An Army Marches on its stomach

Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was famous for saying "An army marches on its stomach." It is also reported that Frederick the Great, the King of Prussia from 1740 to 1786, might have made this quote before Napoleon. 

Frederick The Great

 

 Neither-the-less both these great commanders understood that an army needs to be supplied. Hungry men do not march quickly, or fight well. Extremely hungry men will lose their resolve to campaign and will begin deserting.

General George Washington experienced this when the Americans wintered at Valley Forge in 1777-1778. The Colonial army had been beaten badly by the British and were very low on supplies. Washington knew how dire their situation was and is reported to have said - "If the army does not get help soon, in all likelihood it will disband."

Valley Forge Winter of 1777-1778

It was a harsh winter, cold, hunger, disease, dozens of men disserted. By March General Nathaniel Green was able to get much needed food to Washington's army and the arrival of Baron von Steuben, who actually fought under Frederick the Great, began training Washington's remaining ragtag army that stuck it out through that winter at Valley Forge.  

General Steuben Training Troops at Valley Forge

Steuben could not speak English, and the Americans didn't speak German, but he did know French and Many of Washington's officers knew French. French at the time was the diplomatic language. One of the reasons the French hate us Americans so much. The international language is now English.

General Steuben

Steuben would write his training manuals into French for Washington's officers to then translate them into English. By June of 1778 a new American army emerged from Valley Forge ready to take on the British, because of their willingness to suffer though that bitter cold winter, food finally arriving in time, and the military training a Baron von Steuben.

Napoleon and his Grande Armee



Nicholas Appert - The Father of Canning

Napoleon, knew how important it was to feed his Grande Armée, that he offered an award 12,000 francs for whomever could develop a way to feed his army. Nicholas Appert,

One of Appert's first preserved bottles

a French cook, discovered that heating up food in glass jars sealed with wax and wire kill microbes that cause food to spoil, years later tin cans were used, weighing much less than glass. Soldiers could now carry many days rations with them, and not get ill from their food.

Today we use alumni cans but it all began with Napoleon to feed La Grande Armée and Nicholas Appert.