Valley Forge: Would you Quit? Imagine a life full of death and disease. Valley Forge was a horrid winter camp that Washington and his men stayed at waiting for war. People longed for their nice, warm homes. They missed their families. If I was a soldier at Valley Forge, would I quit? Yes,I would quit for three reasons which are smallpox and diseases, freezing and starving, and horrible clothes. The first reason I am not reenlisting is because people are dying of smallpox and all sorts of diseases. Out of the 8,000 soldiers, 4,000 were sick (Doc A). Half of the men were dying and suffering. I wouldn’t want to stay and die of disease; suffering slowly doesn’t sound fun at all. The second reason I am not reenlisting is because people are freezing
Valley Forge December year of 1777 Washington and his army arrived at Valley Forge. Valley Forge was used for a winter camp for Washington and his army. Valley Forge was a cold place to live, not a lot of food, and not a lot of clothes, bad housing all these things are bad but soldiers stay with their army. Valley Forge would you have quit me I would not quit because There were a lot of people sick but not a lot of dying, Washington is getting help, and I’m not a summer soldier freedom is worth fighting for.
The first reason I will not re-enlist is all the bad conditions. I am sick because of the poor/nasty cookery. I am out of humor, all the men are! All of the 12 men in my hut are getting more sick with the smoke from the fire. On December 21, I heard a general yell “No meat!” “No
Another reason I must re-enlist is the fact that my government deserves my loyalty. The Committee of Congress has stayed with us through much of the winter after arriving at Valley Forge a few weeks ago and has given us hope (Document B). That hope has sparked within us a new flood of encouragement and will power. When George Washington was talking to the 5 members of Congress, he expressed the fact that we brave soldiers need help in our battle with Britain (Document B). Even though it’s cold, and we have threadbare clothing that are merely rags, and the Congress members are all dressed in their finest, our spirit is still strong (Document B). Even Dr. Waldo stated that while tending to our sick soldiers, he was surprised by the magnitude of cheerful willingness to proceed with fighting for our cause (Document C). Dr. Waldo expected us to be down on our luck for having to withstand the poor food, fatigue, cold weather, crowded huts, and smoky air quality which was due to poor ventilation, but most soldiers were able to persevere through all of that hardship (Document C). The Committee of Congress makes me feel like someone is listening to our needs. The general supports us and the government cares about us, so I must support my government.
One of the reasons I wouldn't quit Valley Forge is because 50% of the people were sick but only 15% died. In document A it says “3989 (about 4000) out of 8000 were sick or unable to report for duty.” By February 1st, about 50% of soldiers were sick. But sickness is common around this time. For example, in our classroom about half of our students were sick. (Doc A) “1800 out of 12000 died”. 1800 out of 12000 soldiers may sound like a lot but it is actually only 15%. That's only 15% of all the soldiers dying. That's pretty good for being the “UnderDogs” in a war. This still gives you an 85% chance of living. So I would stay.
Valley Forge is where George Washington and his troops sent camp for the winter. During camp the colonists trained hard and gained the confidence they needed to win the war. Unfortunately the lack of food and spread of disease caused many deaths during this harsh winter. If I had the choice to leave or stay at Valley Forge I would leave. I would not want to risk my life or have to suffer through the cold and sickness. According to Estimates of Illness and Deaths at Valley Forge (Doc A), during the encampment about 2,500 soldiers died. That is about ⅓ of the colonists fighting in the war. About 49% of the soldiers get sick. “I am sick-discontented-and out of humour. Poor food - hard lodging - Cold Weather - fatigue - Nasty Clothes - nasty
Victory does not come cheap. The soldiers who joined Washington in Valley Forge in December of 1777 learned that very quickly. While we camp here for the winter, we endure very harsh conditions. Many soldiers leave once their terms come to an end, and some even desert before then. Though some decide to stick it out and reenlist. The question is: which group will I join once my term is up? My response is that I will stay and fight for my country. There are three main reasons that I have come to this conclusion; The army is in need of people, I do not want to spread sickness to my family, and we are fighting for our freedom.
