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Gambles & Glory: Washington and the Revolutionary War | The American Story | Ep 7
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Early birds always rise to the occasion for summer vacation planning because early gets you closer to the action. So don't be late. Book your next vacation early on VRBO and save over $120. Rise and shine. Average savings $141. Select homes only. It's Christmas night, 1776. The Delaware river is frozen. It's an obstacle course. Chunks of ice drifting like slow daggers through the current. Snow pelts the men's faces and numbs their finger. They row when striving for silence. Every splash of an oar feels louder than a gunshot. General George Washington, tall, solemn, wrapped in a heavy cloak, stands near the bow of his boat. He says very little. He doesn't have to. Everyone here knows the stakes. A ragtag bunch of farmers, merchants and dreamers shivering in the threadbare coats. Their morale as thin as the ice coating the ground. On the opposite, the Continental army has been thrashed repeatedly and chased across New Jersey. Its numbers have shrunk from 19,000 to less than 6,000. Most enlistments expire in just days. If this night fails, the revolution could very well die before the new year begins. Sometimes desperation breeds boldness. The British. They think the war is over for the winter and they've hired German Hessian mercenaries. And they are all in cozy quarters, having just enjoyed Christmas celebrations with plenty of wine. Washington's plan is audacious. It's straight out of a heist movie. They're going to cross the icy Delaware river under the COVID of Darkness, March 9miles and launch a surprise attack on the Hessian garrison at Trenton just before the sun comes up. It's a gamble against time, a gamble against weather and exhaustion. But Washington is convinced this gamble is a must. He splits his force to approach Trenton from different angles. Many of his men are barefoot and without coats, trudging through the snow and gutting it out for the commander they still believe in. Despite the massive setbacks. The river fights them, waves crashing, ice grinding against the flat bottomed freight boats that are built for hauling. IR hours tick by. They're late. Dawn now threatens to expose them. It's after 8am When Washington's troops finally swarm into Trenton. There's no turning back now. The Hessian troops stumble from their barracks into heavy musket and cannon fire. In the frenzied charge, an 18 year old Virginian takes a musket ball through the shoulder that severs an artery. He collapses. He's bleeding. Out in the snow, a civilian doctor named John Riker, as in Riker's island, rushes into the fray. Riker's not in the army. He just shown up to offer his assistance when he heard the battle erupt. Spotting the fallen officer, he tears open the man's uniform and clamps the artery with his bare fingers. It works. Dr. Riker saves the young lieutenant's life, a young man named James Monroe, who is going to go on to serve as the nation's fifth president. The battle lasts barely 45 minutes. It's a lopsided victory for Washington's men. 22 Hessians killed, 900 captured, along with a trove of much needed weapons and supplies. Trenton isn't just another battle for the Americans, it's a lifeline. For the very first time, Washington's army has beaten some of the world's best soldiers in open combat. Word spreads like wildfire across the colonies. Hope that was so nearly extinguished begins to burn again. But the Revolution is far from over, because across the Atlantic, the British are already planning their next move. And as as bleak as the winter of 1776 has been for Washington and his men, an even darker winter lies just ahead. This is the American story, the Beginnings, adapted from the book of the same title by David Barton and Tim Barton. Episode 7 Gambles and Washington and the Revolutionary War. By late summer, 1777, George Washington knew what British General William Howe was thinking. Philadelphia, the rebel capital, was in his sights. The British commander had 18,000 disciplined troops and a navy to move them wherever he wished. If he took Philadelphia, it would strike at the Revolution's nerve center. Washington's instinct was to block him, so he moved his continental army to defend it, positioning his troops strategically around the city. He had maybe 11,000 men who were hungry, underpaid and half trained. Yet he decided a bold show of force might impress the locals and lift everyone's spirit. A grand parade through Philadelphia's streets, letting citizens cheer for their defenders. It would help prove to Americans, and perhaps to himself, that the cause was still alive. But as his men marched, it was clear they were no polished European force. John Adams watched from a window and wrote with bold admiration and pity, our
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soldiers have not yet quite the air of soldiers. They don't step exactly in time. They don't hold up their heads quite erect, nor turn out their toes exactly as they ought.
