General George Washington at Trenton

The commission had personal significance for Trumbull, for he had served as Washington¹s second aide-de-camp during the Revolution. Trumbull chose to convey the critical moment of Washington¹s leadership during the Revolutionary War when his night maneuvers at Trenton, New Jersey, led to a decisive victory at Princeton the following day, a major turning point of the war. Trumbull considered this portrait the “best of those which I painted.” In Trumbull’s blend of history painting and portrait, the commander in chief epitomizes heroism and nobility, yet Charleston refused to accept it on the grounds that they preferred a more amiable and peaceful image. Trumbull produced another likeness of Washington, this time with the city in the background, which Charleston accepted.