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Washington 's War Within A War Essay

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Washington’s war within a war
While it is true that wars are fought and won with weapons and selfless sacrifice, it is also true that wars cannot be won on an empty stomach. Hunger can zap a solders moral, confidence, and he can find himself lacking the energy to even aim his rifle. This is a real threat to any company, or to any army. One might even say this could be a war within a war for the starving battalion that faced such adversity. They would be faced with the loss of muscle tissue, the inability to fight, think, let alone to defend a fort. Moral breaks down, some will desert, or commit mutiny as they lose faith in their commanding officers. During war, food can be taken for granted, more faith is put on the weapon you carry, the men you serve with. However, little thought is given to how truly important food and clean water can be until you have none. When it is gone, it’s all you can think of, thoughts drift to warm meals, clean clothes, clear cool water. Then one’s soul sinks into depression, the feeling of defeat, the temptation to give up and surrender just for a taste of some food. This is just the war that General George Washington and the continual army faced in the winter of 1777-1778 at Valley Forge.
General Washington was face with the loss of his Army, through extremely low moral brought on by lack of food, and other necessary supplies. The reason for such a hardship during the war was a faulty supply line. On the 23rd of December 1777, Washington wrote

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