"First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen."—Gen. Henry Lee
George Washington is one of the most significant men in all of history. As far as the advancement of liberty goes, he may well be the most significant. His contemporaries acknowledged God's hand in his selection as commander of the Continental army and later as President, believing that without Washington, America would not have prevailed in the Revolution or prospered as a new nation founded in liberty.
Washington provided the leadership necessary to hold the troops together during the Revolutionary War, even in the most difficult of situations. When the war was won, he rebuffed an attempt to make him king of the United States, thereby preventing a monarchy or military rule. With his example of how presidents are to govern, he set in motion America's constitutional form of government that prior to his presidency had only existed on paper and in men's hearts.
Apostle of Liberty: The World-Changing Leadership of George Washington is a biography of the great man, but in truth it is more than a mere biography. It also looks at his unique personal qualities as a leader and how these qualities marked him as a leader among leaders. In doing so, it reveals a man whose greatness did not stem from oratorical skills, superior knowledge, or brilliant military tactics, but from virtue. He understood his duty and his proper role in the fledgling nation, and he pursued it with an invincible resolution. Largely, this was due to his belief that God in His providence had chosen him to lead the new nation that was founded on liberty—civil, religious, and economic—and that the experiment that began under his leadership as president of the Constitutional Convention and was successful under his leadership in battle would prosper under his leadership and change the world if given the opportunity to succeed.
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