't been in the same place at the same time, his reputation may have been saved - or rather, his reputation may not have fallen in the first place. George Washington, the American hero, might have become a general in the British Army. If that was the case, George Washington's name would only be spoken - only be remembered - as a man who led British forces against the Americans in the battles of the Revolution. If the British had won, he probably would have been Lord Washington, but I don't think that's a likely scenario.
As much as I admire and respect Washington, I don't think he was vital in our gaining independence. There were plenty of other individuals, in the political sphere and the military, who were just as influential in our victory as Washington. Victory may have taken longer without Washington, and it may have taken a different road, but I believe victory would eventually have come. This Alternate History situation isn't one where the United States doesn't exist - it's one in which the United States as we know it today is different altogether. Let's start with the constitution, the convention for which Washington presided over. I can't say for certain, but I think that many of the President's powers were delegated with Washington in mind. Commander-in-chief of the military, eh? That would throw a wrench in...well, just about every American war in the last half-century. Vietnam, Grenada, Persian Gulf, Iraq and Afghanistan, the campaign against ISIS...this may sound like a bit of a stretch, but is it? Without Washington, who's to say how the convention might have gone? The constitution probably would have been completely different. And given that the Constitution governs the land, America would be completely different as well. Maybe the Civil War would have played out differently. Maybe our expansion would have taken a different path. Maybe we never would have gotten involved in the War of 1812, or World War One, or any of the other wars. Maybe American history would be an entirely different story of entirely different wars and entirely different events. Without Washington to set the precedent for the presidency, the Oval Office would be a radically different place. Presidents would have less power, as would the federal government. Many elements of the unwritten constitution wouldn't have been recognized without Washington. The America we know today would look very different.
One last note - what would our capital be? Would it be in the same place, with a different name? Or would it be in Philadelphia or New York? It's odd, but that question is the one that bugs me the most.
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