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1 9 4 2, B Y T
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M I C HI G A N
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GEOR GE HAM C ANNON
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wr iti n of hi s to r y ap p ea rs to t r eat wa r as a mi nor i n ci d en t
in the d evelop me n t of a peo p le a nd to s t r e s s in it s p lace eco n omic a nd
Thi s n atu r al r eaction from the ol d wo rs hi p of
s ocial con d ition s
ma r tial he roes b elieve to have one too fa r The r e is nothi n mo r e
dr amatic than the facts of war ;they s upp ly u n r ivalle d human i n teres t
B u t fu r the r w a r is in i t s elf a n eco nomic a nd s ocial facto r of ove r
whelmi n imp or tan ce
A llen r en ch Th e Day of L ex i ngton a nd
Conc or d ( B os to n 1 9 2 5 )
Th e
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the cou rs e of his la b or the autho r h a s met wi th many dis
As a r u le i t h as onl y b ee n n ece s s ar y to me n tion to h is
c o u r a ge m e n t s
brother ofli c e rs the words mili tary p olicy to p rovok e the r ep ly that
e have no milita ry policy ;that eve r y thi n is left to luc k or to
chan ce
hile app a r en tly tr u e thi s con clus ion is n eve r thele s s a m is
ta k e
Ultimate s ucces s in all ou r wa r s h a s s teep e d the p eop le in
the d elu s ion that our policy is corr ect
A ai n ou r r emoten es s
from p owe r ful n ations h a s le d to anothe r d elus ion that we s hall
for eve r b e fr ee from for ei n i nvas ion
ithi n the p r es en t y ea r ( 1 8 8 0)
a S e n ator of the Un i te d S tates s tand i n on the p ar ap et of or t
Mon roe a nd wi t nes s i n the fir i n o f wo r thles s s mooth b o r e a r tiller y
a s s u r e d the autho r that we w ou l d no t have a nothe r wa r in a cen tury
Emo r y
N o s tates ma n woul d have ma d e s uch a p r e d iction
Upton Th e M i lita ry P oli cy of th e Unite d S ta tes ( a s hi n to n 1 9 04 )
In
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R e s e r ve Ofieers Tra i n i ng Corp s
Uni vers ity of M i chiga n
at
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IN the teaching
f
Ameri can his tory i n the pas t fifty year s there
h ave been serious omi ssions an d there have been m is r e p r e s e n t a
tions We are now beginning to realize the e ff ec ts of these sins
A recen t survey has shown wha t s ome of u s h ave long known
th at rela tively few un ivers i ti es and colleges require Ameri can
his tory to be s tudi ed Moreover textbook wri ters and teachers
h ave some time s ignored even i f they h ave fully unders tood the
signi fican t fac ts o f ou r mili tary his tory The n ation alis ti c h is
t o r ic a l wri ting o f the m idn in e t e e n t h cen tury from whi ch the
reader wou ld in fer tha t we were always righ t and tha t we
always won w a s succeeded i n the l ater part o f tha t cen tury by
the economic i n terpreta tion o f his tory
which tended to
crowd ou t mili tary his tory I n the twen ti e th cen tury we have
taken up a soci al in terpre tation of his tory whi ch includes
economi cs bu t almos t elimin a tes the mili tary aspec ts o f our
record
This bookle t is an e ff ort to righ t a s erious wrong to y ou
I t is a primer of American mili tary his tory I f y ou are li ke
mo s t o f your fellow Ameri cans n o t all these in terpretations are
known to you Your education heretofore h a s probably deni ed
you a mos t importan t experi e n ce of ou r n a tio n al li fe Had a
kn owledge of these happe n ings been requi red o f your paren t s
polici e s migh t have been developed i n the twen ti es and thi rti es
which would h ave preven ted Pearl Harbor Wake I sland Manila
B a taan an d Corregidor all those humili a ting defea t s whi ch
amoun ted to murder o f our fellow ci tizen s an d j eopardy of our
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n a tion al exi s tence I n Ann Arbor a t leas t y o u h ave the cours es
of Profe s s or Arthur
R Boak to help supply these deficiencies
Please no tice the excep tion al n a ture of the m ateri al pre
sen ted herein whi ch sugge s t s wh at origin al sources m ay be
found i n the Clemen ts i brary at the Un iversi ty of Mi chigan :
the headquarters papers of the Bri tish generals Thom as
G age and Sir Henry Clin ton and o f the Ameri can comm anders
N athan ael Greene and Josi ah Harm ar and m any o thers of a
highly in teres ting and essen ti al n a ture
All i n all this brochure is a s traigh tforward s tart toward an
era of truth telling toward an era of ceasi ng to li e to ourselves
toward an era of qui tting ourselves li ke m e n and being hones t
s trong and safe Tha t some of the mos t importan t of these
origin al documen ts can be presen ted to you and to the gen eral
publi c i s due to the gen ero s i ty o f Mr D exter M Ferry I r o f
D etroi t w h o furnished the funds for thi s publica tion
WI L L IAM A GA N O E
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Colone l, U S
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A
M i l i ta ry
On
O rd e r
the early morning of April 1 9 I 77 5 no tice w a s given to
the world of the beginning s o f the firs t organization whi ch proper
ly could be c alled a Un i ted S ta tes Army The advance guard
of a column of red co ated soldier s ran i n to a somewhat mo tley
crowd of ci tizen mili ti a c alled Minu te Men where the ld
Bo s t on R oad debouche s on exi n gto n Gree n Thous a n ds o f
books and articles have been wri tten o n the c au s e s of tha t
colli s ion bu t from the soldiers poi n t o f vi ew j us t on e cause
speci fic ally provoked wha t h appened Th a t was a mili tary
o rd e r G e n er a l Th o m a s G ag e c o m m a n d er in c h i e f o f H i s
Bri tanni c M aj es ty s Forces i n N orth Ameri ca i n h is head
quarters a t Bos ton had penn ed the following ( Facsimile I ) to
ieu ten an t Colonel Franci s Smi th :
S I R A Qua n tit y of Am m u n i tion a n d Pr ovi s io n to ethe r a s Num b e r
of annon a nd s mall A rm s havi n b ee n collecte d at onco rd fo r the
avowe d Pu r p os e of a s s er ti n a R e b ellion a ai ns t His M aje s ty s G ove r n
me n t Yo u will mar ch with the or p s of G r e n ad ie r s a nd L i h t I n
f a n t ry p u t u n d e r y o u r
omman d wi th the utmos t ex p e d i tion a nd
s ec r ec y to
onco rd whe r e y ou w ill s ei z e a nd d es t roy all the A r tille r y
a n d A mmu n itio n
p rovi s io n s Te n t s 8: a ll othe r mili ta r y s to r e s y ou
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Expedi tious the detachmen t m ay h ave bee bu t
ecre t
