Washington and his men spent a difficult winter at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania from the end of 1777 to the early months of 1778. One of the strange customs of war from the 18th Century is that armies would basically call a cease-fire when the weather turned cold. As winter would approach, each army would find a place to hibernate until the fighting would resume in spring. Washington's choice was Valley Forge.
It is well documented how miserable his men were during this time. There was little food, adequate clothing or proper shelter to protect the men from the winter winds. Washington, in display of one of his best qualities, refused to live in comfort while his men suffered. He remained in the camp until winter thawed out.
As difficult as this time was, the men in Washington's camp received the best training of their "careers" up to that point. Prussian military leader Friedrich Von Steuben came to the aid of Washington and drilled his men until they were an actual fighting force. For this week's blog, I want you to read this story, watch part one and part two of this video series and in the comments write about your impression of Washington, Von Steuben and the soldiers in light of their struggle at Valley Forge.
I really liked the video. It seemed pretty accurate. George Washington knew what he was doing when he asked Von Steuben to help his army. Washington's army needed desperate help. If you just look at the description of the Continental Army, you see that their army was in bad shape. In the video, the soldiers act like they don't need Von Steuben's help when in fact they really did. Because of Von Steuben, the force transformed into a real army. I guess they thought they were independent and did not want to listen to correction. Without Von Steuben's help, the soldiers may have not survived the winter of Valley Forge and may have not become the army that they were. George Washington wanted to win this war and he did what he had to do to fulfill that goal.(139)
ReplyDeleteps-Happy Thanksgiving everyone (:
The video and the story were both really good. It helped me realize how the winter at Valley Forge really was. The story of the man that decided to join the army portrayed well how desperate everyone was. The video showed how much of a difference Von Steuben made on the army, even though the army did not like him or want his help. My impression of him was that he really wanted to help the soldiers, and was not trying to harm them at all. The soldiers stayed strong even in the hard times that they were going through because it was a fight for their country's freedom. Washington seems like he wanted to the best for his troops and really cared what the army was like. He made the right decisions that helped us win the war. (139)
ReplyDeleteThe story of Valley Forge is a really inspirational story. George Washington was thought of as an inconsiderate person that did not care for his soldiers. The whole time the soldiers did not like George Washington because he hired Von Steuben. Von Steuben made a huge impact in George Washington's army. The soldiers did not respect Von Steuben while he trained them. George Washington made the right decision to hire Von Steuben. He trained his army through terrible conditions. It was cold, snowy, and windy. After the training the army was considered professional. The videos were informative and gave facts I did not know about.(105)
ReplyDeleteAfter reading and watching a video on Valley Forge it has given me more insight on how much they actually did struggle here.It also shows some of the struggles and decisions Washington had to make and go through. The problem with this is alot of the soilders didn't agree with his decisions. One of them is when he hired Von Stuben to train the soilders. I think the soilders main problem with Von Stuben is because he made them work and train during bad times.They didn't respect Von Steuben and Washington at all,but in reality these two people were just training them so they would have the best chance in surviving the war. Without them they might have never won the war.It teaches the lesson that sometimes we just need to trust the people in authority, because they know alot more than we do.(147)
ReplyDeleteThe Continental Army really suffered at Valley Forge. Tons of people died from diseases, and many people deserted the army. Overall, I really admire George Washington. He really did care about the well-being of his men, and I think he was a great leader. I’m sure that seeing everyone suffer from lack of clothes and food hurt him. He wanted the best for his men, so that’s why he got Von Steuben to help the army. I actually think that Benjamin Franklin helped a lot because he actually met Von Steuben in Paris and sent him. I also think that Von Steuben didn’t mean to cause trouble. He was just trying to carry out what he was hired for. The Continental Army was in pieces when Von Steuben arrived, but he “glued” it back together. The war might have had a different outcome without him. I thought that the soldiers were almost like the 13 colonies. They both had been on their own so long, and when someone decided to rule over them, they got mad. With the colonies, Britain decided to take charge, and with the army, Von Steuben disciplined them. {192}
