100
●
Chapter 6
the victory gave the American colonies
hope and joy. Today, every year on
ChristmasDay, the crossingof theDelaware
River is acted out. This place is called
WashingtonCrossingHistoric Park.
The FreezingWinter
at Valley Forge
T
he English army invaded Phila-
delphia in 1777. As a result of this,
the American army fought several
battles in the
Brandywine
area southwest
of Philadelphia. The Americans lost these
battles. The English took control of
Philadelphia. Today, you can visit the
Brandywine Historic Battlefield
.
The winter seasonwas approaching. The
English troops were warm and cozy in
Philadelphia homes. Washington had
the American army set up a winter camp
at
Valley Forge
, 20 miles away from
Philadelphia. He could keep watch of Eng-
lish troopmovements. Hismenbuilt crude,
wooden huts to protect themselves from
the cold winds of winter. People brought
food and clothing to the Americans, but it
was rarely enough.
It is very hard to imagine just how crude
conditions were at the Valley Forge camp.
You reallyhad a city of 12,000 troops. They
were poorly clothed andhungry. Theywere
trying to survive thewinter seasonof 1777-
1778. Your author visited
Valley Forge
National Historic Park.
Itwas a 20degreeday
in lateDecember. He felt the numbing cold
winds the troops had to feel. It was a very
cold and unpleasant experience.
Strangely enough, not one soldier starved
or froze to death. However, over 3,000men
died from sickness and infections. Themen
lived in unhealthy conditions and had a
poor choice of food. At this time inhistory,
doctors knew nothing about the types of
Washington and his troops at Valley Forge.