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The ragtag vibe was undeniable, but it was all they had. It was the portrait of an army learning on the job. General Howe landed his forces south of Philadelphia and marched inland. Washington chose to meet him along Brandywine Creek before the main clash, though a chilling what if moment Unfolded, Washington rode forward with a few officers to scout the ground. What he didn't know was that in the nearby woods lurked one of Britain's finest marksmen, Major Patrick Ferguson. He was armed with a cutting edge breech loading rifle. Ferguson spotted a tall, distinguished looking officer on horseback and had him dead to rights. But then this officer turned his horse and his back to the sniper. Ferguson took his finger off the trigger. He couldn't shoot this man in the back. Washington rode on, oblivious to the potential disaster. And Ferguson only found out later that he had spared the one and only George Washington. That brief moment of hesitation might have changed world history. The Battle of Brandywine erupted on September 11, 1777. Howe's forces executed an ideal flank maneuver, catching the Americans off guard. Washington's lines buckled, his army splintered into another humiliating defeat, with 300 killed, 600 wounded and 400 captured, adding salt to the wound. A week later, British infantry crept through the midnight woods towards the American General Anthony Wayne's camp. To maintain silence, they unloaded their muskets, fixed bayonets, and then descended on the tents like ghosts. They pounced on the sleeping troops with savage surprise, stabbing and slashing in the dark. 300Americans were killed or wounded, a horrifying massacre that echoed through the colonies as proof of the British brutality. Within days, British troops marched triumphantly into Philadelphia and the Continental Congress fled west to York, Pennsylvania. Another British army under John Burgoyne marched south from Canada, expecting to meet up with General Howe in New York. The British Prime Minister planned for Howe and Burgoyne to combine armies to create a 40,000 troop force that would smash General Horatio Gates. 9,000Americans. This would isolate New England and choke the rebellion for good. But Howe was preoccupied with taking Philadelphia, so he never showed up in New York. The first Battle of Saratoga in New York was a brutal slugfest. Across fields and thick woods, General Burgoyne pushed forward. But early on, Colonel Daniel Morgan's concealed sharpshooters picked off British officers with deadly precision, creating all kinds of confusion. The British held their ground, but at staggering cost. 440 killed, 700 wounded, versus 90 killed and 240 wounded on the American side. Three weeks later, in October, came the second major battle of Saratoga. With Burgoyne again on the offensive, Major General Benedict Arnold impulsively grabbed a horse and led a charge straight into the fray. His daring assault broke the British center, but a musket ball smashed through his leg, leaving him lame for life. Arnold's offensive was the turning point. Realistically, no one saw this coming, the Americans won. They defeated a full British force in battle. Burgoyne had to surrender and 5,000 men were taken prisoner. It was the first large scale British surrender of the war. The victory electrified the colonies and stunned Europe. The Continental Congress declared a national day for solemn thanksgiving and praise. It was a milestone to celebrate, yet it also sparked intrigue. A group of military officers and some members of Congress grumbled that Washington was unfit to lead. They thought the hero of Saratoga, General Horatio Gates, should replace him. This group was known as the Conway Cabal, named after Brigadier General Thomas Conway, who wrote a letter mocking Washington's competence. The scheme was unraveled when a copy of that letter reached Washington's desk. He confronted Conway, who denied calling him a weak general. Later, Conway refused to hand over his correspondence with the Cabal to Congress. Then other generals sent Congress letters of support for Washington, and the movement to remove him from command faded away. Washington survived that political trial, but a different trial replaced it soon after. This was the pattern in this brutal war for survival. On December 19, 1777, 12,000 soldiers and 400 women and children trudged into Valley Forge, northwest of Philadelphia. Washington chose it for its defensible hills and the proximity to the enemy. What awaited them, however, was misery. 4,000 of the men had no blankets. 2,000 log huts would have to be built before the snow deepened. The officers divided the army into construction squads, each tasked with building 14 by 16 foot cabins. Thomas Paine saw the work firsthand.
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And I was there when the army first began to build huts. They appeared to me like a family of beavers, everyone busy, some carrying logs, others mud, and the rest fastening them together.
