Revolutionary War Historical Article
The American Revolution Month-by-Month February 1778
By Compatriot Andrew "Andy" Stough
Editor's Note: This article was reprinted by Permission of the Gold Country Chapter No. 7 of the CSSAR and was slightly edited by the Sons of Liberty Chapter of the CSSAR
February was a month of great achievement on the diplomatic front. On February 6th, Benjamin Franklin, America's primary diplomat, was able to effect an agreement with King Louis XVI of France to recognize the United States as a free nation; to furnish aid to America and to begin active warfare with the British; both sides agreeing to refuse to make a separate peace with England. The news of this event was immediately known in Paris and London, but it took a long time for that information to travel across the Atlantic Ocean. A normal peacetime crossing of the Atlantic was a six week voyage; now at war it took longer as American ships must elude the Royal Navy.
Ward notes that in the sense of a war fought all around the globe that this was the beginning of the Second World War with fighting occurring between the belligerents in India, the Mediterranean and West Indies as well as in North America. The First World War would have been the Seven Years War in which Britain was the victor; taking colonies all over the world from France, Spain and the Netherlands; all of whom would eventually enter this Second World War against Great Britain.
The philosophy behind sending the Continental Army to Valley Forge had been to protect Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Due to the lack of almost everything needed to support the army in Valley Forge it had become an army in name only. The burden of protecting the countryside was actually in the hands of local militias.
British General William Howe, wintering in Philadelphia, was not totally inactive. Irritated by the success of foragers such as Captain Allen McLane and "Mad" Anthony Wayne and unsuccessful at trapping either of the two Continentals he sent out troops to ambush or trap local militias who had also become a thorn in his side. Lt. Colonel Joseph Simcoe and his Queen's Own Huzzars [Hussars], a crack unit with great esprit, was particularly active in this work. The unit had been raised primarily from Tories in New York and Connecticut for use as scouts and flying light infantry by Colonel Robert Rogers who had been of great service to the King in the French and Indian War as the leader of "Roger's Rangers". Colonel Rogers had offered his services to Congress early in the war but those services were declined by Washington who felt that Rogers had been too close to the British and might be a spy.
Simcoe was a man who enjoyed his work and who went about it in a particularly vicious manner; on numerous occasions militiamen who offered to surrender were bayoneted. On one occasion, a force of 200 militiamen were trapped near the town of Salem, New Jersey, by a British force under Colonel Mawhood who turned the Queen's own upon the trapped men. Many of the militiamen were shot outright; others cut down by the hussars, more men were driven into a creek and drowned. There are no records of the militia's losses in that slaughter but the actions of the hussars against the 200 was called a massacre and aroused strong feelings against Tories in New Jersey.
More will be heard from Lt. Colonel Simcoe, but now to return to Valley Forge and it's problems. The winter of 1777-1778 was not unusually harsh; the problems at Valley Forge stemmed from the inadequacy of housing, supply and the inability to maintain sanitary conditions, due primarily to crowding of 11,000 men in such close proximity. Tragic though the winter may have been, it was the crucible from which a stronger, tougher army emerged.
Washington 's desire for enlistments for the duration was paying off in the sense of comradeship among men who had signed on for the duration and who as Washington said had become a "Band of Brothers" and who would outlast all the hardships and years of war to emerge victorious.
By mid-February the worst was over. The cabins that had been drafty and chimneys that didn't draw had been remedied. Supplies and rations had been increased by the diligence of General Nathanael Greene as Quartermaster General and Jeremiah Wadsworth as Commissary General. They personally visited every government warehouse and sent every piece of clothing, every pair of boots, and all blankets and food they could find back to Valley Forge. This added greatly to the health and eased the daily life of the soldier. This resulted in less sickness and the beginning of a return to good health and strength, which was fortunate, for at the end of the month a German soldier would arrive to put them constructively to work by training the men to be a professional army that would not fail to stand it's ground, even in the face of the dreaded cold steel of the bayonet, which was so much enjoyed as a tool by the soldiers of the British army.
The Conway Cabal, which had plagued Washington for months, also came to a head during the month of February. The whole affair arose from jealousy and ambition of military officers, but primarily from foreign born officers who had served in professional European armies. Each expected that as experienced professional soldiers that he, or at least one of them, should be the Commander-in-Chief and not some planter from Virginia who was in their minds an amateur soldier. As a case in point, Thomas Conway was of Irish French extraction and had served in wars with Frederick the Great. Obviously he was not acquainted with the strength of the Continental Army as he asked Congress for command of at least 40,000 men. This request came at a time when the total complement of the entire Continental Army, included at most, 15,000 regulars. Congress made Conway a general. Washington protested the appointment, but Congress in its wisdom foisted Conway upon him anyway. Another plotter was Richard Henry Lee, not to be confused with the American born Henry "Lighthorse Harry" Lee of the Continental Army or Arthur Lee the diplomat. (Any relationship between any of the Lee's in the Revolution appears to be nonexistent or so distant as to be inconsequential.)
Another player in this scenario was William Mifflin, a plotter with Conway. The former Englishman General Horatio Gates was also involved. Gates had a burning desire to lead the army and after Saratoga he became the logical choice of the Cabal to replace Washington. Word of their machinations leaked out, creating great unrest in both the militias and the army. Even officers in the Continental Army who previously had been critical of Washington immediately came to his defense.
Cadwalader, always staunchly loyal to Washington, was so furious that he challenged Conway to a duel in which Conway was wounded in the neck and the mouth. Conway was disgraced when the whole affair became public. The plotters were all exposed and subjected to criticism. After the duel with Conway, Mifflin was also challenged and had to do some fancy dancing to avoid an encounter with the irate General. Gates pretended innocence, pleading that he had not even known of the affair. Due to his recent victory at Saratoga he escaped with little criticism. Finally, there was no one who admitted to any aspirations to the Office of Commander-in-Chief. From that day on there were no challenges to Washington's leadership of the army.
References: Christopher Ward's "War of the Revolution", Encyclopedia Britannica "The Revolutionary Years", James Thomas Flexner's "George Washington, The Indispensable Man".
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