A t L exingto agai a t Con cord
d all the long way b ack to
no t s
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Bo s ton this s elec ted co r ps of the fi n es t compani es from several
regimen ts encoun tered u n expec ted resis ta n ce from farmers and
tradesmen wh o kn ew how t o shoo t even though they had li ttle
organization and le s s discipline The comm ander o f the advance
guard Maj or John Pi tcai rn of the Bri tish M ari nes reported on
the skirmish to General Gage carefully expl aining that the
rebels fired fir s t He ignored the momen tous ques tion o f
who should fire la s t al though he hi n ted a t the dis as trous re
s u lt s to his comm and i n hi s l acon i c conclu s ion :
I t is needless
to men tion wha t happe n ed afterward
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F ou ght
Wha t happened afterward was the a s s em bli ng of thous ands
o f American s ou tside o f Bos ton
the beginn ing of an Ameri can
Army They came from M as s achusetts and her neighboring
coloni es ; they came from N ew York and Pe n n s ylvani a an d
D an Morgan s company of V i rg i ni a rifie m e n reached Cam bridge
after m arching the dis tance o f s ix hundred mile s i n twen ty on e
day s The en thusi asm o f these coloni al s was as eviden t every
where as it was incredi ble to the Bri ti s h profession al soldi ers
When the la tter s tormed Breed s Hill ( Bun ker s Hill ) on Jun e
17
they s u fie re d casual ti es o f more than one third the a ttack
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ing force ;and when at length the ammu n i tion of the Americans
gave ou t and the crude redoub t w a s rushed the red coat s were
met by men wh o threw rocks a n d u s ed thei r mu s ke ts as club s
The Bri tish ge n eral s o f tha t d ay n ever qui te recovered from the
profound s hock o f s uch de termi n ed resi s ta n ce
Tho s e Ame r ica n s were determi n ed n o t only because they
beli eved i n thei r phy s i cal migh t bu t al s o bec ause they beli eved
in wha t they were fighting for
Freedom
indepe n de n ce
j u s ti ce
equal righ ts
phrases which have lo s t thei r sharp
n e s s i n modern mind s because we have come to take s uch ble s s
ing s for gran ted were brigh t an d real t o the volu n teers
Among those wh o hurri ed to the camp a t Cambri dge was a
thirty three yea r old Quaker from R hode s la n d n amed N athan ael
Greene who afterwards rose to be a m aj or ge n eral Qu a k ers
are no t given to extravagan t expressio n and h is farewell let ter
to h is bride is i n no s ense bom ba s ti c or con s ciou s ly heroi c
Green e was trying to s ta te conci s ely the convi c tions whi ch im
l
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for
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s creed an d h is home to risk his li fe i n
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His feelings probably were typi cal o f those
ba ttle ( Facsimile
o f m any o f the Ameri c an pa trio ts :
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M y os om is
oi n
k n it e d to y ou s b y all the e n tle feeli n s , that i n s p i e s the s ofte s t
t ha ee n ha pp y fo m e if c ou l have
s e n time n t s o f co nju al love
B u t the i nju y on e m y
live a p ivate life in p eace a n d p len ty
ou n t y a n d the hai n s of S lave y f orge ing fo p os te i ty call s me
fou th to efen ou r com mo n i hts a nd e p el th e ol i nva e s
S l a ve y s h u t s u p eve y aven u e that lea s to n owle e a n d leave s the
t is en e e i ncap a le of p ro
s ou l i n o a n t of i t s o w n im p o ta n c e
m o t in g h uman hap p i n e s s , p iety a n d vi tue , a n d h e th a t et a y s that
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attemp t a nd hop e the r ite ou s God that ru les t h e orl d will b les s
the A rmie s of Ame r i c a a nd r eceive t h e s p i r i ts of thos e whos e lot i t is
to fall in actio n
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A rmy G ets a C o mm an d e r
Jun e I 5 1 7 7 5 the Con tinen tal Congres s meeting in
Philadelphi a resolved tha t a general be appoin ted to comm and
the variou s regimen ts furn i s hed by the colonies and the n pro
c e e de d to the choice of general by ballo t when George Wa s hing
to n
sq was u n animou s ly elec ted
The general wen t a t once
to the American camp a t Cambridge where the tremendous task
o f organizing an e ff ec tive figh ting force
to be the ac tual b e
ginn ing O f a Un i ted S tate s Army awai ted him Besides im p os
i ng subordin a tion and di s ciplin e on h is troops and m apping
tac tics Wa s hington w a s plagued by the refusal o f the e n emy
to recognize the rebel s as a regular army e n ti tled t o the
trea tmen t prescri bed by the laws o f war S tori es of the ill
trea tmen t of the Ameri can pri s oners taken a t Breed s Hill
reached his ears and in two sharp le tters to Gen eral Gage he
called the Bri tish to task in the ma tter The co n clusion of the
second let ter is revealing o f Wa s hington s mettle ( Facsim ile
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What m
p re e t C ri i
have b ee n the mi n i s ter ial V iews which p r eci p itate d the
L exi n to n
oncord
ha rles town c a n b es t d eclar e
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M ay that G o d to whom y o u then app ealed ju d e b etween Ame r ica
is Pr ovi d e nce thos e who i n flue nce the
ou ncils O f
y ou " Un d e r H
Ame r ica a nd all the othe r i nha b ita n t s of thes e u n ite d olon ies at
the Haz a rd of thei r L ives a r e r es olve d to han d d own to Pos ter ity
thos e jus t
i nvalua b le Pr ivile es which the y r ecieve d from their
ances to rs
S ir clo s e m y
orr es p ond en ce with you p e rhap s
s hall n o w
for eve r
f y ou r Offi cer s wh o ar e ou r Pr i s o ner s r eceive a Tr eatmen t
from me d i ff e r en t from what w is h d to s hew them they
y ou
will remem b e r the Occas io n of i t
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D espi te
all of Washington s e ff orts the army he comm anded
presen ted no impressive fron t How i t appeared to a Tory spy
is revealed in the report of Benj amin Thompson o f Woburn
M assachuse tts to the Bri tish Colon i al Secre tary ord George
Germ ain i n N ovember 1 7 75
f course Thomp s on m ade the
mis take common to his soci al class of j udging by appearan ces
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AM ERI CA N WHO R E MA IN ED LOYA L B RI TA IN R E P O RTS TH E B RI TI SH
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IN TH E C A MP AT C A M RID G E MASSACHUS E TTS
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N evertheless h is commen ts