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Soon the encampment stretched two miles, complete with fortifications for six months that Washington's army camped there. Valley Forge had become the fourth largest city in America at the time. The hardship wasn't new to this army, but the deprivation intensified. In the miserable cold at Valley Forge, a Connecticut doctor in camp painted a haunting picture. There comes a soldier. His bare feet are seen through his worn out shoes, his legs nearly naked from the tattered remains of an only pair of stockings. His breeches not sufficient to cover his nakedness, his shirt hanging in strings, his hair disheveled, his face meager. His whole appearance pictures a person forsaken and discouraged. Disease, including influenza, typhoid and dysentery, devastated the ranks, killing 2,500. Surgeons amputated legs and feet that were blackened by frostbite. And yet, somehow, the army's overall spirit survived. Colonel John Brooks of Massachusetts wrote to a Friend. Under all those dispositions, advantages, no men ever showed more spirit or prudence than ours. In my opinion, nothing but virtue has kept our army together through this campaign. There has been that great principle, the love of our country, which first called us into the field and that only to influence us. That love of country was a genuine sustaining factor, but the main glue that held everything together was. Was George Washington. He wrote with deep empathy.
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To see men without clothes, to cover their nakedness, without blankets, to lay on without shoes by which their marches might be traced by the blood from their feet is a mark of patience and obedience which in my opinion can scarce be paralleled.
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Yet it was still an army and Washington rigidly enforced discipline, going through with the required floggings for men caught stealing food. Dr. James Thatcher described the scene.
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The culprit, being securely lashed to a tree or post, receives on his naked back the number of lashes assigned to him by a whip formed of several small knotted cords which sometimes cut through
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his skin at every stroke. Thatcher described how men survive the flogging by biting on lead bullets, which is where we get the phrase biting the bullet. Washington spent that entire winter badgering Congress for money and supplies. To be fair, Congress had their hands tied. They couldn't tax, so they were at the mercy of the States for money. Plus the continental currency was basically worthless. Washington was especially angered by local farmers selling their goods to General Howe's army in nearby Philadelphia, who paid in British pounds instead of paper IOUs. Throughout the valley Forge ordeal, Washington inspired the soldiers with his resilience and sense of duty. He persevered with Congress to reform the supply system and end the crippling shortages. And in February 1778, he welcomed a blue coated Prussian. It was an officer that came to camp Baron von Steuben. Washington assigned him the task of training the troops. He spoke very little English, only German and French, and cursed in Both Alexander Hamilton and the other aides translated while he whipped the army into shape. Von Steuben's drills, the precise turning of lines, coordinated volleys, hygiene routines, standardized camp layouts became the DNA of the future US Army. His methods eventually worked, but he didn't find it easy. American soldiers were cut from a different cloth than von Steuben was used to. He later.
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The genius of this nation is not in the least to be compared with that of the Prussians, Austrians or French. You say to your soldier in do this and he doeth it. But at Valley Forge, I am obliged to say, this is the reason why you ought to do that. And Then he does it.
