Valley Forge: Would You Have Stayed?

Valley Forge: Would you have stayed?

In 1777 George Washington and he's army were on the run they were unable to stop the advancing British army in Boston, New York, or in Philadelphia. After being defeated by the British and losing the capital George Washington decided to make camp 18 miles northwest of Philadelphia. The camp would be known as Valley Forge. The soldiers didn't have proper housing or clothing, they lived in huts which had no windows or floor and some men were bare foot. Also most people died of illness and diseases. If I were a soldier at Valley Forge I would have quit because of the rapid increase of deaths, the severe weather, and the doubt of whether or not it was worth staying.

First, I would have quit because our army was losing great numbers. Many people were dying because of sickness and the cold. In document A, it states that during the winter 1,800 people to 2,500 people died. The army started out with 12,000 soldiers in the December of 1777 and in February it dropped to 8,000. Not only were people dying many soldiers become ill. In December 2,898 were sick. The numbers didn't go down either; in February nearly 4,000 were sick. Document C describes the conditions the soldiers were living in. It says that the soldier was sick "poor food, hard lodging cold weather, fatigue, nasty clothes, and nasty food" and was vomiting half the time. I would have given up by then.

The living conditions at Valley Forge were far from being good. Soldiers slept in log huts with no windows and extremely poor ventilation. In document C Dr. Waldo wrote two paragraphs. One saying, "My skin and eyes are almost spoiled with continual smoke". He also mentions in document C how the food is poor, the weather's cold, the clothes and food are nasty, and he feels exhausted. Based on this description, it would seem as a good idea to quit. George Washington, the man who led the Continental Army, realized this. In fact, soldiers would cry through the camp "No meat! No meat!" That is why Washington presented the army to the Congress.

In document B it shows George Washington presenting the soldiers to the Continental Congress. You can see that the soldiers had high spirits but they did not have shoes and nice clothing.