Washington: A Life

In winter 1777–78, Howe settled comfortably in British-occupied Philadelphia while Washington chose Valley Forge to shield the interior, watch the enemy, and protect Congress. The Continental Army built huts and endured starvation, disease, and exposure; Washington pleaded with Congress and the states, condemned profiteering, and installed Nathanael Greene as quartermaster. Martha Washington aided morale; Lafayette became a trusted protégé. Baron von Steuben transformed drill, sanitation, and discipline; Rhode Island raised a Black battalion with Washington’s approval. By spring, news of the French alliance brought formal celebration, lifting spirits after the encampment’s extreme privation.

As France entered the war, Howe was replaced by Henry Clinton, who evacuated Philadelphia for New York, shifting British focus and exposing Loyalists. Washington pursued across New Jersey despite cautious counsel, assigning Charles Lee to harry the British near Monmouth. Lee’s bungled advance provoked Washington’s intervention and a hard-fought, heat‑blasted battle that ended roughly as a draw, but showcased improved American discipline under Steuben. Washington celebrated the result, court‑martialed Lee for misconduct, and reaffirmed a war-of-attrition strategy: Preserving the army mattered more than holding cities as British attention moved south.