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By spring, the ragged men moved like soldiers. And when that thaw came, they marched out of Alley Forge, not simply as survivors, but now as professionals. And they would need every ounce of this newfound discipline because the news arrived that would reshape the war and the world forever. For those of you turning 65, you don't need me to tell you this. You're getting slammed with Medicare, spam, mailers, robocalls, ads, all of the things, saying, different things, all promising you they know what's best for you. The truth is, there are thousands of options that many of these spammers only sell just a few of them because they make commission on those. What you really need is clarity, honest help. And that's why I want to tell you about Chapter. They want retirement to be the best chapter of your life. And they do that by helping you find the Medicare plan that actually fits your needs. Over the last year, Chapter has saved my audience $1.5 million just by helping people find a better fitting plan. It's not just about saving money. I heard from Mark in Arizona who couldn't get access to a heart specialist until Chapter stepped in and helped him get the care he needed. He said it was absolutely spectacular. Give him a call. The call is free. They have helped thousands of people just this last year. In this audience, dial pound250, say the word chapter. Pound250, say the keyword chapter. Hey, if you're enjoying this, you want to keep going, you don't have to wait a week for the next episode. Torch insiders already have access to the first 10 episodes of the American story. Right now ad free. Just go to glenn beck.com torch and unlock the full experience today. From the beginning, the Continental Congress angled for French support, knowing the old rivalry between the French and the British could be their golden ticket. But was France's hatred of Britain enough to overcome the skepticism of an unproven army of colonial farmers? Way back in the summer of 1775, Congress approved an expedition into Quebec. The goal, lure the French speaking province into an alliance against the Crown. It did not go as planned. In September 1775, as Benedict Arnold led troops north through the main wilderness toward Quebec, they stopped in Newburyport, Massachusetts. There, in a bizarre sort of of superstitious act, Arnold and several officers broke open the grave of the famous Great Awakening preacher, George Whitfield. They cut pieces from his clerical robe to carry with them and pin to their own uniforms as good luck charms for their campaign. It was creepy, almost like a scene from a Gothic thriller, and it hinted at the gaping holes in Benedict Arnold's character. The Quebec campaign collapsed in the snow. Starvation, disease and British firepower drove them back south. Benedict Arnold would prove to be a smart and daring officer in the field, but he had craved recognition and grew resentful when he didn't get it. That first attempt at a French related alliance went nowhere. But two years later came those pivotal battles in Saratoga, New York. When word of British General Burgoyne's surrender reached Europe, it stunned the French royal court. The Americans, against all odds, had defeated a professional army. Maybe this rebellion wasn't folly after all. Before Saratoga, France had already been secretly helping. Through a front company, the French government funneled military supplies to the Americans. In fact, nearly all of the gunpowder used in the Revolution's first year came through that channel. The American success at Saratoga was a plot twist that nobody saw coming. It convinced France that maybe there was something to these revolutionary amateurs. After all, France was still nursing a grudge against Britain from the French and Indian War. And now it saw an opportunity. Maybe the Americans could actually win this war with just a little help. Saratoga was the nudge that finally made France commit. On February 6, 1778, in a lavish Paris ceremony, the French government sealed the deal with Benjamin Franklin and his fellow American envoys. The treaty recognized America's declaration of independence and pledged military and financial aid. Troops, ships, loans. France went all in. It was Benjamin Franklin's masterstroke in diplomacy and one of the most consequential signatures in world history. Soon, France's allies, Spain and Holland, joined the conflict. Almost overnight, Britain found itself at war on multiple fronts. Back at Valley Forge, where Washington's men were still hunkered in their beaver like huts battling frost and famine, the news landed like a warm blanket. Washington, always the master of morale, issued a proclamation to his troops.
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It having pleased the almighty ruler of the universe to defend the cause of the United American States and finally to raise up a powerful friend among the princes of the earth to establish our liberty and independence upon a lasting foundation. It becomes us to set apart a day for gratefully acknowledging the divine goodness and celebrating the important event which we owe to his divine interposition.
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The men erupted in cheers. For the first time since the war began almost three years earlier, there was real hope that the colonies might just be able to pull this off. General Washington's intelligence network soon reported that the British were packing up and ditching Philadelphia. They were headed back to New York to consolidate their forces. At dawn on June 28, outside a small New Jersey town of Monmouth Courthouse. The Continental army intercepted them. Temperatures soared above 90 degrees. Powder cartridges grew slick with sweat. Washington ordered Major General Charles Lee to aggressively attack the British rear instead. Lee hesitated, then panicked. As the British counterpunched, his lines dissolved into a messy retreat, men bolting in confusion, officers shouting over the din. When Washington arrived and saw his army retreating, the famously composed Virginian exploded at Lee. He almost never used profanities, but General Charles Scott, who witnessed the confrontation, said later that Washington cursed at Lee till
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the leaves shook on the tree.
