The Greatest Weapon of The Revolutionary War

During the revolutionary war, there were two time periods.

BEFORE Valley Forge

AFTER Valley Forge

From the onset, the British simply had the best army in the civilized world. They also had a superior navy. And they were going up against a lot of rag-tag farmers with no experience. The Brits were heavy favorites.

However, the Continental army had home field advantage (somewhat) and they possessed a deep and powerful “why.” They had a reason to fight, which was their freedom and their lives.

Before Valley Forge however, the British had won basically every battle, but George Washington did have a daring surprise attack which led to a victory at the “crossing of the Delaware.”

Then Valley Forge Happened….And with it came the greatest weapon of the Revolutionary War.

It was Lt. General Baron Von Steuben.

Success isn’t always about making things happen or doing more, it’s about making less mistakes and being more efficient.

What Baron Von Steuben brought to the Continental army was order and discipline at the time they needed it the most.

He stated that no European army could have withstood what the Continental army had gone through, but they possessed “SPIRIT.” What they lacked however was a semblance of an actual army.

Baron Von Steuben brought with him military experience from years in the Prussian army and helped the Continental Army with how to prepare, how to drill.

He Mastered The Simple

Up until Valley Forge, every officer had his own way to drill and do maneuvers within their own unit. Baron Von Steuben changed this and created a “blue book” which contained regulations and a systematic way for the entire army to drill and operate. With the help of Alexander Hamilton, who was Washington’s Aide-De-Camp, copies of the “blue book” were provided to every officer and they began to operate as a collective army.

Up until Valley Forge, the soldiers would toss their trash wherever they liked and simply use the bathroom wherever they wanted to. Dysentery was a huge killer of men and Baron Von Steuben’s methods was to introduce a sanitation system within the army which alone saved thousand of lives.

He was the greatest weapon, because after Valley Forge, the Continental Army immediately went on to win the Battle of Monmouth which was due to the encampment and training at Valley Forge.

And we know how the Revolutionary War ultimately was decided…

Happy 4th of July

It’s not about the setback, it’s about the comeback