In August 1755, George Washington had been made commander in chief of Virginia’s colonial forces. A year later, however, the 25-year-old commander became incensed at being passed over for a royal commission. He was also bitter over the manner in which his fellow Virginians, those who had “behaved like men and died like soldiers,” had…

Throughout the ages, heroic men and women—real and mythological—have roused the spirits of those who hear or read about their exploits. Achilles, Hector, Antigone, Aeneas, and other Greco-Roman figures galvanized entire cultures. In story and song, the Middle Ages celebrated Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, Charlemagne, Richard the Lionheart, Joan of Arc,…