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Charming. Delightful. Never have I enjoyed such swearing before or since. General Lee was eventually court martialed. But once Washington took command on the field, the momentum shifted. Von Steuben's training at Valley Forge paid off. Lines reformed. Volleys fired in rhythm. Bayonets drove forward. The fighting stretched into the longest single day marathon of the war. Although the Americans were outnumbered two to one, by sunset it was the British who withdrew. Washington planned to renew the attack at dawn, even having his men sleep with their weapons in the open. But when morning came, the British were gone. They used his own trick from when he escaped Brooklyn almost two years before. They left campfires burning while their army just slipped away in darkness. While it wasn't a total knockout, it bloodied the British nose short term and supercharged the American confidence long term. The Continental army again had stood toe to toe with Britain's best and had not broken. Philadelphia was free, and the war dragged on. Playing into Washington's attrition strategy. Washington wrote after.
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The hand of Providence has been so conspicuous in all this that he must be worse than an infidel that lacks faith and more than wicked, that has not gratitude enough to acknowledge his obligations. But it will be time enough for me to turn preacher when my present appointment ceases, and therefore I shall add no more on the doctrine of Providence.
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Philadelphia was back in patriot hands. The British army limped north to regroup. The tide at last seemed to turn. Britain was not, however, just going to roll over and give up. By 1779, its war planners adopted a new strategy, focus on the south, where loyalist sympathy supposedly ran deep. The results were brutal for the colonies. Savannah, Georgia, fell in 1779. Charleston, South Carolina, followed in 1780. Charleston was one of the worst defeats in the war. Almost 5,000American troops were captured. For this southern campaign, Washington turned to one of his most trusted generals, Nathaniel Greene. Greene understood something the British didn't. You could lose battles and yet still win the war. He forced General Cornwallis to chase him through the Carolinas. Combined with guerilla troops. The Americans kept the British off balance, slowly draining their supplies, their energy and their morale. The losses for Greene continued to pile up, but what mattered was the continuing of the fight. Writing to a friend after yet another narrow escape, Greene joked, don't you think
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that we bear beating very well and that the more we are beat, the better we grow?
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Yet as Greene's cat and mouse game unfolded, the war's underbelly of division started to show. Americans began to turn on each other in ways that made victory very fragile. Sometimes people get sideswiped by life. It's a sudden medical bill that you never saw coming or a job change that turns everything you know, that you once understood to be your finances completely upside down. And then you add to that the higher prices on everything and suddenly you're in a position where credit cards are the bridge you have to then the interest rates they're not forgiving. Good people can end up in a tough financial spot if you're there. If you're a homeowner, you may have options to consolidate your high interest debt and lower monthly payments or put your home equity to work in a smarter way. With American Financing, it's not about shame. It's about solutions. It's about looking at where you are honestly and then finding a better way forward with the people who know how to help. And sometimes the biggest relief isn't just the money. It's the feeling that you're no longer stuck. See what American Financing may be able to do for you today. No upfront fees. Find out if you qualify. American Financing.net 8009-0624-4080-0906-2440 it's American Financing.net we all get a little older every day, whether we like it or not. And one of the things that tends to come with getting older is aches and pains. Joints start to wear down, old injuries jump back into life and the normal exercise of everyday living begins to catch up with you. See, I told you exercise is bad for you. All of the years of walking and lifting and bending and climbing stairs, getting out of chairs, carrying groceries, doing, you know, what we all do now the body is sending you a bill. That's the bad news. But the good news is you don't have to just accept it. That's why I want to tell you about Relief Factor. It's a daily drug free supplement designed to help reduce or eliminate pain by addressing inflammation. And over a million people have tried Relief Factor at this point and 2/3 of them have gone on to take more year after year. I'm one of them. This year as we celebrate 250 years of freedom, ask yourself, are