and washington dispelled unrest by suppressing the newburgh conspiracy in march 1783; congress promised officers a five-year bonus. washington submitted an account of $450,000 in expenses which he had advanced to the army, equivalent to $8.48 million in 2021. the account was settled, though it was allegedly vague about large sums and included expenses his wife had incurred through visits to his headquarters. the following month, a congressional committee led by alexander hamilton began adapting the army for peacetime. in august 1783, washington gave the army's perspective to the committee in his sentiments on a peace establishment, which advised congress to keep a standing army, create a "national militia" of separate state units, and establish a navy and a national military academy. the treaty of paris was signed on september 3, 1783, and great britain officially recognized the independence of the united states. washington then disbanded his army, giving a farewell address to his soldiers on november 2. during this time, washington oversaw the evacuation of british forces in new york and was greeted by parades and celebrations. there he announced that colonel henry knox had been promoted commander-in-chief. washington and governor george clinton took formal possession of the city on november 25. in early december 1783, washington bade farewell to his officers at fraunces tavern and resigned as commander-in-chief soon thereafter, refuting loyalist predictions that he would not relinquish his military command. in a final appearance in uniform, he gave a statement to the congress: "i consider it an indispensable duty to close this last solemn act of my official life, by commending the interests of our dearest country to the protection of almighty god, and those who have the superintendence of them, to his holy keeping." washington's resignation was acclaimed at home and abroad and showed a skeptical world that the new republic would not degenerate into chaos. the same month, washington was appointed president-general of the society of the cincinnati, a newly established hereditary fraternity of revolutionary war officers. he served in this capacity for the remainder of his life. early republic (1783–1789) return to mount vernon i am not only retired from all public employments but i am retiring within myself, and shall be able to view the solitary walk and tread the paths of private life with heartfelt satisfaction ... i will move gently down the stream of life, until i sleep with my fathers. george washingtonletter to lafayettefebruary 1, 1784 washington was longing to return home after spending just ten days at mount vernon out of 8+1⁄2 years of war. he arrived on christmas eve, delighted to be "free of the bustle of a camp and the busy scenes of public life". he was a celebrity and was fêted during a visit to his mother at fredericksburg in february 1784, and he received a constant stream of visitors wishing to pay their respects to him at mount vernon. washington reactivated his interests in the great dismal swamp and potomac canal projects begun before the war, though neither paid him any dividends, and he undertook a 34-day, 680-mile (1,090 km) trip to check on his land holdings in the ohio country. he oversaw the completion of the remodeling work at mount vernon, which transformed his residence into the mansion that survives to this day—although his financial situation was not strong. creditors paid him in depreciated wartime currency, and he owed significant amounts in taxes and wages. mount vernon had made no profit during his absence, and he saw persistently poor crop yields due to pestilence and poor weather. his estate recorded its eleventh year running at a deficit in 1787, and there was little prospect of improvement. washington undertook a new landscaping plan and succeeded in cultivating a range of fast-growing trees and shrubs that were native to north america. he also began breeding mules after having been gifted a spanish jack by king charles iii of spain in 1784. there were few mules in the united states at that time, and he believed that properly bred mules would revolutionize agriculture and transportation. constitutional convention of 1787 shays' rebellion confirmed washington's belief that the articles of confederation needed to be overhauled. scene at the signing of the constitution of the united states by howard chandler christy (1940), depicting washington as the presiding officer at the constitutional convention in philadelphia in 1787 before returning to private life in june 1783, washington called for a strong union. though he was concerned that he might be criticized for meddling in civil matters, he sent a circular letter to all the states, maintaining that the articles of confederation was no more than "a rope of sand" linking the states. he believed the nation was on the verge of "anarchy and confusion," was vulnerable to foreign intervention, and that a national constitution would unify the states under a strong central government. when shays' rebellion erupted in massachusetts on august 29, 1786, over taxation, washington was further convinced that a national constitution was needed. some nationalists feared that the new republic had descended into lawlessness, and they met together on september 11, 1786, at annapolis to ask congress to revise the articles of confederation. one of their biggest efforts, however, was getting washington to attend. congress agreed to a constitutional convention to be held in philadelphia in spring 1787, and each state was to send delegates. on december 4, 1786, washington was chosen to lead the virginia delegation, but he declined on december 21. he had concerns about the legality of the convention and consulted james madison, henry knox, and others. they persuaded him to attend it, however, as his presence might induce reluctant states to send delegates and smooth the way for the ratification process. on march 28, washington told governor edmund randolph that he would attend the convention but made it clear that he was urged to attend. washington arrived in philadelphia on may 9, 1787, though a quorum was not attained until friday, may 25. benjamin franklin nominated washington to preside over the convention, and he was unanimously elected to serve as president general. the convention's state-mandated purpose was to revise the articles of confederation with "all such alterations and further provisions" required to improve them, and the new government would be established when the resulting document was "duly confirmed by the several states". governor