Life was brutal and deadly for the the Continental Army who were at the dreadful winter at Valley Forge. Winter at Valley Forge is a turning point because it was a place of death and diseases which were spreading at a super fast pace. The men of the Army suffered badly from the cold and had nearly nothing to eat or wear. But the troops didn’t quit, they worked harder and harder which made the Winter at Valley Forge a turning point of the Revolutionary War.
Conditions that the troop had to endure at Valley Forge were bad. They had to deal with cold, harsh, and snowy weather. They suffered shortages of food and many of the soldiers didn't have shoes as their shoes had worn out on the long march to the valley. They did not have warm clothing and there were few blankets as well. Living in cold, damp, and crowded log cabins made matters even worse because it allowed disease and sickness to spread quickly throughout the camp. “Diseases such as typhoid fever, pneumonia, and smallpox took the lives of many soldiers. Over ten thousand men who began the winter at Valley Forge, around two thousand five hundred men died before the spring.”
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On December 19, the undertrained American Army arrived at Valley Forge exhaustively and in a miserable state.
(Four days later 3,000 men were reported sick or incapable of duty)-Raab Collection, Pennsylvania historical based. The winter came and the men suffered badly from cold. The Continental Army was desperately at the face of the harsh weather and the bloody and were ready to quit. Even General George Washington conceded “If the army could not get help soon, in all likelihood it would disband.” There was hunger, disease, and despair. Cold weather stung and numbed the soldiers. Empty stomachs were common. Cries of "food" echoed throughout the camp. The future promised only more desperation and
starvation. Even though there are other turning points in the Revolutionary War, Valley Forge was the game changer because Valley Forge wasn’t a battle because fighting with the British hadn’t occurred, they’re wrong because the patriots suffered shortages of food and clothing. Many of the soldiers didn't have shoes as their shoes had worn out on the long march to the valley. That did not make them weaker it made them stronger and prepared for the war. According to National Historical Parking “ a period of mid-February 1778 when Washington’s troops at valley Valley Forge suffered death of meat,describing it as a time of unmitigated misery for Washington’s troops”This quote emphasises that Washington’s troops were suffering of death and the coldness. In conclusion, the turning point of the Revolutionary War was Valley Forge because the army didn't quit, even if they knew what they were going through was dreadful. These soldiers overcame some difficulties we have never experienced, and never even thought of. Without the experiences in Valley Forge, these soldiers would have never won the Revolutionary War. Since the army that remained were very strong, they realized that hardship wasn't just guns and bullets. They have went though all the trouble and suffering to give us independence, and not let us down.
To make matters worse they had to deal with smallpox more dangerously than that is Lice because they rarely bathed or washed themselves or had laundered clothing. Another horrible things that Martin and his soldiers had to deal with was typhus a potential killer disease characterized by usually high fevers and red sports on the skin. Typhus took the lives of most of the Valley Forge Martin was under the brigade command of General James M. Varnum but his actual commander was Colonial John Durkee of the 4th Connecticut regiment, since Varnum was elsewhere. Washington’s continentals fairly well- supplied with food, but in the months preceding a major reason for so much privation at Valley Forge. Martin’s statement about Washington’s main army was misleading about them residing in the White Plains as they crossed the Hudson River and established winter quarters in Middlebrooks, New
In the winter of 1777 and 1778 George Washington and the Continental Army had a rough time at Valley Forge. Valley Forge was 18 miles outside of Philadelphia . Some of the soldiers left because all they did was work it was cold and they had bad clothing like worn out shoes and they were getting sick but not all left some stayed loyal and times got even harder but they were so devoted to stay and fight for their freedom. So I would not have quit because…..
Goal: Have the general public understand why the army stayed at Valley Forge, and what the soldiers did here in order to survive the winter encampment.
Valley Forge, was the toughest obstacle the Continental Army had to face during the Revolutionary War. For about nine months in the cold winter, these soldiers stayed in this area for them to"... be close enough to Philadelphia to keep an eye on the British"(Background). By the end of the war, the colonists were victorious in gaining their independence. Regardless, I would abandon my position as a soldier at Valley Forge. My reasoning are due to the multiple hardship they endure such as living in a harsh environment, sickness that lead to death and lacked numerous resources.
• Valley Forge was among the last of true hardships of humanity during the war
As I walked through the snow with aching, raw feet, the blood, making a trail behind me, I soon began to realize how Valley Forge and this whole war in it’s entirety was driving me to the point where I wanted to quit. It was the winter of 1777 and the American Army was forced to set up camp 18 miles outside of Philadelphia, we call it Valley Forge. The question that keeps popping up in my mind while I sit miserably in my hut is, am I going to re-enlist? I am not going to re-enlist for 3 reasons: death and illness, harsh conditions, and the lack of support and supplies. One of these causes that make me want to quit is the amount of men we were losing due to the illnesses that spread around camp.
