Washington's Secret War: The Hidden History of Valley Forge

Having just finished "1776" and been extremely disappointed, I debated whether I really wanted to follow it up with another American Revolutionary War book. I'm glad I did. This book was enjoyable to read, insightful, thought provoking, and again, ENJOYABLE. If you enjoy history, or even just a good read, pick it up. As you'll gather from the other reviews as well as the book description, you'll learn lots of the back story to the Continental Army's stay in Valley Forge, PA, the politiking of Washington and the Continental Congress, and the "Secret War" that was going on behind that scenes that had the potential of changing the outcome of the war. All in all, 5 stars and an incredible book to read.

The young American nation had lost its first capital, Philadelphia, in the fall of 1777. The army of General George Washington had suffered clear defeats from the British, and retired exhausted to Valley Forge, a wooded area 25 miles west of the former capital. The army was there to rest up for the winter in order to fight again when warmer weather came. Washington had to fight the British once again, but that is not the story in _Washington's Secret War: The Hidden History of Valley Forge_ (Smithsonian Books / Collins) by Thomas Fleming. The war Washington had to wage while in retreat was not against the British, but against the good guys, well known founding fathers like Sam and John Adams and Benjamin Rush. In many ways, it was a matter of regional prejudice. Fleming writes of Washington's opponents, "They had long since decided that Virginians and almost everyone outside New England were morally inferior to high-minded, Harvard-educated descendents of the Puritans." They were insistent on an unrealistically idealized view of how an army of patriots could fight and how a nation of patriots might supply that army with its needs, and they were willing to sacrifice Washington in order to get their views put into practice. It might well have been that they would have sacrificed victory as well. Fleming presents a fascinating view of Washington's work as a consummate politician, using his strong understanding of practical motivations, to thwart the generals and politicians who were conspiring against him. Mention the words "Valley Forge" and a patriotic mist clouds the vision of many Americans. Fleming does a wonderful job dispelling the myths while never neglecting the importance of the encampment. The troops certainly suffered hardship; they did not freeze to death (the winter was relatively mild) but they did starve, sacrificed to a commissary and quartermaster system that was inefficient at best and fraudulent at worst. The conspiracy against Washington was not just over how the soldiers were to be paid or fed. The radical Whigs were intent upon replacing Washington with General Horatio Gates, one of their own but a timorous intriguer who enjoyed the flattery of the politicians and officers who boosted him as Washington's replacement. Gates's foul mouth and interest in sexual hanky-panky were in stark contrast to the serious, gentlemanly Washington, whose devoted marriage is depicted here since Martha came to stay the winter with him. There were plots to blame Washington for the army's previous defeats, for holing himself up at Valley Forge, and for whatever other ills his enemies could find. There was even a bizarre plot by Gates to have the Marquis de Lafayette lead an invasion into Canada which would have inevitably have failed and ruined the career of Washington's son-like hero. We think of our founding fathers as united in their just cause, but the picture here is of backstabbing and power-grabbing. Washington himself de

Once again, Thomas Fleming has brought us closer, ever closer, to what has been so vieled in the fog of history. George Washington, icon, marble statue, staring at us through stiff formal portraits and idealized creations in literature, is so much more in his flesh and bones. The more we get to know him the greater he becomes. Fleming is truly a marvel, once again, at bringing history to us in an intimate and marvelously written portrait of Washington's fight to retain his position as commander in chief of the Continental Army. His war against those who would displace him during the winter at Valley Forge shows his political skill at least as good as his military skill, if not better. Fleming's book 1776 Year of Illusions is far and away better than the more recently published 1776 by another author. There, as here with Washington's Secret War, Thomas Fleming teaches us history in a way that is irrisistable. A wonderful book by probably the best writer on American Revolutionary history in America today.