Part 6, The Legacy: Chapters 64-67 Summary and Analysis

Hamilton and Washington often discussed the growing tensions with France in the aftermath of the XYZ Affair, pledging to lead an army together should it come to that. Therefore, when Adams approached Washington to lead a new federal army, Washington insisted on having Hamilton as his second in command. Adams openly protested this choice, causing a battle of wits between the two men before Adams finally backed down.

With the passing of the Alien and Sedition Acts and the public scandal surrounding Hamilton, the Federalists began to lose some of their credibility by 1799. Even though he had sworn he would never move more than twenty-five miles from Mount Vernon again, party leaders began to ask Washington to run for a third term as president. Washington refused.

Washington had always struggled with slavery, aware...