According to Document A, there were 12,000 soldier in valley forge during December 1777. By February 1778 there were only 8,000 soldiers. From December to June 1,800 to 2,500 soldiers died. In December there were 2,898 soldiers sick and by February there were 3,989 soldiers sick. About 50% of soldiers were sick in February. They need help caring for the sick and dying. If I stayed I could help the sick and wounded instead of leaving all the fallen soldiers behind.
Powell had documented that,” The committee of five congressmen stayed several weeks and was helping in getting more food.” This relates because, the Congressmen didn’t trust George Washington and then ended up helping us throughout the war. ‘The Congressmen didn’t trust him because, “George Washington's position was uncertain and so the Congressmen were unsure if they could trust him (Powell 149). The Summer soldier and the Sunshine patriot will, in the crisis, shrink from the service of their country (Paine 153). Busch had also documented,”from December 1777 to February 1778 over 4,000 soldiers had either left or died.” Tyranny, is like heck or under the ground and is not easily conquered. This is why we need more soldiers so we can fight for freedom. Fighting is extremely hard and you will lose many friends, but you will feel joy, if the right thing has happened. This reason is causing me to re-enlist because I still trust my army to fight with them, I will stay because I want freedom for me and
One fourth of the men had either been left at Tampa or had died of malaria and yellow fever. Yet they quickly unloaded from the steamship they traveled on and set up a camp on Cuban shores. The next day more supplies came in, consisting of food and very few horses. Theodore Roosevelt would later say, “The great shortcoming throughout the campaign was the utterly inadequate transportation. If they had been allowed to take our mule-train, they could have kept the whole cavalry division supplied.
The day to day life for the regular soldier was not glorious. Many times the regiments were low on supplies such as food and clothing. They lived in the elements. Medical conditions were grotesque because of the lack of advanced equipment and anesthesia. “Discipline was enforced with brutality” as if all the other conditions were not bad enough.
Soldiers faced diseases like measles, small pox, malaria, pneumonia, camp itch, mumps, typhoid and dysentery. However, diarrhea killed more soldiers than any other illness. There were many reasons that diseases were so common for the causes of death for soldiers. Reasons include the fact that there were poor physicals before entering the army, ignorance of medical information, lack of camp hygiene, insects that carried disease, lack of clothing and shoes, troops were crowded and in close quarters and inadequate food and water.
The Small Will to Fight With Very Little Might The cold was the most overwhelming it had ever been, and the men inside were dying from dying from illnesses and starvation. All of the problems, it’s just… too much, it’s hard to handle. The American soldiers just arrived at Valley Forge at were attempting to set up. They had very minimal food and were living poorly, they were all cold, discouraged, and about half were sick. All of these men from the Continental Army were at Valley Forge, some on the verge of death.
It was the winter of 1777 and 1778, about 18 miles outside of Philadelphia. Commander George Washington and his Continental Army set up a camp named Valley Forge. Nearly several thousand patriot soldiers were sent there to fight against the British. There were 18,000 comfortably quartered soldiers. Since there was no place for the many soldiers to stay, they made log “huts” There were no beds, just fragile straw on the cold, mud floor. They housed 12 men and had no windows. Cold was one problem, smoke was another. Since the “huts” had no windows, the smoke had nowhere to get out and made the soldiers hurt. There were many problems, and the first two years of the American Revolution had not gone well for the Continental Army. Washington was having problems keeping soldiers in the army. Even nine-month men decided to go home and not returning. Others simply deserted. Would you have quit Valley Forge? There are reasons to quit, like the poor conditions, but I would stay at Valley Forge because I am not a summer soldier or sunshine patriot and there is still hope.
As America became involved we realized our medical strategy was practically non-existent, so we copied France and Britain’s plans. Our new medical strategy still contained problems that were in need of fixing. Some of these problems included sanitation and blood loss. Sanitation levels were dangerously low, baths were rare (as was laundering) , and the drinking water was contaminated with who-knows-what. But, we did know that this was causing rapidly-spreading diseases throughout camps. When a soldier would suffer a wound or was operated on there was often a decent portion of blood lost. But fear not, for solutions to these problems were soon discovered!
Due to a series of snowstorms that hit Sierra Nevada recently, the snowpack is higher than the average for this time of the year. This is a milestone for California, who has been in a severe drought for the past year. The storms have increased the snowpack levels of the mountain that hasn’t been seen in two years in California.