Staring Down the Coup

We heard about this story from this great series on the Articles of Confederation, and how close the United States was to falling apart. Sometimes history books gloss over these confusing and unstable periods, but it’s important to remember that, when George Washington stood before his troops at Newburgh that March 15, he could have easily taken power and possibly become dictator or king. That story has played out many times in the course of revolutions, and it is part of why the United States of America is so special.

General Horatio Gates

Some time after the events in our story, when he judged that he was no longer needed, Washington resigned his commission and returned to his Mount Vernon estate. This painting hangs in the U.S. Capitol rotunda, and is memorable for the two girls on the right with five hands between them.

The reconstruction of the “Temple of Virtue,” the meeting room where our story took place, at New Windsor Cantonment State Historic Site in New York