On December 19, 1777, George Washington marched his Continental Army into its winter encampment at Valley Forge. In school we learned this was a hard, cold winter that saw the soldiers so ill-supplied they chewed on the leather of their shoes. But is this what really happened at Valley Forge? Were soldiers idle, wallowing in their misery?

Ricardo Herrera, a historian of American military history and a visiting professor in the Department of National Security and Strategy at the U.S. Army War College, joins us to investigate the winter at Valley Forge with details form his book, Feeding Washington’s Army: Surviving the Valley Forge Winter of 1778.

Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/348

Complementary Episodes

🎧 Episode 158: The Revolutionaries’ Army

🎧 Episode 189: Sam White, The Little Ice Age  

🎧 Episode 194: Longfellow House-Washington’s Headquarters

🎧 Episode 298: Lindsay Schakenbach Regele, Origins of American Manufacturing

🎧 Episode 301: From Inoculation to Vaccination, Part 1

🎧 Episode 302: From Inoculation to Vaccination, Part 2

🎧 Episode 332: Experiences of Revolution: Occupied Philadelphia

🎧 Episode 333: Experiences of Revolution: Disruptions in Yorktown

REQUEST A TOPIC

📨 Topic Request Form

📫 [email protected]

WHEN YOU'RE READY

🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 

👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community

LISTEN

🍎 Apple Podcasts 

💚 Spotify 

🎶 Amazon Music

🛜 Pandora

CONNECT

🦋 Liz on Bluesky

👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn

🛜 Liz’s Website

SAY THANKS

💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts

💚 Leave a rating on Spotify

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices