Forged by Failure: Washington's Continental Army

         "Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm." This blunt statement by Sir Winston Churchill sums up George Washington's first few years as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army quite well. Faced with the insurmountable task of resisting the British Empire, the strongest military power of the time, he struggled just holding his ragtag volunteer army together. But as defeat after defeat led to despair, Washington's charisma was stretched to its limits, and his willpower was almost single-handedly holding the Revolution together. How did it come to that? How did the independent-minded Anglo-Americans get to the point of widespread dejection? And perhaps more importantly, why did the Battle of Saratoga – a seemingly unimportant location, both strategically and geographically – change the face of the war, tipping the scales in favor of the rebels?

         When the minutemen of Lexington and Concord clashed with the advancing redcoats in April of 1775, the American Colonies were suddenly thrust into a war the populace was ill prepared for. Many people, including most of Washington's militia force, were blissfully ignorant of the mountainous task ahead, and only a mere fraction of them were willing to see it all the way through, regardless of the inevitable barriers ahead. This was quickly apparent less than two months after Lexington and Concord, when the well-regulated and disciplined British troops drove the colonists' from Breed's Hill. Despite initial stiff resistance, the untrained rebels broke rank as the English bayonets descended upon their position, and the level of military education proved dominant on that day. (Weatherby, 2010) However, it was the invasion of British Canada that proved to be the first in a series of harsh defeats. The first major initiative of the Continental Army, the attack on Quebec was supposed to supplant the British army there, and garner French-Canadian support against the English. However, with the combined forces of American generals Richard Montgomery and Benedict Arnold dwindling due to starvation, disease, and expiring enlistments, the Battle of Quebec was nothing short of a disaster. Losing what little public support they had gained, due to British propaganda, the rebels were driven all the way back to Fort Ticonderoga. (Boundless Learning, 2013)

Fast forward eight months to August of 1776, and the Battle of Long Island. English General William Howe's force of 30,000 men handily defeated Washington's much smaller army, taking the island. Washington managed to orchestrate a rather skillful getaway, fleeing to Manhattan, but lost that island less than a month later. The loss of New York City merely reinforced Loyalists in the region, and further disheartened the rebellion's troops. Discontent among the populace was at an all-time high, and Washington faced even more troop loss as more enlistments began running out, further depleting the 5,000 man army. There was no rest for the weary, as they say, and Howe's forces pursued Washington through New Jersey and into Pennsylvania, camping for the winter in a place called Valley Forge. (Boundless Learning, 2013)

         Meanwhile, during Washington's retreat from Long Island, the Hessian mercenaries hired by the English captured Fort Washington, and while not overly vital position, proved a blow to the morale of the rebels – since the fort was a namesake of their commander-in-chief. It was when the spirits of the people and their army were lowest that Washington attempted a daring, albeit somewhat foolhardy, maneuver that gave people hope, and guaranteed him lasting fame. In a nighttime raid, he crossed the Delaware River again, and attacked the drunken Hessian garrison in Trenton, NJ – taking nearly 900 prisoners in the process. While this did not turn the tide of the war completely, it did make the beginning of the turnaround, with the British withdrawing to eastern New Jersey. (McJoynt, 2002) That victory that proved to be the turning point was the strategically insignificant Battle of Saratoga.

Before Saratoga, nearly everyone was short on hope, even General Washington himself. In a letter to his brother, he said "… I think the game is pretty near up, owing, in a great measure, to the insidious arts of the Enemy, and disaffection of the colonies before mentioned, but principally to the accursed policy of short enlistments, and placing too great a dependence on the militia, the evil consequences of which were foretold fifteen months ago, with a spirit almost Prophetic." (1890) However, Saratoga changed that, due in part to Washington's iron will. Originally looking to be a British victory, one of the rebel commanders issued the order to retreat, but Washington relieved him of his command, ordering his men to dig in and fix bayonets. Between the steadfastness of their general, and the Prussian training received during their winter encampment at Valley Forge, the rebels stood their ground, surprising the English. The shocked British troops were routed, with General Burgoyne surrendering to Washington just a few hours later. General Howe lost over 10,000 troops that day, with almost 6,000 being captured, a loss that successfully curbed his ability to retaliate. (Weatherby, 2010) (USHistory.org, 2008)

         Saratoga was not a vital center to the war effort, but it proved that Americans, with proper training and support, could in fact defeat the English war machine. This proof was what the French were looking for, and after the victory at Saratoga, were convinced to through their weight behind the revolution. As soon as news of the American triumph reached Paris, the French dispatched diplomats, and soon two Franco-American treaties were signed. The first of these treaties ensured peace and preference of commerce between the two nations, and the second guaranteed a "conditional and defensive alliance" (USHistory.org, 2008). This stated that if Britain and France began fighting due to the first treaty, France and America would be allies, and could not broker a peace with England, a truce, or even "lay down their arms until the Independence of the united states shall have been formally or tacitly assured by the Treaty or Treaties that shall terminate the War." (USHistory.org, 2008)

         Thomas Edison once said "Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up." This was most certainly the case with George Washington and his fledgling army: they were beat down and pushed to the point where hope had all but abandoned them. A single decision, not to relieve a cowardly subordinate, but a decision not to give up, would set apart Washington from the other leaders of the day. The unwavering determination of Washington kept that small flame of optimism alive, and his resolute approach grew that flame into a beacon. It could be argued that without the charismatic, determined leadership of Washington, the French may not have ever supported the revolution.

References

Boundless Learning Technologies (2013). Quebec, New York, and New Jersey - The First Year of the War: 1775-1776. Retrieved from https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/the-american-revolution-1763-1783/the-first-year-of-the-war-1775-1776/quebec-new-york-and-new-jersey/

McJoynt, A. J. (2002). Brief Review of George Washington's Military Career. Retrieved from http://xenophongroup.com/patriot/washington/washingt.htm

USHistory.org (2008). The Battle of Saratoga [ushistory.org]. Retrieved from http://www.ushistory.org/us/11g.asp

Washington, G., & Ford, W. C. (1890). Washington Describes the Setbacks of 1776. Retrieved from http://www.shsu.edu/~his_ncp/Wash1776.html

Weatherby, E. (2010). Washington’s Army | Pipe N' Slippers. Retrieved from http://pipenslippers.wordpress.com/2012/12/10/washingtons-army/