Valley Forge Why I Want To Die

In the winter of 1777 and 1778 George Washington commanded a lot of patriot soldiers who spent their time at Valley Forge it was not an easy time.This question if I had been a soldier in Washington's army would i have quit? No i would not quit because there is a lot of people getting sick,but not a lot of people are dieing, you don't want to be a summer soldier, conditions were bad but, the soldiers stuck with it.

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.

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

Valley Forge was a horrible event a lot of people got sick and even died from it, the army that lived there was the militia or continental congress’s army. They were really poor, they didn’t have enough food and they didn’t have the proper clothes that they needed for the winter, so most got hungry and died from starvation or died from illness because they didn’t have food and became very weak. When they slept, they had sixteen by fourteen huts that didn’t have a working chimney, so the smoke was always in their eyes.

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.

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.

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.

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

The last reason is in due to what was written in doc C it tells us about all the hardships and lack of support the soldiers had. In doc C Dr.Waldo describes in his diary that there is no support,no food,no good clothes,it's extremely cold,and they are tired and sick. He thoroughly describes the challenges the soldiers are facing during this war, showing us a good reason not to reenlist. After reading this i will definitely do not want to go back they suffer so much and have so many challenges and absolutely no support other from George.

George Washington once said, “To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace.” George Washington had to prepare his soldiers at the winter camp at Valley Forge. The winter of 1777 was great for Washington, because he could keep an eye on the General Howe’s British soldiers. Washington had a major problem. Some men were signing up for one to two year enlistment, but the most common was nine months.The living conditions were a horrid situation. Many had no shoes and little clothing, which is not a good combination for a frigid Pennsylvania winter. The winter was not pleasant, and most soldiers had diseases, like smallpox, and dysentery. Men are dying, running away, or deserting their post. My term is almost up. I am concerned about my family, and my aging mother. I could desert and leave for home, or stay and fight. The question has come down to this; If you were a soldier at Valley Forge, would you have quit. In this situation, to quit is to not re-enlist. I have decided to re-enlist because our great leaders, the doctors and sickness treatment, and respect.

Valley Forge was a winter camp full of sickness, death, and misery. There is no reason why anyone should’ve stayed. Estimate of Illness and Death (Document A) shows how Over a period of two months the total number of soldiers went from 12,000 to 8,000. Four thousand soldiers died in two months. Imagine how many people died during the whole camp! Also, 50% of soldiers were sick and were unable to train and fight. In the Diary of Dr. Waldo (Document C) he states, “Poor food-hard lodging-cold weather-fatigue-Nasty clothes-nasty Cookery-vomit half my time-smok'd out of my senses.” A man who participated in Valley Forge was miserable and sick which proves how bad this was. They had no food and freezing weather. The Committee of Congress Engraving

If I had been a soldier in Valley Forge, I would have quit for an unlimited number of reasons. A few of theses reasons are disease, starvation, and lack of appropriate supplies and housing. One of my reasons to quit would be disease.

(Background Essay). This reason is causing me to not re-enlist because when I’m going to die, I would rather not die in the war in pain.

Another battle was about to being. We needed to move our troops into pennsylvania and set up camp. While we were in Valley Forge, storms began to hit. The climate was too much for us, and the nearby traders refused to sell to us, patriots. Now, illness is spreading quickly throughout our small encampment. Almost half of us stationed here are bedridden and are unable to battle. (Document A) The conditions keep getting more and more horrid as the smoke from cooking the disgusting food is starting to fill the cramped lodges. (Document C) I don’t think that I can take any more of being around the coughing, the wheezing, and the dead. (Document B)I will leave soon, for it is December and my contract is over. Good luck to anyone still in the camp,