Pros And Cons Of Valley Forge
Valley Forge: Would I Have Quit?
A well known site from American Revolution is Valley Forge, the area George Washington and his troops set up camp from the Winter of 1777-1778.The conditions were obviously rough and the camp itself was built in great haste as Washington and his men retreated south. The question is, how rough was it, and, would I have stayed? The answer to that question is no, and here are the reasons why. The first and foremost reason I would not have stayed at Valley Forge is the ridiculous sickness and death rates. There were an estimated 4,000 sick soldiers by February 1st, 1778. Furthermore, the death tolls were around 2000-2500 from sickness alone. This means that an average of roughly 750 soldiers died every MONTH from disease. That's more than most major battles in the Revolution. The sickness was spread quickly due to close living quarters as well. That brings us to my second reason for quitting.
My second reason for leaving were the horrible living conditions. The soldiers slept in small wooden huts with very poor ventilation, meaning smoke from the fires would fill up a room. This meant …show more content…
As said on December 21st, 1777, at the beginning of the encampment at valley forge “A general cry thro’ the Camp this Evening among the Soldiers, “No Meat! No Meat!”...”.( Document C). This statement shows how really ill-equipped the army was during this horrible time. Even so, it still wouldn't be too bad if they were protected from the cold. But they weren’t. During the march to Trenton and Princeton it was said blood could be seen trailing from behind the army due to the lack of shoes.In Document C, Dr. Waldo said “There comes a Soldier, his bare feet are seen thro’ his worn out Shoes, his legs nearly naked from the tatter’d remains of an only pair of stockings”. (Document C). I don’t know about you, but wintertime in Pennsylvania with no shoes and almost no pants doesn’t sound safe to
A well known site from American Revolution is Valley Forge, the area George Washington and his troops set up camp from the Winter of 1777-1778.The conditions were obviously rough and the camp itself was built in great haste as Washington and his men retreated south. The question is, how rough was it, and, would I have stayed? The answer to that question is no, and here are the reasons why. The first and foremost reason I would not have stayed at Valley Forge is the ridiculous sickness and death rates. There were an estimated 4,000 sick soldiers by February 1st, 1778. Furthermore, the death tolls were around 2000-2500 from sickness alone. This means that an average of roughly 750 soldiers died every MONTH from disease. That's more than most major battles in the Revolution. The sickness was spread quickly due to close living quarters as well. That brings us to my second reason for quitting.
My second reason for leaving were the horrible living conditions. The soldiers slept in small wooden huts with very poor ventilation, meaning smoke from the fires would fill up a room. This meant …show more content…
As said on December 21st, 1777, at the beginning of the encampment at valley forge “A general cry thro’ the Camp this Evening among the Soldiers, “No Meat! No Meat!”...”.( Document C). This statement shows how really ill-equipped the army was during this horrible time. Even so, it still wouldn't be too bad if they were protected from the cold. But they weren’t. During the march to Trenton and Princeton it was said blood could be seen trailing from behind the army due to the lack of shoes.In Document C, Dr. Waldo said “There comes a Soldier, his bare feet are seen thro’ his worn out Shoes, his legs nearly naked from the tatter’d remains of an only pair of stockings”. (Document C). I don’t know about you, but wintertime in Pennsylvania with no shoes and almost no pants doesn’t sound safe to