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The story shows that Washington and Baron van Steuben were amazing leaders and inspiring. It shows that Washington was humble to stay with his soldiers and their tents and not in a heated house where he deserved to stay. That was a perfect example of what Jesus did when he came to Earth and died on the cross. Because the army was so well trained at Valley Forge, it must prove that Washington and van Steuben were amazing generals. Although the Continental Army had trials in Valley Forge they came out stronger than when they went in. The video portrayed the soldiers not being happy with Baron van Steuben coming to the camp and drilling them.(116)
ReplyDeleteAfter reading and watching more about Valley Forge, I understand it better. I really liked that video. At Valley Forge, the Continental Army had suffered really bad. Many people had died from the diseases. I think that George Washington was a great leader. He took care of his men. I think that he also wanted the best for his men. That is why he had Von Steuben help him. In the video, the soldiers were acting like they did not need Von Steuben’s help, but they actually did. I do not think that Von Steuben wanted to cause trouble, he just wanted to help. I think the war would have been different without the help from Von Steuben. Without Von Steuben’s help, the soldiers would not have survived through the winter of Valley Forge. (134)
ReplyDeleteThe time at Valley Forge the army spent was brutal. I would say that it was going down at first, but overall I would say it was a moment when things got better. When you think about it many soldiers died, but in the end America got a professional army like General Washington said in the “Liberty Kids” show. In my opinion I think Washington was a great general that led us to victory over Britain. Von Steuben had to be tough on the soldiers. If he didn't then the soldiers would have slacked off. Even if he the fact that he wasn't a real general was true he still trained the soldiers to be a professional.(117)
ReplyDeleteLoyal. It just seems to be a word that best describes George Washington. Valley Forge proves it. Instead of being a lazy apathetic bum, he chose to be LOYAL to his men and stay with them during the long and agonizing winter of 1777-1778. The story you had us read discusses the soldiers’ terrible suffering and distress during Valley Forge, including: disease, and a lack of clothing, food, and shelter. Thousands died, many left and Washington’s army was falling apart. This truly shows how loyal and brave George Washington was. Instead of giving up like a lot of people would do, he chose to stick to his army and keep moving forward. Because of his leadership, the army recovered and they began to reform back to the army they were. They not only recovered back to how they used to be, but they improved, thanks to Baron von Steuben. Von Steuben definitely had a major affect on the outcome of the war. In the video, it kind of made von Steuben look like a joke. I mean “Yes! We know how to stand up straight.” The one soldier gave him some major attitude, but was that really how the soldiers acted and treated von Steuben? Because that is completely disrespectful. Even if the soldiers did act that way, they were totally outsmarted by von Steuben. He showed them how to be a professional and respectful army. If it weren’t for him we might be still ruled by England. (And that wouldn’t be terrible..maybe) (254)
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed all three sources. The thing that stood out to me the most was the way that even though George Washington had the option to leave and be warm and eat full meals all winter he stayed in the cold wet camp with old worn clothes and not the best food. He was showing his troops that he wasnt going to give up on them just when the conditions were bad. Baron Von Steuben in the beginning of the first video sounded like a awful man. The way they started it with how Washington wouldnt have an army if Von Steuben stayed there. He was the best thing that could have ever happened to the Continental Army. He got them in shape and actually cared for them in a way too. A good example was the way he ask to get rid of the dead animal in Valley Forge to prevent more diseases. The soldiers probably thought they were gonna die because most of their friends already had. (170)
ReplyDeleteThe winter at Valley Forge was incredibly difficult. I knew this, but never really understood just how difficult until reading this article and watching the videos. It’s incredible that they made it through that winter, and amazing just how loyal they were to their cause. Not just anyone would go through a cold winter with little clothes and meager amounts of food. George Washington is perhaps the greatest military leader of all time. However, it is obvious that without Von Steuben and his amazing military abilities they would not have been able to win the war, much less survive the winter of Valley Forge.
