The Glorious Cause - Jeff Shaara [287]
He had been accompanied by von Steuben and Harry Lee, both men essential to the strategy of his new command. Washington and Greene agreed completely that Gates’ failure had much to do with the lack of training in his army, and von Steuben had already proven himself the master of that particular problem. Lee would command his legion of cavalry, would correct the enormous error made by Gates in ignoring the value of the light horse.
As they moved south, Greene had insisted on visiting Mount Vernon, a favor to a grateful Washington. It was purely social, and Martha offered as much generous hospitality as Mount Vernon could provide. But Greene would not linger, could see the house in disarray, Martha already preparing for another journey north, yet another Christmas with her husband in the bustling confines of a new headquarters. Though the visit was brief, polite small talk of Kitty and his children, he did as much as he could to send her on her own journey with words of encouragement, a playful challenge that she would now have new generals and a new army to charm. This time they would be French.
Greene knew that the key to success, and possibly survival in the Carolinas, would be the availability of supplies that would originate in Virginia. But that state was a chaos of military disorganization, a product of the philosophy of its governor, Thomas Jefferson. Like John Adams, and so many of those who had fashioned the very existence of the country, Jefferson believed a permanent army was a potential threat to liberty. Even the periodic raids from British warships could not alter his perception that local militia responding to a crisis was a far better solution for Virginia than a regular military force. Though congress had authorized Greene to raise continental regiments there, the resistance in Virginia was fierce. To confront that challenge, von Steuben was left in Richmond, to put his considerable energies into convincing Jefferson and the rest of Virginia that there was truly a greater need beyond their own borders.
What remained of Gates’ forces had gathered around Charlotte, and as Greene rode southward through North Carolina, he began to dread the meeting, the first confrontation Greene would have with the man he had come to replace.
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA, DECEMBER 2, 1780
The town was small, barely two dozen homes, and beyond its streets lay the camps of the army. Greene was followed by his staff, Majors Burnet and Forsythe. Burnet was businesslike and studious. Forsythe was more outgoing, and Greene used him more as the liaison with the subordinate officers. Major Hovey was gone, had returned to his home near Boston, and though Greene felt his absence, he could not have denied the young man’s resignation. It was a common problem for the senior officers, finding energetic young men who accepted the grueling responsibilities of managing a command. It was unusual for a staff officer to survive the crushing work, and Hovey had kept to the job longer than most. Too many of the others came to the headquarters with dreams of their own command. Some sought the self-importance they gained from such closeness to authority. Greene thought of Hovey often, knew the young man had every ability to perform the job, had shown the same tenacity as Tench Tilghman. But Hovey had his own dreams, some notion of going into business, a bookseller perhaps, his quest receiving an enthusiastic endorsement from another former bookseller, Henry Knox.
Greene rode at the head of a small column of men who had once been North Carolina militia, two companies now signed on for a full enlistment. As he had journeyed southward from Virginia, he was surprised to find militia officers waiting for him, assembling their men in their village squares. It was more than a cordial welcome, many of the men now joining the ranks of the Continental Army. There was considerable shame in their ranks, the embarrassment for the collapse of the Virginians at Camden.