3. He Battled Smallpox Numerous Times In His Life
When Washington was 19 he contracted the life threatening disease while visiting Barbados. This left him crippled for a month or so while he recovered, and importantly gave him a level of immunity to the disease. During the War of Independence a Smallpox Epidemic broke out on the front lines; Washington brilliantly informed the President of the Continental Congress that any symptom of Smallpox resulted in quarantine. This breakthrough in containment played a key role in limiting the number of deaths, and thus played some role in the success during the Revolutionary War.