George Washington's Rules
of Civility
Our first President is known for his honesty and character. Did you know that by the time President George Washington was 16 years old, he had copied (by hand) the
110 Rules of Civility & Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation?
They are a set of rules composed in 1595 by French Jesuits. What makes them extraordinary is that (according to biographer Richard Brookhiser) these were rules of conduct that should apply to everyone - not just aristocrats.
"
Courtesy
meant behavior appropriate to a court;
chivalry
comes from
chevalier
– a knight. Yet Washington was to dedicate himself to freeing America from a court's control. Could manners survive the operation?"
Richard Brookhiser,
Founding Father: Rediscovering George Washington
(New York: Simon & Schuster Inc., 1996) pp. 130-131.
Read the entire list of rules here
- fun to read with your children because many seem so strange! (ie "Take no Salt or cut Bread with your Knife Greasy.") But many others apply today and are inspiring. Our favorites are the fist and the last:
1st: "
Every Action done in Company, ought to be with Some Sign of Respect, to those that are Present."
(respect others)
110th: "
Labor to keep alive in your breast that little spark of celestial fire called conscience."
(have integrity + resist cynicism)