George Washington's Farewell Address

Washington’s “Farewell Address” has two distinct purposes. The first is to announce Washington’s retirement and share his parting thoughts on preserving America’s freedom. In this capacity, Washington speaks as a beloved national hero, finally ready to close the book on an extraordinary career of public service. The second is to defend the record of his presidential administration against its critics. This requires Washington to be a more partisan figure, the de facto leader of the Federalist Party trying to garner voter support in the upcoming election. Throughout the “Farewell Address,” Washington strikes a careful balance between these two objectives, representing himself as concerned only with the good of the nation while at the same time delving into the political arena to challenge his critics.

The tension is evident from the beginning of the address, as Washington explains his decision to decline candidacy for a third term. He proclaims that “the state of your concerns, external as well as internal, no longer renders the pursuit of inclination incompatible with the sentiment of duty or propriety” (Paragraph 3). On the surface, he is merely saying that circumstances are calm enough to permit his long-desired retirement, but he implicitly attributes that calm to his highly controversial decision to remain neutral rather than support France in its ongoing war with Britain.