Washington was a general before he was a politician, so he was used to being in a system with a strong central authority. After he defeated the British with a little help from the French, the soon-to-be father of the nation resigned his position as commander-in-chief.

But Washington didn't stay out of politics for long. After Shays' Rebellion, he became a strong critic of the Articles of Confederation. In a letter to James Warren, G.W. referred to the Confederation Congress as a "nugatory" body, which essentially meant that he thought it was useless. (Source)

And the dude went on to chair the Constitutional Convention.

At the time, many Anti-Federalists, including Patrick Henry, feared that the chief executive of the United States (that's the President, Shmoopers) would attempt to seize too much power. So when Washington returned to his Virginia farm at the end of his presidency, it set a precedent for future leaders. This whole thing wasn't going to turn into Britain 2.0.