edmund randolph of virginia introduced madison's virginia plan on may 27, the third day of the convention. it called for an entirely new constitution and a sovereign national government, which washington highly recommended. washington wrote alexander hamilton on july 10: "i almost despair of seeing a favorable issue to the proceedings of our convention and do therefore repent having had any agency in the business." nevertheless, he lent his prestige to the goodwill and work of the other delegates. he unsuccessfully lobbied many to support ratification of the constitution, such as anti-federalist patrick henry; washington told him "the adoption of it under the present circumstances of the union is in my opinion desirable" and declared the alternative would be anarchy. washington and madison then spent four days at mount vernon evaluating the new government's transition. chancellor of william & mary in 1788, the board of visitors of the college of william & mary decided to re-establish the position of chancellor, and elected washington to the office on january 18. the college rector samuel griffin wrote to washington inviting him to the post, and in a letter dated april 30, 1788, washington accepted the position of the 14th chancellor of the college of william & mary. he continued to serve in the post through his presidency until his death on december 14, 1799. first presidential election the delegates to the convention anticipated a washington presidency and left it to him to define the office once elected. the state electors under the constitution voted for the president on february 4, 1789, and washington suspected that most republicans had not voted for him. the mandated march 4 date passed without a congressional quorum to count the votes, but a quorum was reached on april 5. the votes were tallied the next day, and congressional secretary charles thomson was sent to mount vernon to tell washington he had been elected president. washington won the majority of every state's electoral votes; john adams received the next highest number of votes and therefore became vice president. washington had "anxious and painful sensations" about leaving the "domestic felicity" of mount vernon, but departed for new york city on april 16 to be inaugurated. presidency (1789–1797) president george washington, a portrait by gilbert stuart (1795) washington was inaugurated on april 30, 1789, taking the oath of office at federal hall in new york city. his coach was led by militia and a marching band and followed by statesmen and foreign dignitaries in an inaugural parade, with a crowd of 10,000. chancellor robert r. livingston administered the oath, using a bible provided by the masons, after which the militia fired a 13-gun salute. washington read a speech in the senate chamber, asking "that almighty being who rules over the universe, who presides in the councils of nations—and whose providential aids can supply every human defect, consecrate the liberties and happiness of the people of the united states". though he wished to serve without a salary, congress insisted adamantly that he accept it, later providing washington $25,000 per year to defray costs of the presidency, equivalent to $5.69 million in 2021. washington wrote to james madison: "as the first of everything in our situation will serve to establish a precedent, it is devoutly wished on my part that these precedents be fixed on true principles." to that end, he preferred the title "mr. president" over more majestic names proposed by the senate, including "his excellency" and "his highness the president". his executive precedents included the inaugural address, messages to congress, and the cabinet form of the executive branch. washington planned to resign after his first term, but the political strife in the nation convinced him he should remain in office. he was an able administrator and a judge of talent and character, and he regularly talked with department heads to get their advice. he tolerated opposing views, despite fears that a democratic system would lead to political violence, and he conducted a smooth transition of power to his successor. he remained non-partisan throughout his presidency and opposed the divisiveness of political parties, but he favored a strong central government, was sympathetic to a federalist form of government, and leery of the republican opposition. washington dealt with major problems. the old confederation lacked the powers to handle its workload and had weak leadership, no executive, a small bureaucracy of clerks, a large debt, worthless paper money, and no power to establish taxes. he had the task of assembling an executive department and relied on tobias lear for advice selecting its officers. great britain refused to relinquish its forts in the american west, and barbary pirates preyed on american merchant ships in the mediterranean before the united states even had a navy. cabinet and executive departments the washington cabinetofficenametermpresidentgeorge washington1789–1797vice presidentjohn adams1789–1797secretary of statejohn jay (acting)1789–1790thomas jefferson1790–1793edmund randolph1794–1795timothy pickering1795–1797secretary of the treasuryalexander hamilton1789–1795oliver wolcott jr.1795–1797secretary of warhenry knox1789–1794timothy pickering1795james mchenry1796–1797attorney generaledmund randolph1789–1794william bradford1794–1795charles lee1795–1797 congress created executive departments in 1789, including the state department in july, the war department in august, and the treasury department in september. washington appointed fellow virginian edmund randolph as attorney general, samuel osgood as postmaster general, thomas jefferson as secretary of state, and henry knox as secretary of war. finally, he appointed alexander hamilton as secretary of the treasury. washington's cabinet became a consulting and advisory body, not mandated by the constitution. washington's cabinet members formed rival parties with sharply opposing views, most fiercely illustrated between hamilton and jefferson. washington restricted cabinet discussions to topics of his choosing, without participating in the debate. he occasionally requested cabinet opinions in writing and expected department heads to agreeably carry out his decisions. domestic issues washington was apolitical and opposed the formation of parties, suspecting that conflict would undermine republicanism. he exercised great restraint in using his veto power, writing that "i give my signature to many bills with which my judgment is at variance…." his closest advisors formed two factions,