a ff ord us a pic ture of the Con ti n en tal Army i n i ts forma tive
d ays ( Facsimile
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The A rmy in en er al is no t o nly ve r y b a d l y accouter e d b u t mo s t
w r etche d l y c loa t h e d a n d as d i r t y a s e t of mo r tal s a s eve r d i s r ace d
the n ame of a S ol d ie r
They have n o omen in the amp to d o
w as hi n fo r the m e n a n d the y in e n e r al n o t b ei ng u s e d to d oi n
thi n s of thi s s or t a nd thi n k i n i t r athe r a d i s p ar a emen t to them
choos e r ather to let thei r L i n en & c rot up on thei r b ac k s than to b e
at the t rou b le of clea n i n em thems elves
Not w i th s ta nd i n the
i n d efati a b le inde av ou rs of Mr
as hi n ton a nd the othe r G e n e r a l s
a n d p a r tic u la r l y of A dj
utan t G ene r al G ates to a rr an e a nd d i s c i p li ne
the A rmy y e t any tole r a b le d e r ee O f o rd er a nd s u b o rd i n ation is
what the y a r e totally u n ac q uai n te d w ith in the R e b el
amp
is the d e r ee of e q u a llit y a s to b i r th fo r tu ne
A n other r eat r eas o n
a n d e d u catio n that u n ive r s all y p r evail s amo n
them
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g
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,
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A rmy G ets a C ou n t ry
Throughou t the firs t year of the R evolution the army was
fighting f o r the res toration of certain rights gran ted the coloni es
by the Crown and O f which a m i ni s teri al army as they termed
the enemy was depriving them Bu t by the summer O f 1 7 7 6
the idea o f s epara tion had gained such force and populari ty tha t
the Con tinen tal Congress declared the Un i ted S ta tes Of Ameri
c a a n i n dependen t n ation o n July 4 I ts army then had a
po s i ti ve a s well as a nega tive principle to figh t f o r
A copy Of the D eclaration of I ndependence wa s immedi a tely
prepared and dispatched to the Bri tish Colon i al Secretary
ord George Germ ai n t o give him o ffi ci al no ti ce Of the s tep
take n ( Facsimile
Possi bly i t w as from this copy tha t Ki ng
George III ruefully learn ed th a t his rebellious s ubj ec t s n o
longer regarded them s elve s ei ther as rebellious o r as subj ec ts
Although the firs t words and the general s ec tions of the D e c la
ra tion are well k n own i t m ay no t be ami s s to reprin t the las t
sen tence of tha t famous documen t :
An d fo r t h e s u p p o r t of thi s D ecla r atio n with a fir m r elia nc e o n
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.
THE
Th
o
f
S
i
P
s co
t ate
D
P
C O Y OF TH E E C LA R ATI O N OF I NDE ENDEN C E
B RI TI SH M INI ST R Y OF ERI CA S E T ER IN ATI O N
py w
f or t h e
as
C
f o u nd
i
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Origi
m on
AM
the
nal
D
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f o d
C le m e nt s
e s o
in t h e
M
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HAT NOTI F IED TH E
T
To
BE
rg G rm i
Li br ry
e
eo
a
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.
F RE E
a n,
t he
S
r ry
ec e ta
A G ERMA N O FFI C ER R U E FU LL Y R E P O RTS O N TH E A M ERI CA N I CTO R Y AT TH E
BATT LE OF REN TO N
W
Li
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i g ri
p i
W
Mi i r H C
Origi
pr C
Li r ry
J
V
6
.
T
ie de rholdt,
as s e l
es s e -
eu t e n a nt
n s te
of
.
o
f
the
n al
e s s a n con t n
in t h e
v on
e n t,
u ngk e nn
t
es
Pa
to e x
e s,
la n to
le m e n ts
t he
b
ar
a
.
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12
g
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The r eu p o n the colon el "R all" ave the co m m a nd to his r e imen t :
or w a rd mar ch
B u t the r e ime n t co u l d n o t a d va n ce b ec a u s e
s ome O f them w e r e s till s tatio n e d b ehi n d the ho u s e s of the cit y
He los t ti m e a n d he los t his p r es e nce of mi n d the enemy all the time
t h e ci t y a n d s hooti n
at u s fro m all s i d es
t wou l d have
s u rr o u n d i n
b een b es t to evacu ate the c ity a nd reti r e a c ros s t h e bri d e a nd t a k e
p o s t on the hill s a n d the r e w a i t fo r the e n emy The n the y wou l d n o t
have ta k e n all of u s p r i s on e r s Ge n
as hi n to n comma n d e d the
attac k in p e r s on
Th e e n emy co r p s c o n s i s te d of s ix to s even
thou s an d m e n
t ha d I 4 u n s a nd t wo how i tz e r s I n s hor t we w er e
b li n dly order ed a b ou t u n til we were com p letely s u rrou nde d a nd
cap tu r e d
ol R all r e c eive d t wo wou nd s a nd d ie d the s ame even i n
Cornwalli s was ordere d down from N ew York wi th a force
He c augh t up wi th Wash
o f eigh t thous and to re tri eve disas ter
bag
ingt o n a t Tren ton o n Janu ary 2 1 7 7 7 an d prepared to
the o ld fox in the morning
Washington left a pi cke t to keep
the campfires blazing and m ade a nigh t m arch to Corn walli s
rear A t dawn the Ameri cans slashed through the Bri tish li n e a t
Prin ce ton i nfli c ti ng fiv e hundred ca s ual tie s in twen ty minu te s
Cornwalli s wi th no one i n fro n t Of
a n d S cat teri n g the e n emy
him to figh t retrea ted i n has te to pro tec t the s tores a t N ew
Brunswi ck while Wa s hi n gton gain ed the defendable heigh t s of
Morri s town The Bri ti s h de s pi te their s uperior n umbers were
no t eager f o r a win ter campaign and wi th d rew i n to the envi ro n s
o f N ew Yor k Ci ty
I n h is whirlwin d campaign o f three weeks Washi ngton won
two cri tical ac tions recovered N ew Jers ey saved the capi tal
Philadelphi a in fused the Americans wi th n ew en thu s i a s m for
army servi ce an d won grudging respec t from the en emy ge n erals
His tac tic s s o brilli an tly conceived and S O vigorously execu ted
despi te failures behi nd hi m and the odds before him exci te d the
admira tion o f Frederic k the Grea t of Pru s s i a who c alled Wash
in gto n s achi evemen ts the mos t brilli an t o f any recorded in the
ann al s o f mili tary hi s tory
F
"
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g
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C
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,
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,
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,
,
,
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,
,
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’
.
T he
E n e my O v e rr ea c hes
Him s el f
The Bri ti sh campaign of 1 7 7 7 developed a crisis i n American
mili tary his to r y An expedi tion ary force O f Germ an s and Bri tish
.
