Deeply hurt by farmers rebelling against an unpopular whiskey tax and delicate diplomacy with England and France, Washington rebuffs all efforts to persuade him to accept a third term. He is free to return home and leave the public service he never sought.

Nearly 5 years have passed since George Washington surrendered as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army in 1793. In the intervening years, a constitutional convention in Philadelphia (with Washington presiding) has drafted a new constitution that, for the first time, would unite the 13 independent states into one federation.