Some whispered that the army should give up. One night a young soldier stepped forward and asked quietly:
"General... do you think we will survive this winter?"
For a moment George did not answer. The firelight flickered across the frozen camp.
Then he straightened his shoulders.
"Yes. Because we will not quit."
Every night he walked through the camp, encouraging the ragged soldiers. Cold. Hungry. Determined. As long as he stood, the army would stand.
The army needed hope, and that's when George made a bold decision.
Across the icy Delaware River, British troops believed the exhausted American army had already lost the war. They were soon proved wrong.
On Christmas night, Washington led his soldiers into the stormy river. The river was filled with floating slabs of ice.
Crack. Thud. Chunks slammed against the boats. The oars dipped into freezing black water. Wind tore across the river like knives.
But Washington stood steady at the front of the boat.
"Keep rowing,"
When the army reached the far shore, something remarkable happened. They won. That daring victory changed everything. The war was no longer lost.