Valley Forge was a winter camp that was 18 miles northwest from Philadelphia that the American Continental Army spent the winter from 1777-78 during the American Revolutionary war. There were many soldiers at Valley Forge, Many of them died, but many of them also lived. An approximate amount of soldiers at Valley Forge was 12,000 in December 1777 and 8,000 in February 1778. While many soldiers were sick or heave died, the remaining soldiers that survived were being trained by General George Washington. Though staying at Valley forge may have not been the right idea. In the “Estimate of illness and deaths at Valley Forge (Document A)” it shows how many soldiers were sick and how many soldiers
I am one of those people who would quit Valley Forge. Valley Forge is a winter camp that was developed in the year 1777 to prepare Washington’s army for war. The 18,000 soldiers would have to train for 7 months in the cold weather with limited supplies. I would leave Valley Forge, because from 18,000 healthy soldiers, soon became 7,000 soldiers getting ill, and 2,500 end up dying (Document A).
I am a Colonist and I can’t stand it here anymore so I have decided I am going to leave Valley Forge. In Estimates of Illness and Deaths at Valley Forge (DocA). Not all of the soldiers were able to survive. A lot of the soldiers got very ill at Valley Forge because of the weather. In the Diary of Dr. Waldo (Doc C). The army starts to get sick. There is very poor food for us at Valley Forge. The American Crisis by Thomas Paine (Doc D). It is a very difficult time for us to be there. It gets very cold at Valley Forge that is why it is a difficult time to be there. There is illness, poor food, and it is a difficult time that is why I would leave.
Valley Forge, which was a difficult place to live, is where Washington and his Continental Army lived. During the harsh Revolutionary of December 1777-June 1778, many soldiers left, and many stayed loyal. If I had been a soldier in Washington’s army, would I have quit? No I wouldn’t have quit because only 15% of people died, there are people who show willingness, and because of the inspirational words of Thomas Paine.
The reason I will not re-enlist is so many are sick. The main sickness is smallpox, a deadly disease that many soldiers have. If you have it you will get blisters that are filled with pus and they cover your whole body.
The first reason I will not re-enlist is because the sickness in 1777 to 1778 is a very easy disease to spread. The quote “ Sent here to starve and freeze” (Waldo 151) is harsh, especially for the people that are fighting for their country. As well as for the quote “ However, the most frequent time of re-enlistment was nine months… Others just simply deserted” (Roden 141) shows that they knew how hard the living was and that they needed to leave. In Document A it talks about the average people at Valley Forge in the beginning and the average after the sickness spread. So by looking at the chart I would have a 25% chance of living, and a 75% chance of dying.These reasons are causing me to not re-enlist because I would rather not die of a sickness but of old age. This whole paragraph is talking about how you can catch a sickness and may not survive.
My nine month term has ended for serving in the war and I have the option to re-enlist or not to re-enlist. Furthermore, after putting some thought into it, I have decided to re-enlist because more people will suffer if I leave. “Britain, with an army to enforce her tyranny, has declared that she has a right (not only to TAX) but ‘to BIND us in ALL CASES WHATSOEVER,’ and if being bound in that manner, is not slavery, then is there not such a thing as slavery upon earth (Paine 153).” I’m fighting for my country's freedom, if I leave George Washington it’s less likely we’ll win, and Britain will have forever control over us and they will tax and makes us slaves if we do not cooperate they could even put us in jail . “Congress came to help because of the bad conditions (Powell 149).” Many of us have no shoes and tatter’d clothes if I leave more people will have these conditions even with congress help. “ The summer
Image being at Valley forge, you walk through the snow and leave trails of blood while others are getting sick behind you would you want to re-enlist? In December 1777 in Valley Forge the US battled against the british and they suffered alot of pain.
i'm quitting valley forge, i'm done. valley forge ( the war) is hell literally. 4,000 men died in two months that is absolutely absurd and i will not stand for it! we obviously do not get trained enough. also half of our men are sick from diseases and the nasty food. they don't even serve us meat! another thing, we don't even get reasonable clothing it's always gross, smelly, used clothing. many men have even threatened to kill themselves!!! valley forge is not safe for anyone therefore i'm quitting valley forge.