Once and For All Who Was The First President of the US Washigton or Hanson?

Question

Please none of your silly school book quotes I want facts and sources.

Narplex I agree however southron answered first and while they didn't throw out the question "Define President" I think they meant. Gray you also covered the same point just not in detail.
Southron, my teacher says my/ your answer was correct and in depth research. Thanks

Answer 1

Once and for all and I hope the last time this week (third example of duplicate question this week), wait you'll get "Are you kidding"?; " Washington, are you crazy"? This is why I get so upset when answering questions on the Civil War, no one ever reads anything but the garbage they feed you in public school.



John Hanson was the first American President and the heir of one of the greatest family traditions in the colonies and became the patriarch of a long line of American patriots – his great-grandfather died at Lutzen beside the great King Gustavus Aldophus of Sweden; his grandfather was one of the founders of New Sweden along the Delaware River in Maryland; one of his nephews was the military secretary to George Washington; another was a signer of the Declaration; still another was a signer of the Constitution; yet another was Governor of Maryland during the Revolution; and still another was a member of the first Congress; two sons were killed in action with the Continental Army; a grandson served as a member of Congress under the new Constitution; and another grandson was a Maryland Senator. Thus, even if Hanson had not served as President himself, he would have greatly contributed to the life of the nation through his ancestry and progeny.

As a youngster he began a self-guided reading of classics and rather quickly became an acknowledged expert in the juridicalism of Anselm and the practical philosophy of Seneca – both of which were influential in the development of the political philosophy of the great leaders of the Reformation. It was based upon these legal and theological studies that the young planter – his farm, Mulberry Grove was just across the Potomac from Mount Vernon – began to espouse the cause of the patriots.

In 1775 he was elected to the Provincial Legislature of Maryland. Then in 1777, he became a member of Congress where he distinguished himself as a brilliant administrator. Thus, he was elected President in 1781. Was John Hanson the first President of the United States?

The new country was actually formed on March 1, 1781 with the adoption of The Articles of Confederation. This document was actually proposed on June 11, 1776, but not agreed upon by Congress until November 15, 1777. Maryland refused to sign this document until Virginia and New York ceded their western lands (Maryland was afraid that these states would gain too much power in the new government from such large amounts of land). Once the signing took place in 1781, a President was needed to run the country. John Hanson was chosen unanimously by Congress (which included George Washington). In fact, all the other potential candidates refused to run against him, as he was a major player in the Revolution and an extremely influential member of Congress.

As the first President, Hanson had quite the shoes to fill. No one had ever been President and the role was poorly defined. His actions in office would set precedent for all future Presidents. He took office just as the Revolutionary War ended. Almost immediately, the troops demanded to be paid. As would be expected after any long war, there were no funds to meet the salaries. As a result, the soldiers threatened to overthrow the new government and put Washington on the throne as a monarch. All the members of Congress ran for their lives, leaving Hanson running the government. He somehow managed to calm the troops and hold the country together. If he had failed, the government would have fallen almost immediately and everyone would have been bowing to King Washington.

Hanson, as President, ordered all foreign troops off American soil, as well as the removal of all foreign flags. This was quite a feat, considering the fact that so many European countries had a stake in the United States since the days following Columbus. Hanson established the Great Seal of the United States, which all Presidents have since been required to use on all official documents. President Hanson also established the first Treasury Department, the first Secretary of War, and the first Foreign Affairs Department. Lastly, he declared that the fourth Thursday of every November was to be Thanksgiving Day, which is still true today.

The Articles of Confederation only allowed a President to serve a one-year term during any three-year period, so Hanson actually accomplished quite a bit in such little time. He served in that office from November 5, 1781 until November 3, 1782. He was the first President to serve a full term after the full ratification of the Articles of Confederation – and like so many of the Southern and New England Founders, he was strongly opposed to the Constitution when it was first discussed. He remained a confirmed anti-federalist until his untimely death.

Six other presidents were elected after him - Elias Boudinot (1783), Thomas Mifflin (1784), Richard Henry Lee (1785), Nathan Gorman (1786), Arthur St. Clair (1787), and Cyrus Griffin (1788) - all prior to Washington taking office. Why don't we ever hear about the first seven Presidents of the United States? It's quite simple - The Articles of Confederation didn't work well. The individual states had too much power and nothing could be agreed upon. A new doctrine needed to be written - something we know as the Constitution.

