On Sept 19, 1796, a Philadelphia newspaper released what has come to be seen as the founding president's enduring gift to the nation — the document we now call George Washington's Farewell. With his second term winding down, President George Washington made the deliberate choice to forgo another run for office, opting instead for retirement at his Mount Vernon home.
What drove this decision? President George Washington worried that dying while still in power would send the wrong message, leading both future presidential hopefuls and ordinary Americans to view the presidency as essentially a lifelong role. His voluntary departure from office ultimately laid the groundwork for the two-term limit that would later be enshrined in the Twenty-Second constitutional amendment.
The story behind the "Farewell Address" stretches back to 1792, when James Madison produced an initial draft during a period when President George Washington was already thinking about stepping aside after just one term. The document was subsequently reworked by Alexander Hamilton, who served as Treasury Secretary at the time. After President George Washington himself applied the finishing touches, the address found its way into print through the American Daily Advertiser.
Spanning 32 pages, the address opened with the president laying out his reasons for not seeking another term. He explained that he had chosen to remain in office beyond his first term because of the "critical posture of our affairs with foreign nations" — a reference to the fraught relationship between the USA and Great Britain stemming from Britain's conflict with France. Now that this crisis had passed, he expressed confidence that the nation could thrive under fresh leadership. Beyond this, he made a passionate case for national unity, cautioning against the dangers of partisanship, regionalism, and prolonged entanglements in foreign nations' affairs.
In his closing remarks, the president shared his enthusiasm for returning to life as a private citizen and pledged his continued support for the free government he had spent 45 years of public service helping to build. Every year since, a chosen member of the U.S. Senate has read the "Farewell Address" aloud in public.