Operation Honor: Philadelphia Part 2: Valley Forge

 After lunch, we drove out to the to the Pennsylvania countryside and into the Valley Forge National Park. What was once the wintertime crucible of our nation’s patriot military is now a beautifully preserved and stunningly beautiful national park, boasting some truly amazing historical sites. It was an incredibly humbling chance to see in person what our American Patriot troops suffered on behalf of ‘the millions yet unborn’. The fact that these men would be willing to go through all that they endured in Valley Forge for the ideas of freedom was incredible. How much would Americans of today be willing to go through for the principles of freedom? Seeing and learning about the heroes of our Revolutionary War was an amazing experience. 

Train station coming into Valley Forge

Our first stop was one of the most impressive: Washington’s Valley Forge Headquarters, a beautiful stone house where he planned out the next season's campaigns. The house is known as our nation’s first Pentagon. The staircase handrails leading through the house were original and we loved running our hands on the same wood that President Washington and his generals did! Of course, since it is also the same wood that is touched by thousands of tourists, we promptly sanitized our hands. Realism amongst historical revelry!

Wash those hands!

We had the opportunity to see the tiny huts that replicated those built and occupied by American troops. Imagining so many soldiers staying in such cramped conditions only continued to increase our respect for those incredible men.  We also saw the huts built by Washington’s version of his "secret service", native Virginian men who were tasked with protecting Washington. Their small wooden huts were built in direct line of sight to Washington’s quarters. In a generation of armored vehicles, machine guns, high-tech gear, and ‘Jason Bourne’ security agents, seeing small huts that were inhabited by men with rifles being called the “Secret Service” made us laugh. Despite that, we know that the dedicated service that these men gave to their General and their country was serious and dedicated, and we are grateful to them for doing so. 

One of our favorite things about Valley Forge was how calm and peaceful it was. We arrived as the last family was leaving, and we had the entire place to ourselves! Birds sang, geese waded through quiet streams, and when it began to rain the sound of water droplets falling on the nearby river could be heard from where we stood in the meadow. It was a beautiful time that we will all treasure having experienced!

Valley Forge was inhabited by patriot troops over the winter of 1777-1778. Washington and his 12,000 troops arrived on December 19th, 1777, weary from their last major battle, White Marsh. Only about one in three of them had shoes, and many of their feet had left bloody footprints from their march. Over the first weeks of encampment huts for all the men had to be built; several building groups were trying to cut trees and build huts with only one axe. Although some divisions were well stocked by their home states, many others suffered from tremendous lack of supplies and lived off ‘firecakes’ (flour and water baked over an open flame). Diseases were rampant, especially typhoid, typhus, smallpox, dysentary, and pneumonia. By February of 1778, over 2500 patriot men had died from starvation and disease. The cavalry also took a severe blow at Valley Forge when it lost about 700 horses to starvation and exhaustion over the course of the winter. Washington could do very little to alleviate the suffering of his troops; his letters to the government on display inside the visitor's center of Valley Forge exhibit exasperation and frustration at his inability to help his troops as he requisitioned for supplies again and again. While continuing to fail to meet the needs of the soldiers, some members of Congress complained about the location of Valley Forge, saying it was too isolated and left the Pennsylvania countryside unprotected. A disgruntled Washington wrote the following to Congress in late 1777…

"I can assure those Gentlemen that it is a much easier and less distressing thing to draw remonstrance in a comfortable room by a good fire side than to occupy a cold bleak hill and sleep under frost and snow without clothes or blankets; however, although they seem to have little feeling for the naked and distressed soldier, I feel superabundantly for them, and from my soul pity those miseries which it is neither in my power to relieve or prevent."

The salvation of the Patriot army at Valley Forge came through two forms: the first was the flamboyant Prussian general, Baron von Steuben. His unceasing  and unpaid efforts transformed the rag-tag army into a well-trained and formidable force that would effectively harass the British army as it departed Philadelphia. The second factor was the decisive American victory under General Gates at Saratoga. The resulting pact with France, promising supplies and reinforcements, would bring hope to the weary troops. The new colonial army, forged in the crucible of Valley Forge, emerged ready for battle on June 19th, 1778. The indignity and pain they suffered in Valley Forge drew them together, and their experience there gave them the camaraderie and determination to find victory in the Revolutionary War.

Today, Washington’s house is peacefully nestled in a tree-studded meadow deep in the heart of Valley Forge.  It has been meticulously restored and it is being well-preserved by park rangers.

The eloquent orator Harry Brown gave a speech at the centennial anniversary of the Patriot troops' departure from Valley Forge in 1878. His tribute, calling the new generation of Americans to cherish the sacrifice that took place in Valley Forge, was very moving. 


"...And here, in this place of sacrifice, in this vale of humiliation, in this valley of the Shadow of Death out of which the life of America rose, regenerate and free, let us believe with an abiding faith that to them Union will seem as dear, and Liberty as sweet, and progress as glorious as they were to our fathers, and are to you and me, and that the institutions which have made us happy, preserved by the virtue of our children, shall bless the remotest generations of the time to come."