Sean Connery

History

The beginning of the history of the field with Little Hunting Creek is distinct from the history of the house, which does not begin before 1741-42 and which was occupied for the first only in 1743. In 1674, John Washington and Nicholas Spencer inherited the ground on which the plantation of Mount Vernon would be built. When John Washington dies in 1677, his/her son Lawrence Washington, the large father of George Washington, inherited on behalf of the property which his/her father had bequeathed to him. In 1690, it agreed to divide the field of 5000 Acre S (20 km ²) with the heirs to Nicholas Spencer. Those took the southernmost part bordering the Crique of Mastiff (at the origin called Epsewasson in the concession of the grounds of Lord Culpeper in September 1674, according to the old name of the split) leaving in Washington the part along the split of Little Hunting.

To died of Lawrence Washington, it bequeathed the property to his daughter, Mildred. In 1726, on the recommendation of his/her brother Augustine Washington (the father of George Washington) Mildred sold to him the field of the river Potomac. In 1735, Augustine Washington moved her young people, the second family of the field, reside in a " quart" along the split Little Hunting. In 1738, Augustine on their premises recalled Lawrence (half-brother of George) of Appleby School in England and placed it at the head of the family plantation of tobacco of Little Hunting Creek, allowing of this fact Augustine of bringing back her family to Fredericksburg at the end of 1738.

In 1739, Lawrence, having reached its majority (21 years) started to repurchase pieces of ground in Spencer, while starting with the grounds around the mill to grind corn with Dogue Creek. During the summer 1740, Lawrence received a convocation of the English regular army, and prepared to leave in war in the the Caribbean with the new American regiment. Part of the preparations consisted with the fact that his/her father had the statutory audit of the grounds repurchased in Spencer while it would be with the war ensuring itself thus that the field remains in Washington. While it fought (the War of succession of Spain, 1739-1743), Lawrence wrote with his/her father of Jamaica in May 1741, that, if it survived the war, it intended to élir residence in the town of Fredericksburg, by building a house of city there on one of the pieces which it had over there.

At the same time the Spencer family was in legal conflict on the sale of grounds to their neighbors. To slice on the conflict line of delimitation of the grounds, a court of the county of the Prince William ordered that 20 km ² are common to Washington and Spencer. The chart of 1741 of the geometrician of the county Robert Brooke, revealed that the surface of the field under had been coarsely evaluated in April 1669, it made only 17 km ², and not the 20 envisaged. One of the reasons, is that the property was surrounded by water on 3 sides and that neither the river, nor the 2 splits had rectilinear banks. In accordance with the land concession of Culpeper, the land-surveyor of origin of 1669 was recognized as responsible for this error in estimation. Especially, this evaluation of ground by Brooke of May 1741 revealed that the current site of the manor was then nonoccupied, with of Washington having their district along Little Hunting Creek (as indicated on a similar chart moreover large scales, of a cadastral chart of Potomac of 1738).

At the time of the reception of the news of her son indicating that it intended to settle in Fredericksburg, Augustine Washington seems to have undertaken to set up a modest house of farm on a free zone of the escarpés edges of the Potomac river (where the manor is today) in 1741-42. It would seem that Lawrence would have received news on the intentions of his/her father towards the end of 1741, whereas he was in Jamaica, and he would have answered this last while asking to name him the house " Mount Vernon" in the honor of its senior officer of then, the English Vice-admiral Edward Vernon (known as being the largest military hero of this time in England). At the beginning of August 1742, the place named " Mount Vernon" appeared on a letter, written by William Fairfax de Belvoir, the neighbor of Lawrence on the Potomac river. Lawrence Washington returned from the war at the end of 1742. It buried his father in April 1743, Maria with a Fairfax family member and settled with " Mount Vernon" in July 1743. Towards the end of the year 1740, Lawrence undertook to increase the house that Augustine had built.

At the time of died of Lawrence in July 1752, George Washington was already installed in Mount Vernon and directed probably already the plantation. The widow of Lawrence, Anne Fairfax, remaria quickly with a family member Lee and left the property. With died of the only son of Lawrence and Anne in 1754, George arranged himself to rent Mount Vernon. In 1757, it began the first of both large expansion and improvement of house. The second expansion began little before the beginning from the Guerre from independence. With these occasions, it entirely rebuilt the house on the foundations of origin but by doubling the size of this one each time. The large majority of work was made by Esclave S and Artisan S. It should be noted that during these two rebuildings, George Washington forever changed the English patriotic name of the house.

With died Anne Fairfax Washington Lee in 1761, George inherited legally the field of Mount Vernon. From 1759 until the War of independence, Washington, which aspired to becoming a large farmer, separated the field in 5 different farms. Washington made a scientific approach of agriculture, collecting méticuleusement and with large scales of the data on provided work and the results obtained. One of its greater success was distilling: it became one of largest, if it is not largest any more, distillor of Whiskey of the country.

After its military period, Washington turned over to Mount Vernon and in 1785 - 1786 it spent much time to the landscape improvement of the field. Some estimate that during its two mandates of president of the United States (1789-1797), Washington spent 434 days to Mount Vernon. After its presidency, Washington spent its time to the repair of the buildings, the improvement of the garden and to receive. George and Martha Washington but also of the other family members, are buried in Mount Vernon.

After the death of Washington in 1799, the plantation passed from descendants in descendants, which missed either of will or of means to maintain it such as it was. After having tried without success during 5 years to restore the field, John Augustine Washington put it at the sale in 1848. The Virginia and the federal government refused the purchase of the field.

In 1860, the association of the Mount Vernon Ladies , under the direction of Ass Pamela Cunningham, acquired the manor and part of the ground for 147.043€ ($200 000), saving it of degradation for lack of repairs and negligence. The field was used as neutral ground with the two camps during the American Civil War, whereas the engagements made rage in the surrounding countryside. Mount Vernon was indicated like National Historic Landmark the December 19th 1960 and later will be registered with the national Registre of the historical places.

The manor was entirely restored by association (without accepting government stocks of Virginia or funds federal). The field is as well known for its exceptional installation and its auxiliary buildings.

November 7th, 2007, Georges Bush and Nicolas Sarkozy held to with it a work meeting at the time of the 3 days visit of this last with the the United States.

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