A I TS
HOU R B E FO RE SA R ATO G A 77 7
7 G ENER A L H O R AT I O GAT E S A W
G r l B rg y ri k d d l Th Am ri
p r d hi wh l rm y
Origi l i h M
rip D i i i Cl m Li br ry
TH E ZER O
.
e ne
a
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na
n t
e
o
ne
a nu s c
s
e
t
an
—
v
os t
s o n,
e
.
e
e nt s
—
e
c a ns
a
.
ca
tu e
s
o e
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I
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L
14
under M aj or Gen eral John Burgoyn e advanced down ake
Champlai n from Can ada bound for Albany where co n tac t was
to be es tabli s hed wi th the m ain army under Gen eral Howe from
N ew York Ci ty The plan was sound bu t i t was n ever c o
ordin a ted When Burgoyn e ran in to di ffi cul ti es i n the wildern ess
north Of Albany Howe bli thely left him to figh t i t ou t alon e and
s e t ou t to cap ture Philadelphi a
The American Army had to be divided to mee t the s e two
thru s ts Wa s hington moved t o parry Howe i n Pen nsylvani a
bu t ul tim a tely could n o t S top him Far up the Hudson M aj or
Gen eral Hora tio Ga tes was perhap s mis take n ly S en t to block
the de s cen t o f Burgoyn e The regulars he had were hardly
equ al to the task bu t here w a s on e occa s ion when mili ti a
has tily collec ted f o r temporary du ty proved o f grea t s ervice
All these recrui t s were gathered in c amp a t B emi s Heigh ts
whi ch the Polish volun teer Kosciusko skillfully forti fied There
they wai ted for the i nevi table clash while M aj or General
B enj amin i ncoln was se n t o u t to hara s s the en emy s advance
Ga tes le tter to i ncoln o f Septem ber 1 5 ( Facsimile 7 ) indi ca te s
tha t the zero hour was n ear :
B y the b e s t n telli e nce
c a n y e t p r ocu r e
the E n emy s eem re
s olve d to r i s q u e a B attle w i th thi s A rm y
Thei r p r i n ci p al B o dy of
Troop s a Num b e r of loa d e d a on s a nd a la r e Pr op or tion of thei r
A r tille ry b ei n brou ht to the es t S i d e of the No r th R iver a n d
S tatio ne d y e s te rd a y
Yo u have n o w a fin e O p p o r tun it y to d efeat
that P ar t of the E n e m y s or ce y e t up on the E a s t S i d e o f the R ive r
a n d to ta k e o r dis t ro
y what the y have the r e
,
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Four day s later the firs t ba ttle took place and the boldness
and d ash of Brigadi er General Ben edic t Arnold threw back
Burgoyn e s adva n ce detachmen t
,
’
.
T h e T u rn in g
Po i n t
o
f th e
W
ar
For eigh teen day s after this Check nei ther G a tes nor Burgoyn e
di d anythi ng al though the Ameri cans ou tnum bered the Bri tish
two to on e bu t Burgoyn e soon learn ed tha t an o ff ensive force
far from i ts ba s e of s upplie s c anno t remain in ac tive
n
,
,
.
O
a
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6
o
4
4
z
37
.
/ A/
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9
r a g g a;
G ENER A L JOH N BU R G OY N E R E P O RTS THAT TH E AM ERI CA N S HAV E
F O R C ED H
C A P I TU L AT E AT S A R ATO G A 7 77
P p r Cl m
Origi l i h C li
Li br ry
8
.
IM
na
n t
e
—
To
n to n
a
e s,
e
e nts
a
.
I
16
Oc tober
the Bri tish tri ed agai n to pa s s the Ameri can lin e s
Burgoyn e s i n i ti al tac tics were Obvious and his force s were
fa tally ou tnum bered
nce more Arnold aided by Morgan led
a bi tter coun tera t tack and swep t the enemy from the field
Meanwhile
incoln had cu t the Bri ti s h supply li n e a t Fort
Ti conderoga
Burgoyn e s li t tle ven ture was nearly over He gathered the
remn an ts o f his hungry defeated army and retreated to Sara
toga Ga te s followed and on c tober 1 3 had h is prey s u r
rounded
n c tober 1 7 Burgoyn e s urrendered The Ameri ca n
vi c tory w a s s o conclusive tha t i t i nfluenced France to c a s t i t s
lo t wi th this i nfan t n ation and t o extend i t diplom a tic recog
n i t io n and mili tary ai d
I n his report ( Facsimile 8 ) to h is fellow gen eral Si r Henry
Clin ton comm anding i n N ew York Ci ty Burgoyn e pu t the
bes t face he could on the disas ter :
7
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O O
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I
A fte r t wo ve r y s har p actio ns i n fin ite fati ue d i s ap p oi n tme n t of
i n telli ence from y ou
a thou s an d othe r u n tow a rd c i rc um s t a n ces
have ha d s ome n arr o w
w a s com p elle d to fall b ac k to S a r ato a
m
e
r
o
n
al
e
c
a
e
havi
n
b
ee
n
hot
th
r
o
u
h
s
s
s
s
y hat 8: wai s tcoat
p
p
m y ho r s e hi t in the la s t actio n
f m y r ep u tation s u ff e r s amon the
r es p e c ta b le p ar t o f m y p rofes s ion s hall thi n k thos e es c a p es u n for tu
n ate
g
,
g
,
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,
W
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,
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i n te r Qua r te rs
After the Vi c tory a t S ara toga the Con tinen tal Army S e ttled
in to win ter quarters a t V alley Forge to keep wa tch of the enemy
i n Philadelphi a The quarterm as ter s departmen t whi ch had
n ever had enough au thori ty f o r requi s i tion ing s uppli es and
whi ch h ad func tion ed haph azardly because i t w as poorly organ
iz e d Virtually broke down during the win ter o f 1 7 7 7 7 8
The
troop s huddled around open fires or died i n log hu ts They
l acked s hoes and clo thing and food I n ac tivi ty produced bi cker
ing and desertions I t w a s a win ter o f despai r despi te the recen t
Vic to r y
The m ap reproduced i n Facsimile 9 S ho ws the layou t of
the encampmen t i n the valley pro tec ted by a bend i n the
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Schuylkill R iver I t w a s drawn by a spy and turned i n to
Bri ti sh headqu arters
Ye t a s tronger army c ame ou t of the hard packed snow
Three years of warfare had m ade s tarkly plain the in adequaci es
o f the Ameri c an Army
its lack O f mili tary training and lack
o f di s cipline
I t was as obvious too tha t wh atever i ts equip
men t and provisions such an army could n ever wi n the war
agains t trai ned regulars Wha t the army needed i f i t was to
become a real army w as a drillm as ter and an expon en t O f
benign an d e ffi ci en t leadership Fortun a tely for the hi s tory O f
the Uni ted S ta tes on e a p p e are d
B aron v on S teuben a Prussi an o ff i cer Of high s tanding
volun teered to help the Ameri can s i n their s truggle an d was
wi sely appoin ted I nspec tor General
I mmedi ately upon hi s
arrival a t V alley Forge February 23 1 7 7 8 the b aron perceived
ha t was wrong There was li t tle drilling m ainly because the
ofl
i c e rs had n o drill m anu al to follow Wi th surprising ad ap ta
b ility von S teuben proceeded to compose a speci al m anu al of
arms for the American Army alteri ng uropean prac ti ces to
fi t the n eeds o f this new force Wi thin a mon th he had a se t o f
m anuscrip t I ns truc tions dic tated i n Fren ch and tran sla ted
i n to nglish i n the h ands o f every regimen t The copy furnished
to i eu ten an t Colon el Josi ah Harm ar o f the Sixth Pen nsylvani a
R egimen t is s hown i n Fac s imile I O
When the I ns truc tions were prin ted a se t Of drawings
illus tra ting simple m aneuvers w a s added The drawings were
m ade by a French volun teer a t the camp Pi erre l E n f a n t who
is bet ter remem bered for design ing the ci ty of Washi ngton
ne
O f the e n gravi ngs from
i eu ten an t Colonel Harm a r s se t o f
pl ates i s reproduced ( Facsimile I I )
B aron Von S teuben himself supervised the drilli ng an d by
hi s grea t i ndus try and p atience as well as hi s remarkable V O
c a b u la r y of profan i ty in two languages h ad the s a ti sfac tion on
a Jun e day o f wa tching a trai ned body o f troops s tride ou t of
V alley Forge wi th precision and self c on fide n c e N ever agai n
would the enemy call them an armed rabble
The dough ty old i n s pec tor general con tinued his able work
s till hammeri ng in to soldi ers and poli ti ci ans ali ke the weak
.