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George Washington is just what the American army needed. He was everything that they needed in a commander. He was brave, wise, and loyal to his men and country. It would have been very hard to be him in that time or any time in that matter. He had to lead so so so many people into a battle, where a lot of them would not be coming out from it. I have always loved the cold weather and I bet that so many men in that war did too. The cold weather would stop the fighting, there really is not a lot of things better than no fighting and blood shed. Where do you find all those cool videos? (110)
ReplyDeleteI think George Washington was a loyal and trustworthy general. After reading a book about him, I have gotten a lot more insight about him. I learned things I never knew like spy gear and how much help he was in the war. I think it was brave of Washington to hire Von Steuben because the soldiers did not like him. Von Steuben made them train hard and do more work, so they were being lazy! If Washington or Von Steuben hadn't have done that where would we be? We would be under the King's rule with a lazy army. I respect them for that!(105)
ReplyDeleteI definitely was able to comprehend it better after watching the two videos. There weren't a ton of supplies and the soldiers got sick because of the bad weather and little shelter. They also seemed to act rebellious when they were grumpy. But George Washington held them together, and after Fredrick von Stueben explained his methods the soldiers got it too. I think this is a great example of what we can accomplish if we make sure that even if we don't have good equipment or weather or whatever, we can do to protect our country if we have good leaders and have faith and follow our leaders.(107)
ReplyDeleteValley Forge was a treacherous time in American history. Some lost hope during this time. Although, it was also a struggle the soldiers needed. IT showed the Continental armies weaknesses and what they needed to work on to become an undefeatable army ready for war. THis is where Von Steubon came in. At first, it was quite obvious the people were not happy about him being Russian and having a strong opinion about how the army should act. YOu cant blame them though! If you think about it he was a stranger that came out of nowhere and tells them what to do. BUt once he they needed Washington's guidance. HIs loyal, honest started changing things around for the better, people began to realize how much they needed his guidence. Just like personality was important. He never gave up on the soldiers. Without these two brave men, Valley Forge would have taken a very different route.
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DeleteThe two different accounts of the same story were closely the same, but had some differances. The adult version told the facts as it was like our history book. It stated that the soldgers were in total miserable conditions catching all kinds of nasty diseases. Washington was distraught, but his leadership and added help from Baron Von Steuben kept the soldgers spirits us and transformed them into a real fighting force. The kid friendly version was somewhat different. It left Washington a little bit out of the picture and focused more on Steuben. It portrayed him as unlikable at first, bossing all the men around and forcing them to not be lazy. As the soldgers got to know him, they found out that he was a good leader. He helped the men in whatever way he could. He also respected his men because he knew that they thought they were fighting their own war and not just for money.(159)
ReplyDelete*I loved the show very much! I hope they have it on Netflix, but at least its on youtube!
I think the videos did help prove a better point, in some cases. But, not all of them. Obviously, they did a good job of showing Von Steuben and how the soldiers reacted to him and his commands. It portrayed exactly how the soldiers felt about him. Sure, they weren’t the most appreciative people in the world, but it’s understandable. Maybe this little “break” from the war was nice to have, not being on the battlefield clinging for life to a weapon you don’t know how to use. But, it definitely was no a vacation to a beach resort in Acapulco. They were tired, starving, sick, and depressed. I think the video did a kind of awful job at showing that. It mentioned a few times about food and such, but nothing noticeable or of significance to someone who may have stumbled upon the video, knowing nothing about the topic. If the soldiers were really that hungry, why (in the first video) would the soldiers around the fire toss some bread at random passersby that just stopped for a chat? Back to real life though, George Washington was really brave for staying with his troops during the rough time. He could have easily demanded a nice, warm log cabin to snuggle up in, but he didn’t. He sucked it up and went through with the same treatment his troops got. If he hadn’t, wouldn’t that ruin the whole cause? The soldiers were still fighting for one reason: No matter what it takes, we want freedom, and we are going to get it. Claiming to do something “no matter what it takes” wouldn’t be taken seriously if you chose the easy way out of everything. If anything else, all they really wanted was to just be taken seriously. The Americans were in for a fight, no matter what. (307)
ReplyDeleteFrom the videos its apparent that the soldiers needed help. These people were inexperienced when it came to an actual army. They thought that all it took to win was to have a lot of soldiers, when what they really needed was an organized way of fighting. Stuben was the greatest factor at this point, but he was not used to training free men. This probably confused him sometimes. When I think about this time, I wonder what Washington is doing. I know that Stuben was training and La Fayettee was running around tryin to do whatever he could for morale. But Washington must have pouted about not having any supplies. At this point, I think Washington took a trip to the sidelines for a winter.126
ReplyDeleteThe solders were in harsh times. It seems like every little thing von steaben did. He was harsh on the men but the men needed it. Washington was smart to keep the blame on him for the governments failures. Because if the men lost hope in the government all would hope would be lost. Although this was the roughest time in the revolution the solders pushed through it. It does not surprise me that the solders were upset wit the foreign generals. They were there telling the Americans how to fight for there country not there very own homeland country. (101)
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