you living with the freedom you deserve from pain? Try the three week quick start. Do it today. See how it works for you. Reliefactor.com or call 800-the-4 relief the Revolutionary War was not just a fight between Britain and America. It was also a civil war. Neighbor against neighbor, family against family. In the typical way that we learn about the Revolutionary War, this truth is under emphasized. America was never fully united in fighting Great Britain. I mean. Historians estimate that one fifth of the colonists were loyal to the Crown, another fifth openly rebelled, and the rest lived somewhere in the fog between alliance shifted with the wind or with whoever's army happened to march through town. For example, at one roadside inn along the busy route in New Jersey, every morning the innkeeper sent out a servant to look down the road. Depending on which army he spotted, he would raise the corresponding flag to avoid harassment. For many, the goal was just survival over loyalty. When the British invaded upstate New York, a small Baptist church was split when some members defected to the British side and ended up fighting against fellow church members on the battlefield. Even within many families, loyalties were split. Benjamin Franklin saw his own son, William Franklin, become the royal governor of New Jersey and was imprisoned for siding with Britain. The father and son, Benjamin Franklin and his son never reconciled. This was a war that was full of splits and betrayals. But none would betray more spectacularly than one of Washington's favorite officers. Before he was a traitor, Benedict Arnold was a hero. He was the co leader of the mission that captured Fort Ticonderoga. He led a daring assault at Saratoga. He had been wounded twice in battle. Washington admired his ferocity and his grit. But heroism can sour into envy. Arnold felt overlooked, especially after Saratoga, when General Horatio Gates received much of the credit for the win. Arnold felt passed over for promotion, and by 1779 his bitterness curdled into treason. That year Washington gave him a command at West Point, a fortress guarding the Hudson River. If West Point fell, the colonies would be split in two, which is exactly what Britain wanted. Arnold secretly opened communication with the enemy. In exchange for money and a British military commission, Arnold offered to deliver West Point and George Washington himself into British hands. Arnold's British contact was Major John Andre. In the fall of 1780, the two men met near the Hudson river at night to finalize the plot. Arnold handed Andre plans for West Point's defenses and arranged his escape route south, disguised in civilian clothes and Carrying a pass signed by Benedict Arnold, Andre rode towards the British lines. But on his way, three American militiamen stopped him. He seemed to be in a hurry, which aroused their suspicion. They searched him and they found papers hiding inside of a boot. Maps, fort plans and letters bearing Arnold's unmistakable handwriting. Andre tried to bribe the men. It didn't work. They arrested him as a spy. Incredibly, George Washington was at Benedict Arnold's house near West Point when Alexander Hamilton brought him the papers that had been found in John Andre's boot. Washington was there to inspect the West Point defenses and meet with Arnold, but Arnold had been inexplicably absent all day. Washington just couldn't believe what he was reading.
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He exclaimed, arnold has betrayed us. Whom can we trust now?
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It turned out that at that last moment, just before Washington's party arrived at his house, Arnold received word that John Andre had been arrested. So he bolted. He fled down the Hudson river in a barge and defected to the British. Arnold's young wife, Peggy, stayed in their upstairs bedroom all day, babbling nonsense, seemingly out of her mind. Washington, Hamilton and the rest of the party thought she was just distraught by the news of her husband's betrayal and sudden departure. But it was all a masterful performance because she was in on Arnold's plan the whole time. When George Washington found out about Arnold's betrayal, he was devastated but composed as usual. He was typically great at judging character, but he had missed all the warning signs with Benedict Arnold. The next morning, Washington addressed his troops.
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Treason of the blackest dye was yesterday discovered. General Arnold, who commanded at West Point, lost to every sentiment of honor, of public and private obligation, was about to deliver up that important, important post into the hands of the enemy. Such an event must have given the American cause a deadly wound, if not a fatal stab. Happily, the treason has been timely discovered to prevent the fatal misfortune. The providential train of circumstances which led to it affords the most convincing proof that the liberties of America are the object of divine protection.