18
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20
II
.
A P LAT E F R O M TH E P RIN T ED E DI TI O N OF VO N S T E U
p
gr d i
ig
h pl
Li br ry
The s e la t e s we r e e n
who a f t e wa d de s ne d
P
a
r r
pr
e s,
Cl
e m e n ts
a
n
av e
t e
an
i
pi
iy
Ph lade l h
of t h e c t
a
by
of
a
B
Fre nc h
W hi g
as
n
EN S R gul
’
ri
e
a t s t,
to n
.
a ti ons
i rr
P e e l E n f a nt
a ma
om t h e
Fr
’
Hr
r
.
n e s ses of the Ameri can mili tary sys tem : poor equi pmen t no t
enough disci plin e and short term enlis tmen ts ( Facsi mile
By 1 7 7 9 he h ad produced a bookle t c alled R egula ti ons f or th e
Orde r a nd D i s c ip li ne of th e Tr oop s of the Un itea S ta tes whi ch
w a s prin ted and adop ted by the several s ta tes
This m anu al
was revised an d referred to by the army un til after the War Of
1 812
V o n S teuben on e o f the mos t beloved o fli c e rs of the
R evolu tion set tled i n this coun try after the war an d became a
ci tizen of the Un i ted S ta tes
,
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.
The
S ou the r n A rmy
M eets
D e f eat
having been s ucce s sful i n the N orth the e n emy deci ded
i n 1 77 9 to subdue the South where more fifth columni s t s
Bri tish sympa thizers were beli eved to exi s t The sou thern
No t
,
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—
.
I 2
P
BA R O N V O N S T E U EN B E CO M E S C AUSTI C A OUT R ELY IN G UP O N S TAT E M ILI TI A
A pri l r G r l N h l Gr i 7 8 O igi l i h Gr
p C l m Li b r r
v a te
a
B
B
.
e rs ,
e
e tte
e nts
to
e ne
a
y
.
a
at
ana e
e e ne
n 1
0
.
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na
n
t
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e e ne
L
22
army under M aj or Gen eral in coln and Brigadier General
Willi am Moul tri e had dri ven o ff on e en emy at tack on Charles ton
Sou th Carolin a i n M ay 1 7 7 9 bu t the following D ecember Si r
Henry Clin ton and ord Cornwalli s embarked a large expedi
t io n a r y force from N ew York to sweep the South
incoln w a s ou tnumbered two t o o ne and allowed himself to
be shu t up in the ci ty o f Ch arles ton ins tead o f s acri ficing the
ci ty to s ave h is army He endured a S i ege O f several weeks bu t
had to surrender a t las t He sign ed the Bri tish term s on May
1 7 8 0 ( Facsimile I
12
There w a s n o regular Ameri can army
left i n South Carolin a only guerrilla forces whi ch will be
men tioned presen tly Clin ton left Cornwalli s to hold the Sou th
while he hurri edly return ed to N ew York t o conclude an in
trigue there whi ch would undermin e the northern Ameri can
army if successful
,
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T he Tr a i to r
Trai tors have always appeared to s tain the pages of mili tary
his tory and the n ew American army wa s no t free O f them
I ndeed i ts boldes t and mos t origin al gen eral O ff ered h is servi ces
secre tly to the Bri tish M aj or General Benedi c t Arnold the
hero o f Quebec an d o f Saratoga w a s ruled u n fortu n a tely by
avarice pr ide an d am bi tion I n addi tion the Congress and
Gate s had treated hi s bravery an d brilli ance wi th disregard an d
con temp t He began transmi t ting in telligence to the enemy i n
M ay 1 7 7 9 and con tinued hi s underhanded plo tting un til June
1 7 80
when he Ob tai ned the comm an d of Wes t Poin t This
importan t fort and i ts garrison and suppli es he i n tended to
turn over to the enemy for a price ( Facsimile
He wro te
to Bri ti s h headquarters i n code on July 1 5 :
.
,
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—
enr y s hall
p oi n t out a p la n of c o o p e r atio n b y which Sir H
e s t Poi n t the G arr i s on &c
twe n ty thous an d
p o s s e s s him s elf of
ou
d
te
r
li
thi
k
will
b
e
a
chea
u r cha s e fo r a n O bject of s o
n
n
n
s
s
p
p
p
much imp o r ta nce
If I
-
W
gI
,
,
.
Cli n ton who could n o t achi eve such a Vi c tory on the field
of ba t tle though t s o too Bu t he could no t agree to the al tern a
,
,
.
Th e
or
ig
i na
l
o
f the
"
A
i
13
l
.
rt c e s
AN
"
AM ERI CA N D E F E AT
i G r B
b y wh
ch
e ne
a
l
j
i Li
e n am n
r
nc oln s u r e nde r e d
r n
m
f
lxp
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.
n
,
it "
1
4
.
