# Washington — The Columbiad character guide

> Washington in The Columbiad by Joel Barlow.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Washington superior, sage Washington, swift Washington, young Washington, dread Washington

**First appearance:** 0005-book-ii

## Snapshot

The young colonel who rises from Braddock's lost field into a life of fame, later recrossing the Delaware by night to lay the foundation of an empire.

## Who they are

Washington enters the vision first in his young martial frame, beginning his fame at the field where Braddock falls, then strides into the future as the general whose audacious night crossing of the Delaware surprises the British van against uncommon obstacles. Around him the poem arrays the prison ship's expanding womb, the retreat of his tattered army, and the citizen soldiers who gather at Saratoga. He is the hinge on which Barlow's prophecy of American liberty turns from suffering to triumph.

## Relationships

### [Montgomery](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_columbiad_se/characters/montgomery)

_friendship_

Montgomery, a fellow American general, is a comrade and subordinate to Washington in the Revolutionary War.

## In the story

### [Book V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_columbiad_se/chapters/book-v)

Emerges as a leader after Braddock's defeat, later depicted as a central figure in the Continental Congress and the revolutionary cause.

### [Book VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_columbiad_se/chapters/book-vi)

Leads the retreat and daring crossing of the Delaware.

### [Book VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_columbiad_se/chapters/book-vii)

Rises in view, directs the allied armies, and leads the siege at Yorktown.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_columbiad_se/characters/washington
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_columbiad_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_columbiad_se/characters