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Congress declared another day of public thanksgiving for the discovery of Arnold's treason. John Andre was tried and hanged as a spy. Benedict Arnold, meanwhile, was safe behind British lines. Newly commissioned as a brigadier general in the King's army, at first, Arnold seemed to be gaining the upper hand. In January 1781, he led 1600 British and loyalist troops up the James river in Virginia to the new state capital capital of Richmond. Arnold ordered the city burned. Warehouses, homes and stores went up in flames. Among the witnesses of the vicious attack on Richmond was a young, enslaved man Named James Armistead, who decided he was going to do something about it. After the Richmond raid, James Armistead asked his owner for permission to serve with the Americans. He was loaned to the Marquis de Lafayette. The 23 year old Frenchman, who was a major general under Washington's command. Lafayette quickly realized James had skills as an undercover agent. Armistead then infiltrated Benedict Arnold's British camp posing as a runaway slave. Arnold trusted him, allowing him to serve in the officer's tent. This made James privy to plenty of high level conversations. James carried messages, observed the troop movements and delivered reports back to Lafayette. All while gaining the trust of the most infamous traitor in American history. When Arnold was reassigned, Armistead followed the British forces under General Charles Cornwallis. That is when he became a double agent. Posing as a loyal servant, he carried false information to the British about American troop strength. Information that was crafted by Lafayette. Cornwallis swallowed it whole, believing he faced far fewer enemy soldiers than he actually did. Armistead's intelligence, meanwhile, revealed Cornwallis true numbers and his planned entrenchment at the small coastal town called Yorktown. He reported to Lafayette that the British planned to reinforce Cornwallis with 10,000 troops by late 1781. Washington had a plan. He would first feint toward New York to mislead the British command, Then swing south with French fleet to trap Cornwallis at Yorktown. The French navy would then block the escape by sea. And none of it would have worked without Armistead's reports. Just about everybody has had this experience. At some point you go pick up a prescription and all of a sudden there's a problem. Maybe the pharmacy doesn't have it, maybe insurance is holding things up. Maybe there's a shortage or the price suddenly shot through the roof overnight. And if it's something important, that little problem turns into a very big problem in a big hurry. That's just one of the many reasons I like Jace Medical so much. They understand that being prepared isn't about food storage or having emergency kits in the closet. Sometimes it's about making sure you have access to the medications you already take every single day. With Jace daily, eligible patients can receive up to a 12 month supply of prescription medications delivered right to your home. So you've got a personal backup supply if something goes wrong. And they cover 160 medications, including things for blood pressure, heart health, diabetes, anxiety, depression, cholesterol, family planning, and so much more. Just enter the promo code BECK at checkout for a discount on your order. That's promo code B, E, c, k, @j-a s e jace.com for more of the history that inspired this podcast series, be sure to read the American the Beginnings by David Barton and Tim Barton. Britain available now@wallbuilders.com in the waning months of 1781, the stage was set for what would become the grand finale in this epic struggle of underdogs versus Empire. British General Cornwallis, the aristocratic commander who had been calling the shots for Britain forces across the colonies, had positioned himself, himself and his army at Yorktown, Virginia. It was a quaint tobacco port jutting out on the peninsula where the York river meets the Chesapeake Bay. It was a spot he deemed strategically sound with its natural defenses and proximity to the sea. Cornwallis was just biding his time, confident that a British fleet would soon sail in to reinforce his roughly 9,000 troops. But Washington had orchestrated a masterful redeployment. He marched his Continental army south from New York, a grueling 400 mile trek that kept the British guessing with feints and deceptions. Along the way, he linked up with French allies, swelling their combined force to over 17,000 men. It was a high stakes gamble pulling resources from the north, but Washington sensed the end game. After years of retreats and hardships, could this be the knockout blow? A French naval force sailing north from the Caribbean arrived late in August and sealed off the Chesapeake. By September 5th, this French fleet defeated the British Navy at the Battle of the Chesapeake, cutting Cornwallis off completely. He was trapped. His supplies were dwindling, and three weeks later, Washington's combined American French army encircled York, Yorktown. They dug trenches, they dragged cannons in position, and they bombed the British lines. Day and night. Cornwallis men huddled in the shallow shelters, half starved and deafened. On the night of October 14th, Washington ordered a bold assault to seize two critical redoubts. Alexander Hamilton led 400 light infantry with unloaded muskets and fixed bayonets to storm the first one. Under a starry sky, they surged flying forward, axes, chopping