It is of infinite moment, that you should properly estimate the immense value of your national Union to your collective and individual happiness.
George Washington
National Union
Topic: Justice, Vision, & Leadership
It is of infinite moment, that you should properly estimate the immense value of your national Union to your collective and individual happiness.
I have already intimated to you the danger of parties in the state, with particular reference to the founding of them on geographical discriminations. Let me now take a more comprehensive view, and warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of the spirit of party, generally…
The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries, which result, gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual; and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of Public Liberty…
George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799) was an American statesman and soldier who served as the first President of the United States from 1789 to 1797. As one of the leading patriots, he was among the new nation's Founding Fathers, and served as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He presided over the 1787 convention. He also came to be known as the "Father of His Country."
[From Wikipedia]
Farewell Address
George Washington [The Farewell Address (17 September 1796)].
George Washington
Theme: A Vision of America
About This George Washington Quotation [Commentary]
George Washington opens this passage with a direct appeal: “It is of infinite moment, that you should properly estimate the immense value of your national Union to your collective and individual happiness.” He names Union not as an abstract ideal, but as something essential to both shared and personal well-being. From this foundation, he turns to a concern he had “already intimated”—the danger of political parties, especially those rooted in “geographical discriminations.” He now broadens the warning: the “spirit of party” in general must be recognized for what it is—a serious threat to unity.
He describes this spirit with deliberate force: “the alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge… is itself a frightful despotism.” This kind of struggle, repeated over time, leads to a deeper loss. As disorder and mistrust grow, people come to seek “security and repose in the absolute power of an individual.” Eventually, the leader of a dominant faction may “turn this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of Public Liberty.” Washington traces a clear progression—from party conflict to despotism—grounded in his observations of history and human behavior.
What remains vital in this vision of America is Washington’s link between national Union and happiness. When the spirit of party “agitates the Community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms,” it distracts public councils and weakens governance. He calls it a people’s “interest and duty” to “discourage and restrain it.” His concern is not with disagreement itself, but with a mode of opposition that undermines trust and opens the door to centralized power. His words remain an appeal for unity grounded not in uniformity, but in a shared commitment to the whole.
The Context Passage From George Washington’s Farewell Address [Ordinary Prophesy]
“It is of infinite moment, that you should properly estimate the immense value of your national Union to your collective and individual happiness.
I have already intimated to you the danger of parties in the state, with particular reference to the founding of them on geographical discriminations. Let me now take a more comprehensive view, and warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of the spirit of party, generally…
The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries, which result, gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual; and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of Public Liberty…
The common and continual mischiefs of the spirit of party are sufficient to make it the interest and duty of a wise people to discourage and restrain it. It serves always to distract the Public Councils, and enfeeble the Public Administration. It agitates the Community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms; kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection…”
George Washington, Farewell Address
James Madison helped craft George Washington’s Farewell Address. Here’s an additional quotation:
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