G EN ER A L B EN EDI CT A RN O LD
Bri i
C
y d l
g rl Mj
Li r ry
One o f t h e m a n
e ne
t s h a dju t a n t
b a
le m e n t s
.
co
a
,
e
TH E TR A I TO R O FF ER S TO B E T R AY W E ST PO IN T
FO R "
r h g d b w G r l Ar ld d h
A dré i 7 8 Origi l i h Cli P p r
,
,
2o , o oo
e t te s
a or
n
e xc
,
an
n
1
et
e
0
.
een
na
e ne
a
n
t e
no
n to n
t e
an
a
e s,
tive : i n c ase thei r plans wen t awry and Arnold came over to
thei r side emp ty handed he should h ave ten thousand pounds
s terling and a general s rank in the Bri ti s h army
After some haggling Clin ton fin ally d ispa tched his adj u tan t
gen eral Maj or John Andr é up the Hud s on to co n fer wi th
Arnold i n a midnigh t mee ting Andr é w a s captured o n hi s
return to N ew York and execu ted a s a s p y Arnold m an aged
to flee to Bri tish headquarters bu t Wes t Poi n t was saved
A general was los t bu t something else was found I n thei r
fury and indign a tion over this trea s on the ci tizens of the
several Un i ted S ta tes di scovered a common bon d o f n a tion al
feeling A n a tion al conscience h ad been ou traged a n a tion al
uni ty was m ani fes t
-
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Mu t i n y
No
accoun t of the begi nni n gs of the Americ an Army would
be comple te wi thou t men tion of the S trange proceedings of the
Pennsylvan i a in e on N ew Year s D ay o f I 7 8 I a n unmili tary
bu t thoroughly Ameri can procedure
Fo r mon ths the troops h ad gone wi thou t p ay and now in
win ter quarters a t Morris town their clo thes were in rags an d
their food pi ti fully scan t Some of the men were en ti tled to
their discharges bu t were refused them The hard s hip they
and their famili es were undergoi n g w a s breaking their spiri t
especi ally beca us e they knew tha t their s u ff ering was n o t due
to mili tary defea t bu t to neglec t by the Congress and eva s ion
of responsi bili ty by the s ta tes
At length the Pennsylvani a troops took m a t ters in to thei r
o wn h ands
They m arched ou t of camp on January I 1 7 8 1
headed for Philadelphi a where they in te n ded to dem and im
medi a te considera tion from Congres s and from thei r s tate gov
The corporals and s ergean ts formed par t o f the
e rnm e n ts
mu tinous body bu t the commi s sion ed O fli c e r s who tri ed to
s top them were resis ted wi th arms
ddly enough however
they allowed their comm ander M aj or General An thony Wayne
to accompany them
Sir Henry Clin ton j umped to the rash co n clu s ion tha t the
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THE
B RI TI SH C O MM A NDER R E C EI V E S A R E P O RT O N TH E P ENN SYLVA NI A MUTIN Y
O igi l i h C li
P p r Cl m
Li br ry
r
na
n t
e
n to n
a
e s,
e
e n ts
a
.
28
1
G EN ER A L F R A N C I S MA RI O N MA R CH E S A R OU ND TH E E N E M Y A R ENDE ZVOUS
W
I TH G EN ER A L G RE EN E
h A m ri
Th r
l w
i ry E w S pri g w d y l r ( S p
mb r 8
Origi l i h Gr
P p r Cl m
Li br ry
6
To
.
e
te
e
esu t
as
t
e
e
na
,
c an v
n t
c to
e e ne
e
at
a
ut a
e s,
n s,
e
t
e n ts
o
a
a
s
a te
e
.
pos ts Tory concen tration s or m arching columns I f he were
unsuccessful he could alway s e s cape to hi s famili ar s wamps
where the enemy los t him B e tween engagemen ts his force
mel ted away to a h andful
He w as a brigadi er gen eral Of the Sou th Carolin a mili ti a
when Green e s ough t his ai d early in Sep tem ber 1 7 8 1 i n order
to j oi n forces n ear u taw Spri ngs After a twen ty mile nigh t
m arch around the enemy M arion brough t his h ardened troops
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,
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to the rendezvou s and immedi a tely no ti fied Greene of his safe
arrival ( Facsimile
A d vancing on Sep tember 8 the Ameri
c ans forced the Bri tish ou t of u taw Springs and compelled
them to reti re to Ch arles ton The en tire Sou th was free excep t
f o r the Bri ti s h garrisons huddled i n S avann ah Charles ton and
f o r the momen t i n Yorktow n
,
E
,
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,
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,
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,
T he T ell i n g
B l ow
O
A pha s e o f Ameri can mili tary his tory ended i n c tober
1 78 1
F o r more than three years Washington h ad been hoping
an d planning f or a j oi n t opera tion wi th the French The m o
men t came la te i n the summer o f 1 7 8 1 when Cornwallis reached
Yorktown V irgini a an d de termin ed to awai t rein forcemen t or
re s cue from N ew York At the s ame time Washi ngton learned
tha t the French fleet under Coun t de Gra s s e had left the Wes t
I ndi e s for the Ameri can coas t The French expedi tionary force
u n der Coun t de R ocham beau lay a t N ewport R hode I sla n d
I n thi s S i tua tion Washington lai d hi s plan s carefully an d
timed his movemen t s perfec tly R ocham beau s men j oi n ed the
Americ an army o n the Hudson above N ew York Toge ther they
began a swi ft descen t in to V irgin i a before Clin ton in N ew
York learned where they were headed I n fac t the Americ an
an d French armi e s m arched completely around N ew York The
French fleet pu t i n t o Chesapeake B ay to keep ou t an y reinforce
men t f or Cornwalli s by s e a A Bri ti s h flee t under Admi ral
Graves tri ed to come to hi s s uppor t a n d was defea ted by D e
CEra s se
Mea n while the combin ed armi es arrived o n the V i rgini a
pen insula an d blocked the land approaches to Yor k tow n Me
a si ege w a s begun While Cornwallis fumed a t
t h o dic a lly
Clin ton s i n ac tion Clin ton fumed a t the trap Corn wallis had
go t ten himself in to an d a t the i n ac tion Of the admiral and the
admiral al tern a tely fumed a t the wea ther an d a t h is defea t by
the French The re s ul t was in evi table Cornwalli s surrendered
on
c tober 1 9 1 7 8 1 j u s t four years after Burgoy n e had given
up h is army Cornwallis reported the even t to Cli n ton i n a
forthrigh t le tter Of fourteen pages ( Fac s imile
beginn ing :
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9
W
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A LLI S NN OU N C E S To H C O A NDER N C H I E F S
ENR Y
7 LO RD C O RN W
C LIN TO N THAT H HA U RRENDERED
TH E ERI CA N S AT Y K O W
N
nd r
Th i i t h fir t p g
f C r w lli l ng rigi n l
d b r th
m nt
r i d t ndy k nd in N w Y rk Fr m t h C li nt n P p r
t h t it w
C l m nt Li br y
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Town in V i i n i a
Oc to e 2o t h 1 7 8 1
SI R
I have
br
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i n form y ou r Excellen c y that h a ve
b een forced to i ve up the p os ts of York a nd G lou ces ter a nd to s ur
ren d er the Troop s u n d er m y command b y ap i tulation on the l gt h
i ns t a s p r i s on e r s of a r to the com b i n e d o r ce s of Ame r ic a
r an ce
F
m or t ific a t io n
the
g
to
,
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.