through obstacles, ladders, scaling walls amid the grapeshot in volleys. Hamilton himself vaulted the parapet, first sword in hand, his men pouring over a frenzy of hand to hand combat. The second was captured by the French troops in similar fashion. Both redoubts were captured in under half an hour. The Americans weren't used to things going this well. Cornwallis was running out of options. He attempted an escape, and on the night of October 16, he ordered a covert evacuation across the York river using whatever boats they could find. The first wave made it over, but then a Violent squall erupted without warning. Howling wind, rain lashing in sheet waves, churning the river into a frothy nightmare. The men lost control of their boats. Some capsized. The storm divided Cornwallis army, stranding portions on either bank. The next day, with his lines in tatter and no relief in sight, Cornwallis waved the white flag. Negotiations between the two armies dragged on through another day, until finally, at 10 o' clock in the morning, October 19, 1781, a column of 8,8000 British troops marched between silent lines of American and French troops. Cornwallis, claiming a sudden bout of illness, stayed in his tent, sending his second in command to surrender his sword. The war, for all practical purposes, was over. News of the shocking victory at Yorktown reached London in late November. The following February, Parliament voted against continuing the war war and one week later authorized the Crown to make peace. Peace negotiations began in Paris that summer. It was a complicated diplomatic dance, full of intrigue and hard bargaining. But America had an all star team of envoys. Benjamin Franklin with his fur cap and wit, John Adams with his focus and tenacity, and John Jay with his legal sharpness. The Americans proved to be shrewd negotiator over borders and debts and loyalist properties, even fishing rights. After months of proposals and counters, they signed a preliminary treaty recognizing the independence of these United States. The final Treaty of Paris followed in September 1783, and it made the United States a free nation, at least on paper. In reality, the country was a fragile experiment. Thirteen states loosely bound together, staggering under war debt and arguing over boundaries and taxation. Native tribes saw their land parceled away in treaties they never signed. Thousands of Loyalists fled to Canada and Britain. Enslaved people who had fought the British were abandoned in exile or resold into the Caribbean. The new country surely had a lot of work to do. Back in Virginia, victory brought another kind of reckoning. James Armistead, the enslaved double agent whose intelligence helped make Yorktown possible, returned home, still legally bound to his master. State law emancipated only those slaves who had fought as soldiers, not as spies. Armistead petitioned the legislature for his freedom, but it was denied. General Lafayette wrote to the Virginia assembly.
- [44:37]
Historical Figure or Quoter
This is to certify that the bearer by the name of James has done essential services to me while I had the honor to command in this state. His intelligence from the enemy's camp were industriously collected and most faithfully delivered. He perfectly acquitted himself with some important commissions I gave him, and appears to me entitled to every reward his situation can admit of.
- [45:03]
Narrator
In 1787, Virginia finally granted James emancipation and a military pension, he then changed his name to James Lafayette in honor of his general and his friend. And he lived out his days as a farmer near New Kent County, a free man whose courage helped free his new nation. December 4, 1783. Francis Tavern, New York City. The last British ships had sailed away. In an upstairs room, General Washington gathered his officers, men who had weathered blood and sacrifice for eight long years. The room was silent as he lifted the glass. Tears rolled freely down scarred faces. No one cheered. No one speaks. When the moment comes to part, the general embraces each man in turn. Eyewitnesses later write that even the stoic Washington, his voice broke as he said goodbye. From there, he rides south to Annapolis, Maryland, where he officially resides from the army. And then finally home to his beloved Mount Vernon. A private citizen once again. He refuses power. He refuses a crown. He refuses the temptation of dictatorship. And in doing so, he invents a new kind of victory.
- [46:37]
Historical Figure or Quoter
In reflection, he writes, Glorious indeed has been our contest. Glorious if we consider the prize for which we have contended, and glorious in its issue. But in the midst of our joys, I hope we shall not forget that to divine providence is to be ascribed the glory and the praise.
- [47:01]
Narrator
The revolution was over. Now a new struggle began. How would this new nation govern itself? Coming up on the American the beginnings. Whispers in the barracks turn to shouts, and suddenly 400 Continental army troops erupt into action. The soldiers bar the door of Independence Hall. The delegates are now trapped inside, held hostage by their own troops. The crowds outside grow more and more restless, fueled by the rum and their sense of betrayal. It's a full blown mutiny, a powder keg ready to explode the fragile unity of a nation barely born. Just a reminder, I'd love you to rate and subscribe to the podcast and pass this on to a friend so it can be discovered by other people.