(ominous music)
(shots crack)
Previously on "Legends and Lies: The Patriots"...
- There are two things I cannot abide, deserters and rebels.
- Our dead brethren were cruelly and villainously massacred!
- Ever since Lexington and Concord,
all of America is at war, Dr. Franklin.
- Good God!
- I hear by propose that this Congress
appoint as its commander
Colonel George Washington of Virginia.
- You ask what I need, Dr. Franklin.
I need everything,
or this war will be over before it even begins.
(ethereal music)
(tense music) (shots cracking)
(music crescendos) (rifles click)
- Colonel Glover.
I understand they've captured one of our scouts.
- Aye, the lad was trying to slip into the city
to gather intelligence.
Now they have him trussed up for all to see.
(tense music)
- How should we answer, General?
- We could fire a few shots
from one of the guns, Your Excellency.
- That's playing into their hand.
- Would His Excellency have us stand by and do nothing?
- General Green, any man who attempts
to approach the British lines without orders
arrest him, and clap him in irons.
(tense music)
(shot booms)
♪ My country, 'tis of thee
♪ Sweet land of liberty
♪ Land where my fathers died
♪ Land of the pilgrims' pride
♪ From ev'ry mountainside
♪ Let freedom ring
(snare drums beating)
- [Narrator] Pushed to their limits by an oppressive empire,
a determined group of rebels unite
under the cause of liberty.
Their quest for freedom will unify a people,
ignite a revolution, and forge a new system of government.
(gavel bangs)
In time, these brave men and women
will come to be known as the American Patriots.
General George Washington,
the very embodiment of American ideals,
a commander of men who will win a war,
lead a nation, and claim its rightful place in the world.
But behind every commander lies a man
and behind every legend lies the truth.
- Attention, battery!
- George Washington may become
the father of our country,
but when the revolution begins,
Washington is far from the man
legend says is born to lead.
following a disastrous performance
in the French and Indian war
Washington is turned down for a Royal appointment
with the British army.
The rebuke leaves him unsure of his own ability to lead.
As the Continental Army faces the British army in Boston,
George Washington doesn't just have a war to win.
He has something to prove to his men,
his new enemy,
and to himself.
- This army killed over 200 Redcoats in Bunker Hill.
When London gets word, it's only a matter of time
before General Gage is finished in America.
If only Dr. Franklin
and his congressional delegation
to be convinced our own condition is any better.
- Franklin had come down to Boston
to see the condition of the troops
that George Washington had taken over.
They were part of a commission that were sent to Boston
to report back to Congress.
- [Narrator] As an untested commander
and an outsider from Virginia,
Washington must convince his senior officers
he's ready to lead.
- Who does this planter think he is?
(clears throat)
- General Lee!
General Ward.
The condition of this army is a disgrace.
You both have much to do
in teaching your men proper discipline.
- Yes, Your Excellency.
- See to it, then!
General Putnam, a word, if you will.
- Yes, Your Excellency?
- Tell me, General Putnam,
what of our provisions and supplies?
- There's not much in the way of uniforms or blankets.
- And what of our powder supply?
- Less than half a pound per man.
- Good God, keep your voice low.
Half a pound per man?
This army wouldn't last five minutes
if Gage launches an attack.
I am truly sensible of the high honor done to me
in this appointment.
Yet, I feel great distress
from a consciousness that
my abilities and military experience
may not be equal to the extensive and imparted trust.
Well then, we shall make munitions our first priority.
- Washington thinks
"I've been chosen, this is what I must do,
"but on the other hand, maybe I'm not good enough."
That thought terrifies him.
He says, "From this moment,
"I date the ruin of my reputation."
- [Narrator] Washington's inexperienced army
is another source of fear,
one he must eliminate quickly.
- Here's to the health of King George!
- Colonel Glover?
What is the penalty for insubordination?
- 39 lashes, sir.
- Have this man arrested.
Put the rest of these Marbleheaders of yours
to digging latrines.
The camp reeks.
- The Marbleheaders are a group of mariners
named for their militia commander's hometown,
Marblehead, Massachusetts.
They're a rowdy group who aren't afraid to remind Washington
they're uncommitted volunteers.
But this is just the beginning
of a long and valuable commitment
they'll make to their general,
leading Washington in an amazing escape from Long Island
and in a daring Christmas night mission
across the frozen Delaware River.
(drums skirling)
- When Washington was appointed
commanding general of the Continental Army,
he had to instill discipline,
he had to instill a notion of respect
within the confines of this Continental Army.
- Sorry, lad.
(shirt rips)
(whip whooshes) (soldier cries out)
Leadership requires discipline as well, General Lee.
- Dr. Franklin, I think I've seen enough.
(whip whooshes) (soldier cries out)
- His attempts to instill a kind of respect
by asking them to refer to him
as "Your Excellency" backfires
and so he resorts to corporal punishment,
which does send them a firmer message,
but that's not the Washington we think about.
- [Narrator] Lack of discipline
is just one of Washington's problems.
Without enough artillery or gunpowder
his army's attempt to surround Boston and Charlestown,
starving out the British, will eventually be overwhelmed.
Ben Franklins congressional delegation
is also watching his every move.
- Gentlemen, Congress is impatient about the stalemate.
- When I took command of this army,
I expected to find a force of 20,000 men.
Instead, we have less than 15,000,
a quarter of which are sick.
Now, that said, with the addition of Morgan's riflemen,
we may yet be able to launch an attack.
- And what does His Excellency propose?
- A direct assault on Boston, gentlemen.
Our men could cross the back bay in flat-bottom boats
and attack the British- - Hear, hear!
Boston is simply too well defended.
The British suffer greatly for want of provisions.
Their spirits are broken
and there sits Boston, gentlemen.
We must attack!
- Just as long as we have arms and ammunition, sir.
- General Washington, may we have a word?
- Washington has a penchant for grand plans.
He wants to assault across water
and take the city of Boston in urban warfare
and Franklin says "No.
"Do something you can handle."
- How bad is it?
- We have but 36 barrels of gun powder.
A few shots per man.
- The American colonies can't produce gunpowder.
90% of the gunpowder used in the revolution
had to be brought in from someplace else.
- There was no army supply system.
This is pre-industrial revolution.
Nothing in America is mass produced at that point in time.
- You must keep this to yourself and a few trusted officers.
We must be wary of traitors, General.
Spies are everywhere.
(shot echoes)
- Who in God's name is shooting those weapons?
- Those Virginians, no doubt.
- About 400 yards, I'd say.
- Washington's army are guys
that don't necessarily see each other
as one and the same.
He's got Dan Morgan's riflemen from Virginia,
he's got the Marblehead men,
these fishermen from Massachusetts,
and they don't like each other.
(shot cracks)
- Right in the frying pan.
- Hold your fire!
Damn fools, we'll bring on a bombardment for sure.
(dramatic music) (men yelling)
(shot cracks)
- There's no Massachusetts or Virginia in this army!
This is an American army.
- There was no tradition of an American army.
Nothing like it had existed on American soil before.
Why would volunteers from Massachusetts
heed the orders of a Virginia officer?
(shots crack) - Get down!
(explosion booms)
- He had to embody this idea
of a coherent American people and nation.
(shots cracking)
- George Washington knows better than anyone
how vulnerable the Continental Army really is.
His mission is a delicate and dangerous one;
to build a formidable force
without drawing the British into battle
before he's ready.
It's a difficult task for an uncertain general.
(dramatic music) (shots cracking)