George Washington resigned his military commission at the Maryland State House, a Revolutionary milestone recalled by America250.
Washington appeared before the Confederation Congress in Annapolis on December 23, 1783. He handed his commission and a written speech to Thomas Mifflin, the president of Congress, and thereby surrendered command of the Continental Army after the war for independence had effectively ended.
The act was politically significant because Washington voluntarily returned military authority to civilian representatives. Many contemporaries and later historians regarded the decision as evidence that the new republic would not be ruled by a victorious general. Washington left Annapolis the following day and returned to Mount Vernon.
The event is often confused with Washington’s farewell to his officers at Fraunces Tavern in New York City or his farewell orders to the army near Princeton. Those were separate occasions. The resignation itself occurred in the Maryland State House, whose Old Senate Chamber remains associated with the ceremony.