Surviving the Winters: Housing Washington's Army during the American RevolutionGeorge Washington and his Continental Army braving the frigid winter at Valley Forge form an iconic image in the popular history of the American Revolution. Such winter camps, Steven Elliott tells us in Surviving the Winters, were also a critical factor in the waging and winning of the War of Independence. Exploring the inner workings of the Continental Army through the prism of its encampments, this book is the first to show how camp construction and administration played a crucial role in Patriot strategy during the war. As Elliott reminds us, Washington’s troops spent only a few days a year in combat. The rest of the time, especially in the winter months, they were engaged in a different sort of battle—against the elements, unfriendly terrain, disease, and hunger. Victory in that more sustained struggle depended on a mastery of camp construction, logistics, and health and hygiene—the components that Elliott considers in his environmental, administrative, and operational investigation of the winter encampments at Middlebrook, Morristown, West Point, New Windsor, and Valley Forge. Beyond the encampments’ basic function of sheltering soldiers, his study reveals their importance as a key component of Washington’s Fabian strategy: stationed on secure, mountainous terrain close to New York, the camps allowed the Continental commander-in-chief to monitor the enemy but avoid direct engagement, thus neutralizing a numerically superior opponent while husbanding his own strength. Documenting the growth of Washington and his subordinates as military administrators, Surviving the Winters offers a telling new perspective on the commander’s generalship during the Revolutionary War. At the same time, the book demonstrates that these winter encampments stand alongside more famous battlefields as sites where American independence was won. |
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Surviving the Winters: Housing Washington's Army During the American Revolution Steven Elliott No preview available - 2021 |
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Alexander McDougall American Revolution Anthony Wayne April army’s arrived barracks billets Boston brigades British building camp cantonments castrametation civilian Clinton commander in chief Connecticut construction Continental Army Continental officers cover December December 22 Diary discipline disease early encampment enemy enlisted European February Fitzpatrick forage force Founders Online George Washington Greene Papers Greene to Washington Greene’s Henry Historical Society housing Howe’s Hudson Highlands Huntington huts ibid inoculation James January Jersey Jockey Hollow John Joseph Journal June late Loammi Baldwin lodging log-hut city logistical Main Army March Massachusetts Middlebrook military militia Morristown Nathanael Greene North November November 27 October Patriot Pennsylvania PGWRWS Philadelphia Pluckemin quartermaster Rebels recruits Regiment Orderly Book Revolutionary Richard Varick Samuel Samuel Holden Parsons September shelter shortages smallpox soldiers strategic supply tents terrain towns troops University Press Valley Forge Virginia Washington’s Army Watchungs Wayne weather West Point William Heath winter quarters Writings of George York