Valley Forge DBQ

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I, Damian Hernandez, a citizen of America would have quit if I was a soldier at Valley Forge. If I were to stay at Valley Forge the Revolutionary War wouldn't be the only battle I’d fight. There’s another battle that I’d have to conquer and that is the fight for my own life. The Continental Army stayed at Valley Forge in the winter of 1777-1778. The winters at Valley Forge were extremely cold, there was little heat and not much space in the “cabins” that they stayed in. In a letter that George Washington wrote to George Clinton concerning supplies and food he describes his troops as being “naked”. This term means that the clothes the men had weren’t fit for the conditions they worked in. In addition to this, I have found information about …show more content…

Additionally, there were 6,887 soldiers who were unable to work. The diseases that were spread at Valley Forge were smallpox, scarlet fever, and pneumonia. Pneumonia is a lung infection that can occur in cold weather, therefore, many people in Valley Forge had this. Although pneumonia can be cured by a vaccination today, in 1777 or 1778 I highly doubt they had a highly effective treatment to this disease. Scarlet fever is a rash that is spread on arms, neck, and legs. Along with this rash comes a fever and can be caused by strep throat. Smallpox is another form of rash. This rash is intensified majorly and is spread everywhere on the body. These diseases and illnesses were the reason the Continental Army’s population came to a low and it took a toll on the army. In a letter George Washington wrote to George Clinton, a governor of New York at the time, he explained that many of his soldiers were ill and unable to work. He concluded the letter by requesting that congressmen come to the aid of his …show more content…

While scanning through Document B, the water at Valley Forge was contaminated, but despite the consequences, the soldiers still drank it. Much like water, there were sparse amounts of food, which means there is not much nutrition. “Hotcakes” is what the soldiers ate. This was a mixture of fire and water that was warmed up over a fire. The malnourished soldiers were very unhealthy, but still appreciated every bit of food they could get. Along with these problems is another, the clothing the soldiers had on was not fit for the weather. The bitter cold bit at the soldiers as they waited for orders, some were barefoot, some had holes in their pants, and some had little clothing. All of these things should have been provided for the soldiers while they were there. Although Washington did make efforts to help his army, they were still struggling and many were still dying of disease, lack of nutrition, and lack of warmth (hypothermia). Following these findings I also discovered a quote from Document D.
The quote states “Patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from service of their country.” This is very true because not only are the soldiers risking their life to fight for their country, theiralso risking their life to be able to fight for their country. Many people died in this war, not only because of wars, but because of illness. Many may argue that they would rather fight and lead their

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