USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -A member of an Oneida delegation that arrived at Valley Forge in May 1778. According to oral tradition, the Oneida provided white corn to the ill-supplied army during the encampment.

Detailed explanation-2: -The commissaries were divided into two groups: the Issuing Commissaries who, though civilians, often served with the troops at military posts; and the Purchasing Commissaries who circulated about the country acquiring supplies.

Detailed explanation-3: -The Marquis de Lafayette, who joined the Continental Army at age nineteen in the summer of 1777 as a volunteer Major General, spent most of December 1777 and January 1778 with George Washington and his Continental Army troops at their winter quarters at Valley Forge.

Detailed explanation-4: -Baron Friedrich von Steuben, a Prussian military officer, provided important training for the American troops. As the drillmaster of Valley Forge, he taught the soldiers how to use the bayonet, and most importantly, how to re-form lines quickly in the midst of battle.

Detailed explanation-5: -Martha spent much of her time at Valley Forge socializing with the wives of other officers who also made the trip to the Philadelphia countryside. She also joined in recreational activities with her husband including attending a camp play and taking part in the celebration of the French Alliance.