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683. Washington: Hero of the Revolution (Part 1)
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The Road to Valley Forge: Philadelphia Falls and the Army Retreats
At 31:22 · chapter starts 27:20
By 1777 the war presents a mixed picture. The Americans score a magnificent propaganda victory by capturing Burgoyne's entire army at Saratoga — a triumph that reverberates through the courts of Europe. But for Washington personally, the year is a nightmare. He is outwitted in rural Pennsylvania by British General William Howe and loses a crucial battle that allows British forces to march unopposed into Philadelphia at the end of September. The Continental Congress flees. Washington's army, now numbering around 12,000 men, lurks in the surrounding woods, hungry, discipline fraying, and — as Ron Chernow writes — 'marauding through the countryside.' Washington must find winter quarters. He picks Valley Forge: a high plateau surrounded by woods and streams, 18 miles northwest of Philadelphia, close enough to watch the British and in touch with both the Continental Congress in York and the Pennsylvania legislature in Lancaster. He is counting on the local Welsh Quaker farmers to supply food. This, as Dominic notes with relish, turns out to be a catastrophic miscalculation.
Between 1775 and 1781 Washington returned to his plantation at Mount Vernon only once, choosing to share the hardships of his army.
