Young Washington and the Search for the Real George Washington

A Great Film, a More Impressive Man

Those who were not paying attention to Angel Studios’ Young Washington are now. The film, which tells the story of the early life of the Father of our Country, stars William Franklyn-Miller as George Washington alongside Ben Kingsley, Andy Serkis, and Kelsey Grammer, and had a surprisingly strong release. Last weekend, in its theatrical debut, Young Washington beat Supergirl at the box office, and it was not even close. The patriotic historical drama grossed more than twice as much as the latest DC flick, proving there is still a substantial audience for stories rooted in America’s heritage.

A Heroic Story Hollywood Forgot

Angel Studios deserves a great deal of credit for making the movie larger production companies should have made but did not, despite the evident audience for heroic, historical, and patriotic content. For theatergoers wanting to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Young Washington was their only option. This is yet another piece of evidence that Hollywood remains out of touch with ordinary, decent Americans who want to remember their history and celebrate the nobler facets of their past.

Running just over two hours, Young Washington tells the story of George Washington from the death of his father, Augustine, when he was eleven years old, through his commissioning as commander of the Virginia Regiment at the age of twenty-three. The film uses the adventure surrounding Washington’s journeys into the Ohio Valley, from his first surveying expeditions for the Fairfax family in 1748 through the Battle of the Monongahela in 1755, along with his social interactions with the Fairfax family, to paint a picture of an ambitious young man striving for greatness while remaining on the outside of the elite circles he longed to enter.

The Making of a Young George Washington

Washington had much to overcome. There were his responsibilities on the family farm, the death of his brother Lawrence, who had become a father figure to him, his defeat at Fort Necessity, and his near-death experience at the Battle of the Monongahela. While most Americans are familiar with Washington’s later command of the Continental Army and his presidential terms, his actions at Jumonville Glen and the Monongahela were also historically consequential.

When 22-year-old Washington, alongside his Seneca allies led by Tanacharison, attacked a French force sent to monitor his movements and killed the French commander Joseph Coulon de Villiers de Jumonville, he set in motion a chain of events that eventually erupted into the French and Indian War.

Washington suffered defeat and embarrassment soon afterward when the French attacked his poorly chosen Fort Necessity in what is now southwestern Pennsylvania and forced the surrender of his men. As part of the surrender agreement, Washington signed a document that included the French accusation that he had assassinated the French commander, Joseph Coulon de Villiers de Jumonville. Washington later explained that he did not understand the meaning of the language he was signing because the document had been translated from French.

The film emphasizes that while Washington could have allowed this defeat to define him, he persevered through dysentery and disrespect to become the hero of Monongahela. He resigned his colonelcy but volunteered to assist General Edward Braddock in his expedition against the French. When Braddock fell in battle, Washington took charge, bravely withstood enemy fire that left holes in his clothing, and rallied the remaining troops to an organized retreat.

Fifteen years later, according to a famous account, a Seneca chief who had fought alongside the French at Monongahela told Washington that he had instructed his warriors to shoot at him, but that a spiritual force must have protected him from their bullets. Young Washington condenses this story by showing the chief’s admission immediately after the battle.

Unfulfilled Desire?

There are a few other inaccuracies in Young Washington that also bear mentioning because, despite the fact that the film honors Washington and exemplifies his bravery and perseverance, it also portrays the future president as somewhat more jaded and desperate than the historical account merits.

Washington is shown pursuing and kissing Sally Cary before she married George William Fairfax. His romantic aspirations are foiled in a scene where Fairfax purposely attempts to embarrass him at a social gathering because he does not hold a commission in the British regular army. While it is true that Washington desired a British commission and eventually resigned his Virginia militia commission in 1754 after failing to receive one, there is no evidence that a scene like this ever took place.

George William Fairfax and Washington were friends, and Washington corresponded with both Fairfax and his wife during his time in the Ohio Valley. There is also no evidence of a romantic relationship between Washington and Sally Cary, no record of a kiss between them, or any indication that George William Fairfax prevented Washington from marrying her.

Part of the mystique surrounding Washington and Sally Fairfax involves a number of warm and seemingly flirtatious quips that were more common among Virginia’s upper classes, within a society that maintained far more stringent social barriers between men and women than exist today. Washington’s warmest letter, in which he wrote that he was a “votary to love,” was written in 1758 while he was courting Martha Custis. Despite the flowery language, there is no indication that George William Fairfax or anyone else suspected an affair. There is also a scene where George Washington sneaks into a party hosted at the Fairfax home because obtaining an invitation would have been impossible given his social station. This is another story that is not supported by the historical record.

The Virginia Aristocracy

One of the sub-themes running through Young Washington is how the social hierarchy imposed by the British upon the colonies was unfair. The African slaves in the film seem to accept their condition, but George does not accept his. At one point, Washington suggests that the world should be remade in light of these unfair social castes. These are not words that ever would have come out of Washington’s mouth, a man who was part of the Virginia aristocracy and took his duties seriously.

He understood responsibility from an early age, having become the head of his household after the death of his father and as the eldest child of Augustine Washington’s second marriage to Mary Ball Washington. The stoic paternalism he learned under the care of a demanding mother carried through the rest of his life. Like other members of the Virginia aristocracy, he viewed it as his duty to bear the responsibility of defense and governance, even at great personal expense. This is the Washington who later sacrificed his own resources for the Continental Army and rejected the possibility of becoming king.

The film instead portrays Washington as caught between the upper-class British and the lower-class Scots-Irish militiamen, as suggested by the use of contrasting modern accents. In reality, Washington would have spoken with a variation of a Southern dialect. He was a Virginian who lacked a royal commission not because he rejected the established order, but because he lacked the connections his older half-brother Lawrence had gained through his education in England and his ties to influential families. Washington missed that opportunity after his father’s death. Although he had the possibility of receiving a commission in the Royal Navy, his mother opposed the idea, directing him instead toward a military career in the Virginia militia. Even today, military officer commissions often involve recommendations and endorsements from influential individuals though they are more based on merit than patronage.

The reason Washington rejected Governor Robert Dinwiddie’s offer of compensation during the 1753 Ohio expedition was not because he was attempting to prove himself to an elite class he felt inferior to, as the film seems to suggest. Rather, Washington viewed the offered compensation as inadequate and believed the service he was providing required greater recognition. During his first expedition, he received reimbursement for his expenses but no regular salary. It was precisely because of his aristocratic sense of duty and honor that Washington refused what he considered an insultingly small level of compensation and instead took upon himself the responsibility of serving Virginia. He was not gaining access to elite circles, but operating on the basis of an elite status he already possessed.

A Worthy Tribute

None of these critiques are meant to dissuade viewers. On the contrary. Young Washington does a great job promoting George Washington’s duty, self-control, sacrifice, bravery, and honor. He was a larger than life figure, perhaps even larger than Young Washington portrays him. We do not have evidence he was rejected by his love interest or felt a longing to access higher elite circles to the point of sneaking into a party he was not invited to.

As a young teenager, I was first inspired by Washington’s exploits in the Ohio Valley when I read his journal. For years, I have wondered, as I do with so many other incredible stories from American history, why Hollywood has not seen fit to make a movie about George Washington’s younger years. Finally, someone has done it, and they did a great job of it too. The filmmakers do not randomly insert characters that distract from the historical story for the sake of diversity and they genuinely attempted to cultivate the virtues our country needs to sustain itself. Who better to look to for those virtues than the Father of our Country, George Washington?