Article 5:
The Fake General Who Helped Free America, Page 1
By Deborah Hedstrom-Page

He wore a new uniform, decorated with dangling medals. He had a long name, dotted with military and noble titles. To George Washington and his ragged, hungry troops at Valley Forge in March of 1777, the man looked every inch an aristocratic German* officer. But General Frederick William Augustus Henry Ferdinand Baron von Steuben duped Washington and his men -- and it's a good thing he did!

In truth the Baron's army career had ended 13 years earlier, and he had never ranked higher than a captain. Even his full name didn't belong to him. German records show that his grandfather falsely added "von," the symbol for a noble family. But his medals and martial skills were real.

Raised by a military father and surrounded by soldiers all his life, von Steuben joined the army and went to war when only 14 years old. At that time the German army was considered the best in the world and it king, Frederick the Great, a military genius. The Baron learned well from both and even became part of an elite Quartermaster class taught by the king.

Though he became an exceptional Captain, von Steuben's career ended abruptly when different German officers got into power. Forced to retire at only 36 years old, the Baron offered his military services to other countries. Some jobs were better than others, but by the time he met an American diplomat in Paris 13 years later, he desperately needed money.

The diplomat, Benjamin Franklin, realized that Baron von Steuben had the military training that American troops needed to win their independence from England. So he offered the German a job. What exactly happened after that is a mystery, but old letters and documents have led many to believe that Franklin cooked up the scheme for the Baron to become a general, fresh from the German Army. He knew Congress and Washington would not accept a lowly ex-captain who had been doing odd military jobs around Europe.

But the Continental Congress and General Washington did accept the fake general and promptly made him an American Lieutenant General. The results helped America win the Revolutionary War.