What Was Washington's Role In The Civil War

Even though his men were in a constant-struggle, Washington needed to look after his own needs. Promising his men that he would "share in the hardship" and "partake of every inconvenience," Washington settled into a house near Valley Forge Creek. Washington brought his closest aides to the two-story house, and began to write letters to Congress. He demanded for more supplies for his soldiers, saying that his army “might dissolve” if something didn’t happen soon. His men were sick, starving, and freezing. The average temperature in December that year was a mere 6 degrees Fahrenheit, and there weren’t nearly enough blankets for everyone. Washington did all that he could to make life easier, but other things were pressing on his mind as well. On top of all of his other worries, Washington also caught wind of the questions surrounding his authority. His position as …show more content…
Thanks to news from a British spy who had observed the Continental Army training, General Howe was under the impression that Washington had an intimidating amount of man-power, so Howe decided to march out of Philadelphia. The Quaker City was a difficult place to defend, and Howe’s fears of Washington’s men spurred him to take his troops to New York City. From there, the British were to move to New Jersey. Noticing the enemy’s retreat, Washington sent the American cavalry out to secure Philadelphia while he prepared to march his men out of their camp. By June 9th, Washington and his men had abandoned Valley Forge, and set out to meet the British once again. The plan was to cut the British off while they treked to New York City. At the following Battle of Monmouth, the Continental Army proved something large to the British. Even though they suffered greatly at Valley Forge, the victory at Monmouth proved that the Americans were no longer a group of rag-tag soldiers; they were an army, and they were great enough to be a fair match for the