On December 19, 1777, George Washington marched his Continental Army into its winter encampment at Valley Forge. In school we learned this was a hard, cold winter that saw the soldiers so ill-supplied they chewed on the leather of their shoes. But is this what really happened at Valley Forge? Were soldiers idle, wallowing in their misery?
Ricardo Herrera, a historian of American military history and a visiting professor in the Department of National Security and Strategy at the U.S. Army War College, joins us to investigate the winter at Valley Forge with details form his book, Feeding Washington’s Army: Surviving the Valley Forge Winter of 1778.
About the Show
Ben Franklin’s World is a podcast about early American history.
It is a show for people who love history and for those who want to know more about the historical people and events that have impacted and shaped our present-day world.
Ben Franklin’s World is a production of the Omohundro Institute.
Episode Summary
Ricardo Herrera, a historian of American military history and a visiting professor in the Department of National Security and Strategy at the U.S. Army War College, joins us to investigate the winter at Valley Forge with details form his book, Feeding Washington’s Army: Surviving the Valley Forge Winter of 1778.
During our investigation of the winter of 1778, Rick reveals information about the Continental Army’s creation and its formation as a fighting force; The logistics of military supply and who was in charge of supplying the Continental Army; And details about the Valley Forge winter in 1777 and 1778.
What You’ll Discover
- The Continental Army’s creation
- The Continental Army as a fighting force
- Regional culture in the Continental Army
- The supply needs of the Continental Army
- The successes and failures of American military supply
- Supply forage and impressment
- How the Continental Army came to winter at Valley Forge
- The encampment at Valley Forge
- The role trees played at Valley Forge
- The myths and facts of the winter at Valley Forge
- The Grand Forage, 1778
- How the Continental Army balanced the need for supplies with not alienating farmers
- Impact of the Grand Forage on the supply problems of the Continental Army
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Time Warp Question
In your opinion, what might have happened if George Washington had never ordered the Grand Forage of February 1778? How do you think the Continental Army’s encampment at Valley Forge would have ended differently and how might the American War for Independence have ended differently?
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