General Washington's Resignation

On March 4, 1797, Washington voluntarily stepped down after two terms as the first president of the United States. This image reproduces a contemporary painting with life-sized figures that Charles Willson Peale produced to adorn "a splendid public dinner" organized by the merchants of Philadelphia, honoring Washington's retirement. An allegorical figure of America holds the letter of resignation over discarded emblems of power—a helmet, baton, and sword. The honoree stands near an "altar of public gratitude" and "temple of fame," gesturing toward his estate at Mount Vernon and an ox harnessed to a plough. Washington’s decision to not remain in office led contemporaries to compare him to Cincinnatus, an ancient Roman general who rejected absolute power to return to his farm. This print accompanied an article in "The Philadelphia Magazine and Review" that detailed the local celebrations, noting that the attendees included "all the Foreign Ministers, many of the Members of both Houses of Congress, the Governor of the State and all the principal Merchants of the city." Philadelphia was the country's capital at the time.