George Washington was definitely not the first President of the United States. He was the first President of the United States under the Constitution we follow today. And the first seven Presidents are forgotten in history.


God Bless You and the Southern People.

Answer 2

Okay, here's the real answer to this question. It depends entirely on how you define "PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES."

Short answer: It was George Washington.

Long answer: the government of the American colonies and states has gone through a number of different phases.

Sir Edward Nicholas: The first president???
His official title was "Secretary of State for the Southern Department," and he was first to hold that title. This was the first office officially charged with the government of the American colonies. He was English, of course, and this was in 1660.
He was the first person charged with government of the colonies as a whole (along with numerous other duties). Does that count as the first president? I don't think so, personally.

Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire. The first president???
He was the first to hold the office "Secretary of State for the Colonies." This was the first office that was concerned entirely with the colonies and had no other duties, and Wills Hills was the first to hold it (1768). Does that make him the first president? I doubt it.

Peyton Randolph: The first president???
Peyton Randolph was the first President of the Continental Congress (1774). The Continental Congress was a group of delegates from each of the states that gathered together to complain about the British and organize a response to them and later a revolution against them. Peyton was the first official leader of an organization that claimed governance over all American colonies who WASN'T a Brit. The first president? Probably not. The United States didn't even exist yet.

John Hancock: The first president???
Hancock was the president of the Continental Congress (1775) when the Declaration of Independence was signed. That's why his signature is so big on it. He was the guy in charge of the organization that led the states when they first claimed that they were NOT part of England anymore. Is that good enough?

Samuel Huntington: The first president???
He was in charge (1779) of the Continental Congress when the Articles of Confederation (our first constitution) were signed (1781). That made him the first "President of the United States in Congress Assembled." Getting closer!

Thomas McKean: The first president???
He was the first person who was actually called "President of the United States" in an official document (1781). The British army surrendered to the Americans while he was in office. He held this office for a whole four months. They called him the president! Is it him?

John Hanson: The first president???
He was the first to formally refer to himself as the "President of the United States in Congress Assembled," sometimes shortened to "President of the United States" (1781). This position, by the way, just like all presidents of the Continental Congress, was not an executive position. He didn't decide what the congress was going to do, and he wasn't in a position to "order" anything. He was just the chairman of the meetings. Not much is known about John Hanson, really (although there are plenty of stories), but it's pretty clear that he didn't consider himself the first anything. Some people say he should be called the first President of the United States because he was the first one elected _after_ the main British army surrendered. This was mostly the invention of a guy named Seymour Wemyss Smith who wrote a book about Hanson. But why is that so important? After all...

Elias Boudinot: The first president???
...Boudinot was the President of the United States in Congress Assembled (1782) when the Revolutionary War actually officially ended (1783). The Treaty of Paris was signed when HE was in office but...

Thomas Mifflin: The first president???
... the peace treaty wasn't ratified by the Continental Congress until Mifflin was its president (1784).

Cyrus Griffin wasn't the first president. He was, in fact, the LAST President of the United States in Congress Assembled. That office was officially ABOLISHED when the new United States Constitution was ratified. The ratification of the US Constitution marked the end of a loose confederation of independent states and marked the formation of a new nation, the United States of America. The United States of America has an _executive_ office called the President of the United States. The President of the United States actually makes decisions and decides on policy for the nation. This is definitely NOT the same office as the President of the United States in Congress Assembled.

So. After all that mishmash, we have a new nation with a new executive office in charge of it. The exact same office that we have today. And the name of the first holder of this office - the first President of the United States?

I think you know.

It's ol' George Washington.

Answer 3

George Washington was the First President of the United States. John Hanson was President of the Congress of the United States under the articles of Confederation. Before the adoption of the Constitution there was no such office as PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.

Answer 4

George Washington

Answer 5

Narplex,

What can I say. One of the most brilliant explanations I have seen on Answers. Facts and more facts, leading to an inevitable truth.

If the question was "Who was the first President IN America?"
Then the debate could begin.

But Washington is the only 'First President of the United States of America"

Answer 6

Washington was the first elected President of the United States of America. He was elected in 1789.

Answer 7

it is washington for sure.. i dont need quotes on something this obvious

Answer 8

I really, really hope you do not live in the U.S.A.