[374] He participated in planning for a provisional army, but he avoided involvement in details. In advising McHenry of potential officers for the army, he appeared to make a complete break with Jefferson's Democratic-Republicans: "you could as soon scrub the blackamoor white, as to change the principles of a profest Democrat; and that he will leave nothing unattempted to overturn the government of this country."[375] Washington delegated the active leadership of the army to Hamilton, a major general. No army invaded the United States during this period, and Washington did not assume a field command.[376]
Washington was known to be rich because of the well-known "glorified façade of wealth and grandeur" at Mount Vernon,[377] but nearly all his wealth was in the form of land and slaves rather than ready cash. To supplement his income, he erected a distillery for substantial whiskey production.[378] Historians estimate that the estate was worth about $1 million in 1799 dollars,[379] equivalent to $15,967,000 in 2021. 