George Washington Portrait by Charles Willson Peale

Martha Washington commissioned the painting of her husband as a companion to the 1757 portrait of her by John Wollaston, completed during her first marriage. Both paintings hung in the Front Parlor at Mount Vernon from 1772-1802, among other family portraits. Peale’s image is a highly evocative piece that commemorates Washington’s complicated past—his loyal military service and valor during the French and Indian War—but also acknowledges his then-status in retirement as a successful, middle-aged gentleman planter.

After the Washingtons’ deaths, the portrait was inherited by George Washington Parke Custis of Arlington House. It is part of the Washington-Custis-Lee Collection, given by Lee descendants to Washington & Lee University.

 

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