The
,
C
F
A rmy I S R e d u c e d
L
When news Of the surrender a t Yorktown r eache d o n d on
Parli amen t c alled O ff an y further c ampaig n s The comm ander
in chi ef asked t o be reli eve d and the war c abi net re s igned
Bri tai n tri e d to e ff ec t a n ego ti a ted peace by which the Uni ted
S ta tes Of Americ a would be gran ted everything i t asked excep t
indepe n den ce
Bu t the n glish were un able to di c ta te the
terms o f peace and the Un i ted S ta tes w a s recognized as an
i ndependen t coun try by the trea ty fin ally s igned i n 1 7 8 3
General Washingto n retired t o civil li fe and the Ameri can
Army w a s disb a n ded s ave for o n e regimen t o f in fan try and
two bat talions of artillery re tai ned under Gen eral He n ry Knox
o n the Hud s on to gu ard the mili tary s tores left the r e
The
un i fyi ng pre s sure Of war released the variou s s ta te s resumed
their former s overeign ty and paid li ttle a t te n tion to the common
welfa r e AS a re s ult in 1 7 8 4 Co n gre s s further reduced the
Army to o n e b a ttery o f fif t y fiv e artillery men ( which survives
to gu ard the
a s B at tery F Of the Fourth R egimen t of Artillery )
S tore s a t We s t Poin t and a de tachmen t of twe n ty fiv e s oldi er s a t
Fort Pi t t
The u n ivers al fear Of s ta n ding armi es led the n ew govern
men t under the Article s Of Con federa tio n to c all on four s t a tes
to furnish a to tal o f seven hundred troop s from their mili ti a for
The Secretary a t War w a s to
o n e year s s ervi ce o n the fron tier
form them i n to eight compan ies of i n fan try an d two o f artillery
Since Pennsylvani a w as to furn i sh the large s t number of troop s
i t w a s to supply the lieu te n a n t colon el comma n di n g the whole
body The o ff i cer selec ted wa s Josi ah Harm ar ( Facsimile
a
ve teran of the R evolu tion The Con tinen tal Army its work
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3
2
3
The
A rmy U n d e r the
C on fe d e r at i on
All this time the Uni ted S tates
was s till s truggling alo n g under the
ff i cien t form o f governmen t es tab
i
ne
OS I AH A R MA R
8 G EN ER A L J
l
i
Articles
o f Con federa
s h e d by the
Th
rm r m i li t ry p p r
t h had gon e l n t O force i n
r i t y f Mi h tion
t th
ni
ig n
1 78 1
I t was s till the vain hope tha t
the Un i ted S ta tes could get along
wi thou t a regular army and rely o n s tate mili ti a Bu t the
B r i ti s h refu s e d to give up the wes tern pos ts they h ad agreed
to turn over to the Uni ted S ta tes an d the I ndi a n s o n the border
would n o t be paci fied in the face of wes tward migra tion The s e
were no t m a tters wi th which the s ta te s could deal The Uni ted
S ta tes mus t ac t Gen eral Henry Knox w a s appoin ted Secre
tary a t War i n 1 7 8 5 an d Congre s s con ti nued the sm all army
Of s even hundred for three years wi th Harm ar in command of
the new es tablishmen t ( Facsimile
This was called the Firs t
R egimen t ( s urviving today as the Third )
Ha rm a r s li t tle force was s trung along the hio R iver wa tch
ing the fron ti er assi s ting commi s sion ers to m ake I ndi an treati es
and S till hopi ng the Bri tish would give up the wes tern pos ts
Bu t m at ters di d no t work ou t very well A t the end of the three
years there was more need than ever f o r a regular Uni ted
S ta tes army and i n 1 7 8 7 Harm ar was appoin ted brigadier
,
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nd o
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d nd th ( id n n
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mmifi n d fi
ai n t"
p
b f m d int
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gim nt f inf nt y t
f ur zlw
men tione
mufic iane,
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infi
compofed of ane lieutenant
ntry to
majors , th ee adjutants , th ee quart ermalte rs , one paymalher , one
'
furge on, t wo furgeon s mate s , and twe lv e c ompanie t , eac h of which
{
hall co nfift of one captain, one lie utenant, one enfi , h wt fer
eants , fo u co po als , fixtydi x p iv ates , and t wo mu I s lam
The
or commandant, one
attalion o f a tille y fh all be c ompofed of oue maj
’
urgeon t mate ,
adj
utant , one quarter mafte r, one pa
, one {
ll conti lt of one captai n, two
o ur c ompanie s 5 eac h o f which
and {
fix priv ates , and two
lie ute nants , four fe rje antt , four co porals , furrymuficians : Pr ov ide d always , That the adjutants , uarten nafle t s,
h all be appointed from the line of {
n
m
a of the
and pa mafle rs , "
y
afomf ai d corps ref pe éliv e ly
And be itf ur tber mai led, That the Prefident of the Unite S tates
may from ti me to time appoint one or two lnfpe étora, as to him "a ll
h
all allo mutter the k m ,
aid " ca s , wh o {
{
com mee t, to infpe ét the {
p
an
d fub fiae nce at a
and eac h of who m (hall rece iv e the like pa
c aptain, and be allo we d te n dollars
wa nt for forage
And be it f ur ther mai led, That
troops afor d aid fball re ceiv e
for th e r fe n/ices the following enume rate d wamb ly rates of pay ;
lie utenantan y ollars ;maj
c olone l commandant , {
or comman ant
o f m ille
fort y-fiv e do llar: majors , fo rty dollars ;c aptains , thirty
do llars ; ie utc nants ,
nt , e ightee n dollars ;
two do llars ;enfi
g
f o ge ons , th in do llars ; urgeon'a mates , twenty—
font ollan 5 {
et
our dollars 5 priv ate , th ree dolls " ;
je an" , fiv e dol ars co t ale, {
fe nior mufic ian in e ac h
talion of infantry, and in the battalion of
artille
v e dollars
malicious, three dollm
Prov ided always ,
, fi
That e {uni s he reinafter fpecified, thanbe deduaed from the pl y
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C O N G RE SS E NLA R G E S
TH E U NI T ED S TAT E S A R M Y
,
I
79 0
C r us h i n g D e f eat
The lesson o f the undependabili ty of mili ti a was los t on the
Congress I t saw only tha t Harm ar s force had been too small
and accordingly i t au thorized the raising of a second regimen t
o f 9 1 2 men i n prepara tion for a secon d expedi tion agains t the
I ndi ans H arm ar resigned from the s ervi ce when he learned
tha t Arthur S t Clai r governor o f the N orthwes t Terri tory was
to comm an d the mili tary force s Mili ti a were requi red again
for the n ew regimen t di d no t fill up and M aj or Gen eral S t
Clair se t O ff wi th a to tal force of more th an two thous and men
D esertion s un avoidable disch arges and the de tachmen t Of the
Firs t R egimen t to convoy suppli e s soon reduced the force
S t Clair s camp i n modern Mercer Coun ty hio w a s s u r
prised early on the morning o f N ovem ber 4 1 7 9 1 before he
had even approached his des tin ation The rou t and m ass acre
o f h is forces endures as the wors t defea t ever sus tain ed by troop s
o f the Un i ted S ta te s
f the
e ff ec tives 63 2 were killed
and 264 wounded Part of the blam e for the disas ter res ted on
S t Clai r for no t ordering proper precau tions taken abou t the
camp bu t the inves tiga ting commi t tee of Congress reported
tha t the m ili ti a appear to h ave been composed prin cipally of
subs ti tu tes and to tally ungovern able and regardless of mi li tary
du ty an d subordi n ation
Th a t was p u t ting it mi ldly
The lieu ten an t governor of Upper Can ada John Graves
Simcoe learned a good deal abou t the ba ttle since the B ri tish
were conn iving wi th the I ndi ans in hope of holding o ff the
wes tward expan sion of the Ameri cans He ob tained a m ap of
the ac tion ( Facsimile 2 1 ) and sen t i t to hi s old commander in
chi ef Sir Henry Clin ton
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A
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M i l i ta ry
O r gan i z e r
T a k es
C o mm an d
The two exi s ting regimen ts o f regulars were ordered filled up
to quo ta and three addi tion al regimen ts were authorized i n
M arch 1 7 9 2
n e O f the latter regimen ts was to con tain a
,
,
.
