TDIH: Washington appointed CIC

On this day in 1775, George Washington was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army. That army had been created only one day earlier.

Washington’s appointment came at the suggestion of John Adams, who spoke before Congress of a “Gentleman from Virginia who was among Us.” This man, Adams concluded, “would command the Approbation of all America, and unite the cordial Exertions of all the Colonies better than any other Person in the Union.”