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2015 · 84421 — New York: Alfred A. Knopf 2015. First United States Edition stated. Presumed first printing. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. Elena Seibert author photograph. xviii 440 4 pages. Endpaper maps. Illustrations color. Abbreviations. Notes. Bibliography. Index. Signed with sentiment by author on the title page reads "with best wishes flora Fraser". Flora Elizabeth Fraser Soros born 30 October 1958 is an English writer of historical biographies. She was named for the Scottish Jacobite Flora MacDonald. Using her maiden name Flora Fraser she has written biographies of Emma Hamilton Caroline of Brunswick the daughters of George III Pauline Bonaparte and The Washingtons. Acclaimed historian Flora Fraser unfurls the story of George and Martha brilliantly narrating the lives of an extraordinarily dedicated accomplished and historic couple. They were devoted to one another. She endowed Washington with the confidence—and resources—that would aid him when elected commander-in-chief of the Continental army. During the war Martha resolutely supported her husband ‘the General' joining him every winter in headquarters; she was a redoubtable vastly admired figure. After the American victory George was elected our first president and Martha became an impeccable first First Lady. During his presidency the two established the tenets and traditions of our highest office. This is the story of a pioneering partnership—and an enthralling narrative of our nation's emergence onto the world stage. A full-scale portrait of the marriage of the father and mother of our country and of the struggle for independence that he led. The Washingtons' long union begins in colonial Virginia in 1759 when George Washington woos and weds Martha Dandridge Parke Custis a pretty charming and very rich young widow. The calm early years of their marriage as plantation owners at Mount Vernon and as parents to Martha's two children Jacky and Patsy both of whom present difficult challenges yield to harsher times. Washington has been prominent among Virginians in opposing British government measures and at the outbreak of fighting in 1775 he is elected commander-in-chief of the Continental army. The war sees Martha resolutely supporting her husband sharing in the hardships at Valley Forge and other wretched winter headquarters. Essential to George's personal well-being she is known as Lady Washington a redoubtable and vastly admired figure in her own right. Flora Fraser provides us with a brilliant account of the public Washington and of the war he waged and gives us as well the domestic Washingtons whether at Mount Vernon before and during the war or in New York and Philadelphia during his presidency. Even in wartime Martha manages to scour Philadelphia to find a doll for her newest granddaughter and keeps careful control of her Virginia inheritance. George grapples with a formidable enemy without proper troops and often without basic supplies his soldiers frequently lack rations blankets even shoes while always fearful for his wife's welfare and safety given the constant worry that the British might descend on Mount Vernon. Even so a true Virginian he manages to dance for more than three hours with Alexander Hamilton's pretty young wife at a makeshift ball. With victory and the arrival of peace in 1783 the Washingtons hope to remain at home a hope dashed when in 1789 George is elected our first president and Martha becomes a faultless first First Lady. During the presidency they together negotiate the many pitfalls of establishing republican entertainment the weekly Congress dinner levées and drawing rooms before finally free of official responsibilities after Washington's second term they are at last able to retreat to their beloved Mount Vernon. This is a remarkable story of a remarkable pair as well as a gripping narrative of the birth of a nation a major and vastly appealing contribution to the literature of our founding fathers . . . and founding mother. Alfred A. Knopf hardcover