George Washington's Farewell Address

Composed with the help of Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, “George Washington’s Farewell Address” is an open letter published by President George Washington on September 17, 1796, in the Philadelphia Daily American Advertiser. It announces to the American people his decision not to seek a third term as president of the United States, extends his gratitude for the honor of serving his country, and advises the young nation on preserving national unity and individual liberty.

This guide references the edition from the American Presidency Project by the University of California at Santa Barbara.

Washington begins by explaining his decision to leave office: His preference has always been to lead the quiet life he enjoyed since winning the fight for independence from Britain, and he reluctantly accepted the election to the presidency only because he felt obligated to honor the public’s wishes. He then, even more reluctantly, accepted a second term because the outbreak of war in Europe that same year (1792) dissuaded him from leaving office in a time of crisis. Now, he can relinquish his duties and return home to Mount Vernon because the international situation has stabilized enough to permit the transition to a new administration.

With his many years of public service at an end, Washington humbly extends his appreciation to the public for their steady support despite his many mistakes and imperfections. Directly addressing his “Fellow Citizens,” he offers a valedictory wish “that your union and brotherly affection may be perpetual; that the free Constitution which is the work of your hands may be sacredly maintained” (Paragraph 5), and that the US set an example of liberty to inspire the rest of the world. “Here,” he then says, “perhaps, I ought to stop” (Paragraph 6). Now that he is once again a private citizen, however, Washington declares that he will take one last opportunity to share the wisdom of his extensive experience, “the disinterested warnings of a parting friend” who is trustworthy because he no longer has any personal stake in the outcome (Paragraph 6).

The first lesson that Washington imparts is The Importance of National Unity. He avows unity as “the main pillar in the edifice of your independence, the support of your tranquility at home, your peace abroad, of your safety, of your prosperity, of that very liberty which you so highly prize” (Paragraph 8). America’s enemies, both internal and external, are aware of this, and so they will make every effort to undermine the public’s faith in national unity. To resist these insidious appeals, Americans should remember that “you have the same religion, manners, habits, and political principles” (Paragraph 9). Only by working together did they prevail against Britain and craft a national Constitution, and they can all feel common pride in their new system of representative democracy.

If such sentiments are not enough to bind Americans together, then a proper understanding of their own interest should convince them. At the time of the letter’s composition, the most pressing source of division was regional, especially between the industrializing North and the largely agricultural South. Washington points out that Northern factories need raw materials from the South to produce finished goods, and when Northern sailors deliver those goods to Europe, the opening of foreign markets creates additional demand for Southern crops. Likewise, infrastructure on the Atlantic coast facilitates westward emigration, and emigrants can then sell their own products back to eastern merchants. These trends will take time to play out, so in the meantime the people are vulnerable to narrow interest groups who would play one region off of the other for their own benefit. Washington reminds his audience that if they were left to themselves, the regions would compete against one another, leaving them all vulnerable to foreign exploitation. If they can trust in one another for now, they will soon see that they are thoroughly dependent on one another for their security, prosperity, and liberty.

Washington then turns to a defense of the Constitution and its federal system as the only way to ensure national unity. He reasons that a federal system can reliably protect the interests of the whole because its survival depends on the strength of each part. Consequently, citizens owe their full loyalty to the Constitution and federal laws. Failure to obey the laws weakens the system and plays into the hands of “cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men [who] will be enabled to subvert the power of the people, and to usurp for themselves the reins of government” (Paragraph 17). Even though laws can change through a constitutional amendment process, that process should be used very sparingly, lest too many changes undermine respect for existing laws. One way to ensure respect for the laws is to avoid “party” or “faction.” If citizens overly identify with a certain region, social class, interest group, or ideology, they will see their fellow citizens as rivals. Every time an election elevates one faction over another, that faction will use its power to help itself and harm its enemies, and government itself will become a tool for political warfare rather than an instrument for advancing the common good.

One way to restrain factions is the constitutional system of checks and balances, wherein Congress, the president, and courts all have ways of preventing the others from gaining too much influence. However, because human nature often leads people to favor themselves over others, institutional barriers can be easily crossed. Washington frames public Virtue as a Safeguard Against Social Decay. For example, he asserts, religion and morality teach people to love and respect one another, to be truthful, and to devote themselves to higher causes. The government’s careful budgetary management will encourage moderation and concern for the welfare of future generations. Finally, Americans must “observe good faith and justice toward all nations” (Paragraph 29). Excessive friendship or hostility toward one nation over another is one of the surest ways to nourish factionalism, drawing the nation into petty quarrels that elevate passion over reason. These emotional attachments will encourage foreign agents “to tamper with domestic factions, to practice the arts of seduction, to mislead public opinion” until they no longer see their own interests clearly (Paragraph 33).

The United States is conveniently separated, by an entire ocean, from the bitter rivalries that have long dominated European politics. Washington closes by insisting that if the country could keep its distance from “the toils of European rivalship, interest, humor, [and] caprice” (Paragraph 37), and commit to building a unified nation, they would one day be strong enough to command the respect of those nations who are now seeking to divide it.