O
ba ttalion o f dragoons Pre s iden t Washington and Secre tary of
War Knox i n D ecember merged the i nfan try artillery and
c avalry in to a s ingle body called the egion o f the Un i ted S tate s
The egion amoun ting to
men was divi ded i n to four sub
legions each consis ting of eigh t compani es o f in fan try four
compan ies of r ifle m e n on e company of artillery and o n e troop
o f dragoons f o r a to tal o f
To comm and this reorgan ized and augmen ted army of the
Un i ted S ta tes Washington selec ted o n e o f his ables t m aj or
generals of the R evolu tion An thony Wayne who was commi s
1 79 2
s io n e d commanding general o n M arch 5
Wayn e di d no t
a ttemp t an immedi a te coun terblow agains t the I ndi ans I ns tead
o n Washi ngto n s insis tence
he se t abou t train i ng the recrui ts
an d he kep t a t i t for two years '
The egion filled up slowly ;I t con tained bu t 7 0 per cen t O f
i ts full s trength by the end o f 1 7 9 4
Meanwhile i n the fall of
1 79 3
Gen eral Wayn e took part of h is forces northward from
Fort Washi ngton a n d built Fort Gree n eville ( Gree n ville hio )
where they spen t the wi n ter in train ing The n ex t spring he
moved t o the M aumee R iver and e s tabli s hed Fort D efiance
hio )
He was now firmly si tu ated between the
( D efiance
Mi ami village s to the wes t and the Bri tish po s ts o f Mi amis and
D e troi t which were ope n ly aiding the s avages The I ndi an s
were gathered arou n d their alli es a t Fort Mi ami s ( M aumee
hio ) when Way n e moved down the river to a ttack At a place
where a cyclon e h ad felled m any tree s the Americans me t the
enemy Al though rein forced by some moun ted mili ti a the
reg ulars comfortably ou tnumbered them two to o n e I n the
B a ttle o f Fallen Tim bers Augu s t 20 1 7 9 4 the Un i ted S ta te s
Army swep t the field Of s avage s an d ended the men ace to the
fron tier from th at d irec tion Wayn e s whole c ampaig n i s de
li nea ted i n the accompan ying m ap ( Fac s imile
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T he
E n e my F i n all y D i slo d ge d
Wayn e s vi c tory prepared the way for diploma ti c n e go t ia
tion wi th Grea t Bri tain for s urrendering the northwes tern pos t s
which S he had illegally held S ince 1 7 8 3 As long as the Uni te d
’
.
22
A MA N USC RI PT MA P OF G EN ER A L A N THO N Y WAY N E S C A MP AI G N F R O M C IN C IN
N AT I F A LLEN I M ER S
Dr
Si
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g r r Upp r C
O igi
J Gr
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To
a wn
by
ohn
av e s
m c oe , l e u t e n a n t
T
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o v e no
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G ENER A L A N THO N Y WAY N E A NN OU N C E S THAT TH E A R M Y H TA EN OV ER
W E ST ERN TERRI TO R Y WH I CH TH E V I CTO R Y IN TH E R E VO L UTI O N
E N TI T LED H U NI T ED STAT E S
h
h
6
l
W y l r h S r ry f S
y
i
g
79
J
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rigi
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rip
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f flg h d b
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AS
To
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a
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na
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,
1
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a nu s c
a nn ou n c n
t
v
s on ,
t
at
e
t
e
e n ts
W
S ta tes refused to s upport an army Bri tain was n o t worried
abou t her legal po s i tion Bu t once thi s coun try rai s ed a re
and
ay n e had demo n s tra te d wha t he could
s p e c t a ble force
do the no r thwe s te r n pos ts were han d ed over wi thou t qui bbling
wing to the s low n ess Of commun ic ation i t took some mon th s
for the neces s ary mili tary orders to be transmi tted and c arri ed
ou t Wayne remain ed Vigilan tly on the ground a t Fort Green e
Ville At length i n July 1 7 9 6 he w a s able to wri te to the
secre tary o f s tate Timo thy Pi ckering ( Fac s imile
Pe rmi t me now S ir to a n nou n ce to y ou th a t the Troop s of the
Un i t e d S tates too k p o s s es s io n o f a n d hoi s t e d the A me r ic a n fla g in
o r t Mi ami s a nd D et roi t on the 1 1 t h n s tan t which mu s t aff ord
p lea s u r e to all oo d m e n a n d fr ie n d s t o t hei r cou n t r y
,
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The year 1 7 9 6 m arks the end of a period i n the li fe o f the
American Army I n twen ty on e year s of exis ten ce i t had ri s en
decli n ed been almo s t s nu ff ed ou t and ri s en agai n From the
d ay the Mi nu te Men gathered o n exingto n Gree n to the day
the egio n of the U n i ted S ta tes salu ted the color s i n D e troi t
i t had bee n impelled by the lofti es t mo tive s bu t too Ofte n de
Thi s uneven and frequen tly
s poiled by the briefe s t training
bi tter cours e w as to be charac teris ti c of the la ter his tory o f the
American A r my
.
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4