Valley Forge Research Paper

Things are terrible at Valley Forge for the past couple months. I don’t think I can stand it any longer! Right now it is winter in 1777. I have served my time as a soldier in Valley Forge, but now I have to decide if I will quit or not. In this case, quit means to not re-enlist. A lot of soldiers are considering not to re-enlist. I have decided not to re-enlist for three reasons which are, the bad conditions, half of the soldiers are sick, and very cold/snowing.

When a person is in a stressful situation on instinct they have two options, fight or flight. In war the same is true. War is not always bayonets and bullets, it’s the decisions you make during times of hardship. A soldier has to make the decision whether to keep fighting for what they believe in no matter what the stakes or to flee. In December of 1777, George Washington and his troops arrived at Valley Forge. Since the summer of 1775, all has gone well for the Continental Army. More recently Washington was presumably unable to stop General Howe and his British soldiers from claiming the national capital of Philadelphia. With Howe and his army of approximately 18,000 comfortably quartered in Philadelphia,

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 problems, there problems were one third of their army was sick to where they couldn’t even report for roll call. Some lost toes because they didn’t have shoes for their feet so there feet got frost

There was a lot of sick people, but there was not a lot of people dying from the sickness. Firstly, in document A it stated there was “3,989 people sick out of the 8,000” who were there. So what that is saying there was about 50% of soldiers sick and in the Winter it is common to be sick especially in those conditions. Secondly there were only “1,800 out of the 12,000 men died in Valley Forge”(doc A). What this is saying is that there is only a 15% chance of dying and a 85% chance of living which that is pretty good odds. Also in the background essay it says “today we know that most of the army survived the winter. So, I would take those odds and stay at Valley Forge.

In Document C, it says “I am Sick - discontented - and out of humour. Poor food - hard lodging - Cold Weather - fatigue - Nasty Clothes - nasty Cookery - Vomit half my time - Smok'd out my senses…” and much more. Essentially, everything about Valley Forge is terrible, such as the food, ventilation, clothes, and hard lodging. Even though the conditions were terrible, “Dr. Waldo suffered during his winter at Valley Forge but stayed loyal to the Continental Army as he helped other surgeons care for sick soldiers.” As well as “... spirit of Alacrity…” shown by the soldiers. This evidence is meaning even though the conditions were very bad, a lot of the other soldiers showed spirit and willingness, so I would have too.

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).

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

The snow topples over your dry,scrawny skin. Your stomach is being buried alive from thin air. You need fuel and motivation, but you're not getting any. Your eyes slowly become more frail as the smoke scorches through them. Your teeth feel as if they are stuck in a pattern of repeatedly shivering. You try to be a loyal patriot, but are you going to choose yourself or your country? In the winter of 1777 and 1778, George Washington commanded several thousand patriot soldiers who spent the winter at Valley Forge, 18 miles outside of Philadelphia. It was not an easy time.If you had been a soldier in General Washington's army, would you have quit? I would not re-enlist for three reasons: I do not want to die, the living conditions were awful, and

Sick soldiers, horrible food, tough living arrangements and insufficient clothing made it very easy for Soldiers could tell if they wanted if they wanted to leave Valley Forge. A soldier would want to quit Valley Forge because of the struggles and the harsh weather during the winter at Valley Forge. The weather also affects how the soldiers lives in their living arrangements. In the freezing weather 12 men would have to sleep in a hut, In a hut included one door and no windows which made the air circulation very bad and hard to work with. Also there was not any bed just a muddy floor. And the harsh weather most soldiers would get frostbite.When saying frostbite, most soldiers will get frostbite from walking in bare feet in the winter when there was snow. soldiers would walk in bare feet because they didn't want anyone tracking them or following them. It was also very easy for the soldiers to get frostbite because they would have to walk a complete 18 miles to Philadelphia.

Between the span of three months nearly a quarter of the soldiers of the Continental army died, but this time the enemy was not the British, instead it was the terrible winter at Valley Forge. General Washington wanted to keep an eye on the 18,000 British soldiers at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. So they set up the winter camp at Valley Forge around 18 miles from Philadelphia(BE), they hoped the nearby Quaker farms were going to supply food, but the Quakers were peaceful people and they refused to help the meager supply of the Continental Army. Soon the Soldiers at Valley Forge realized that this winter was going to be a string of deaths and suffering. If I were a soldier at Valley Forge with a nearing end of my enlistment, then I wouldn’t re-enlist because of disease, scanty supplies, and the bad condition of camp.

In addition to frostbite, winter illnesses also transpire within the army From December 1777 to February 1778, a third of the soldiers either left or died (Document A). Disease causes a portion of the deaths and the weather might be one reason why people deserts the army. Because soldiers are dress in tattered clothing (Document C), it is easier for them to become sick as result of skin exposure. This likely convinces many soldiers to leave the Continental Army in hopes of finding better living conditions. Unfortunately, quitting the army serves to devastate the Patriots; in other words, the British will outnumber Washington’s army. This does not even count those who are not able to report for duty, which is about ¼ of the total troops in Valley Forge during December but by February, the number increased to ½ (Document A).The likelihood of achieving independence diminished drastically and it will still continue. Furthermore, the freezing weather tests the troop’s endurance and in the end, some are losing their sanity. Dr. Waldo, a surgeon helping the Continental Army in Valley Forge, even claimed that the circumstance he faced is the work of the devil (Document C). He then starts to question why he is sent to the camp to freeze and wishes he was home (Document C). The weather is certainly disastrous, so a soldier is better to stay home comfortably then fighting a predetermined battle that is already a lost and risking their life to the bitter cold or to the

When asked the question “ Valley Forge: Would You Have Quit?” my answer would be yes. If I was a soldier during the harsh winter at Valley Forge there is no doubt that I would find a way to go home. There were many reasons why I would quit the Continental Army and not return.

If i were a soldier at camp Valley Forge I would quit because of the cold winters. In Document C, a surgeon from the camp states in his diary “cold weather”. He also says, “ why are we sent here to starve and freeze...”(Dr.Waldo, December 14, 1777). Half of the problem of Camp Valley Forge being a fail is because of the cold, rough winters of December.

The weather at Valley Forge was unbearable. According to Dr. Albigence Waldo, a Connecticut surgeon who was assisting soldiers at the camp, the weather was very cold. “Why were we sent here to freeze?” said Waldo from his diary. There were probably lashing winter winds that constantly blew in the soldiers’ faces. Many people were