Nevertheless, Washington exhibited a clearly positive attitude toward Catholics during his life. This is particularly striking given there was a wide-spread antipathy toward Catholics on the part of most Protestants in America at that time. Washington does not appear to have shared that antipathy. Instead, on a number of occasions during the American Revolution, he exhibited a sensitivity toward the feelings of Catholics. For example, in the fall of 1775, Washington was in the midst of organizing a military expedition to Canada intended to gain the support of French Canadians for the American cause. Aware of the fact that the Canadians were Catholics, Washington urged the commander of the expedition, Benedict Arnold, to be considerate of their beliefs:
While we are contending for our own liberty, we should be very cautious not to violate the rights of conscience in others, ever considering that God alone is the judge of the hearts of men, and to him only in this case they are answerable. (Letter of Sept. 14, 1775, to Benedict Arnold, as cited at mountvernon.org)
Moreover, in the same year, Washington prohibited his soldiers from celebrating Guy Fawkes Day, an English holiday which celebrated the foiling of a plot by some Catholics in the 17th century to blow up Parliament. He also corresponded with John Carroll, the first Catholic bishop in America, during the Revolution and afterwards. Even before the Revolution, he had attended a mass at a Catholic church in Philadelphia, and would later donate money towards the construction of a Catholic church in Baltimore (see mountvernon.org).
Even the date of Washington's birthday has a connection with Catholicism. Today we celebrate Washington's birthday on February 22. However, according to the calendar in effect when Washington was born, he was born on February 11. The difference between the two dates is due to the fact that Great Britain and its colonies did not adopt the Gregorian calendar until 1752, some two decades after Washington's birth. The British, who were predominately Protestant, had resisted adopting the Gregorian calendar because it had been developed by the Catholic Church under the auspices of Pope Gregory XIII (hence the name "Gregorian"). When the British finally accepted the Gregorian calendar (intended as a reform to the Julian calendar dating back to Roman times), eleven days were added. Consequently, Washington's birthday became February 22.
Image: George Washington portrait by Gilbert Stuart, from Wikimedia Commons