NARRATIVE BY ME CROCK

American Revolution Narrative.

December 19th, 1777

	Today was another harsh march. My feet look blue from the cold and as I had looked back, I could see that our army left a crimson trail of blood easily distinguished against the white of the snow. General Washington was the only one of us not complaining or stopping to rest. He, in no shape worse than ours continued to strive forth until he deemed that us, his loyal pack could march no farther. Now that I sit here around the campfire I can see that we will have a hard winter ahead of us, yet in my heart I know that we will emerge as a stronger and more functional fighting force. I have even heard rumors that Baron Friedrich Wilhelm Von Steuben
Was due to come and train our forces. From the stories the others tell I don’t know what to expect.

February 16th 1778

	It’s been quite a while since I’ve opened this up again. I’ve actually forgotten to write in this with all the activity that’s been going on around the camp to tell the truth.  Christmas came and passed of course with a delightful dinner of fire cakes and water of course. The small morsels of dough and water were less than pleasant as a meal in their own right, but after eating them day in and day out I can understand how some soldiers have been deserting. Why stay here freezing and living in huts when you can be with your families back home? Death and disease spread like the plague. It’s gotten to the point that I fear the prospect of getting to know my fellow soldiers for any of them could wind up dead the next day. How were ever going to make it through this, I am desperate to know.

March 12th 1778

	As I had predicted earlier, Baron Friedrich Wilhem had decided to join our company and commence a grueling training regiment.  As smart as he is, he can’t speak a word of English. That itself made me nervous at first but I soon found that it wouldn’t be a problem. Using interpreters he made sure that we would have no time to do anything that didn’t include training or sleeping. Even now as I jot this down, my body throbs as if I was flogged at the whipping post. And we’re only half way done wit his program. Today he had instructed us on how to engage our enemies using bayonets. From what I have heard from the older members of my group, we lack in that area and many a young recruit such as myself have fallen to the Redcoat’s blades. I have to say they are fairly easy to use and I got the hang of it after the first few cuts I received from my sparring partner. My once blue uniform now resembles our patriotic flag with the scarlet red from blood, the stark white from the snow and the original blue we had our uniforms dyed.

May 6th 1778

	News have from that France has allied itself to our cause! All around the camp soldiers are breaking out emergency provisions and feasting as if all our worries were being washed away. Even now, Washington and the Baron were enjoying a drink in the midst of the celebration. I myself have resigned to sit back in my hut and record this joyous moment to remind me of how even in the most hopeless of times a shred of hope can be found!

June 19th 1778

	Well that’s it then, we are finally leaving Valley Forge. We have caught wind that the Redcoats have fled from Philadelphia and we are preparing to pursue. The camp has already been practically packed away. It’s actually starting to look as if we were never here. In a sense I’m actually going to miss this place. Despite all the hardships it has presented, I’ve learned a lot this past season and my love for this country has blossomed like a flower recovering from the winter’s frost.

June 28th 1778

	The past nine days have been tiresome. The march after the British have been nothing less then dreary but it’s soon to come to a close. The General has dispatched Major General Charles Lee to take some men and attack the British’s backside near the Monmouth Court House. Some of the men look a bit hesitant but I myself am feeling a bit excited at the prospect of fighting. Once Washington leads our group to the battle I will finally be able to experience my first fight! While the more veteran members of my squad seem a little grim about the fight I am waiting to experience of it all. The whiz of bullets, the blaring of cannons, the clash of bayonets! It will prove to provide a much better thrill then just our spars and training skirmishes I hope.

June 29th 1778

	It’s ironic really. I’m sitting here pale as night, with a dozen different injuries and a list of fractured bones reading what I wrote only yesterday. The battle was nothing like I had imagined. Any dreams that I had about the battlefield were destroyed the moment we got in sight of the British.  The wounded from Major Lee’s men lay throughout our side of the field and their moans echoed over the boom of the cannons. Throughout all this Washington had the nerve to ride through our front lines confronting Lee and his retreating forces. With some harsh words, he had dismissed Lee and roused our spirits, ordering us to charge. All sense of organization was lost in those initial first minutes. It was every man for their selves, all of us focused on the whites of our enemies’ eyes. Nothing I had ever experienced could amount to the clarity and emotions that fighting brings. Every color was sharper, every sound clearer, and every smell like that of a burial site. Around me, men that I had known for months fell to bullets and cannon fire. That’s when I myself got injured. Out of nowhere that cannon came and smashed off my legs right from under me. I’ll never know what the person who shot the cannon looked like. I also know that I’ll never see the day that this nation is finally free from this conflict and for this I am envious.