Download USMA Posting 1 - EdBlogs@Columbia

The United States Military
Academy at West Point
By Vivian Rand
The American Revolution
• The area of New York currently known as “West
Point” was first developed as a Continental Army
fort in 1775.
• During the Revolution, General George
Washington quickly recognized West Point’s
strategic position on the Hudson. In 1779,
Washington moved is military headquarters there.
• The land was owned by Mr. Stephen Moore, but
Washington kept troops on the land until 1790
when he had Alexander Hamilton, the Secretary of
the Treasury, purchase the land for government
use.
Fortifications
• Washington hired Polish engineer Thaddeus
Koscuiczko to fortify West Point in 1778.
• Infantrymen were the primary construction
workers.
• One of the fortifications of the base was a
great iron chain that spanned the Hudson to
prevent British ships from sailing up the
river to divide the Continental troops and
colonies. It was quite successful.
French Map of West Point
Benedict Arnold’s Treason
• Benedict Arnold was an
American general during the
Revolution who gained
command of West Point in
1780.
• Arnold was unhappy with
his position in the
Continental army and the
state of the Revolution in
1778.
• In September 1780, Arnold’s
plot to surrender West Point
to the British was exposed.
• He defected to the British
Army and has been known
in American history as an
infamous traitor.
Academic Roots
• In 1776, the Continental Congress wanted to
establish a “Corp of Invalids.” This would
basically be a school where gentlemen could
become military officers.
• After the American Revolution, many people
(including President Washington) wanted to
create an institution devoted to the study of war in
order to eliminate America’s need for foreign
engineers.
• However, his advisor Thomas Jefferson, a “strict”
interpreter of the Constitution, prevented the
Academy from being created by Congress.
Establishment of the Academy
• Eventually, Jefferson realized the benefits of an
academic institution. In 1802, President Jefferson
signed into legislation a "Corps of Engineers"
which "shall be stationed at West Point and
constitute a Military Academy.” This was to be
West Point Academy.
• Jefferson hoped that this “Military Academy”
would realize his idea to create a national
university of science and engineering. He hired
Jonathan Williams, a civilian, to lead the
Academy.
• Possibly underwhelmed by the results, Jefferson
would found the University of Virginia in 1819.
Early Years of the Academy
• For the first decade of the Academy’s existence, there
were few academic and admittance standards for
students, also known as “cadets.”
• One of the earliest graduates, Alden Partridge, was a
professor of mathematics and eventually the second
Superintendent. Partridge established the gray
uniforms that cadets still wear today.
• Congress attempted to train more officers at West
Point before the War of 1812, but it was largely
unsuccessful. More formal academic standards were
adopted after the War of 1812.
• In 1817, Partridge resigned, and Colonel Sylvanus
Thayer became Superintendent of the Academy.
West Point Under Thayer
• Col. Sylvanus Thayer’s strict disciplinary
standards, codes of conduct, and academic
standards earned him the title “Father of the
Military Academy.”
• Some of the “Thayer Method” ideas are still
practiced today, like daily homework for students
and independent study.
• Thayer’s new curriculum was mostly engineeringbased. West Point graduates were largely
responsible for building the country’s roads,
bridges, harbors, and railways for many years.
• It wasn’t until before the Mexican-American War
that West Point focused on military education
again.
Future Civil War Leaders
• Many West Point graduates distinguished
themselves with their military leadership during
the Mexican-American War between 1846 and
1848.
• These graduates went on to fight for both sides of
the American Civil War.
• Generals Ulysses S. Grant, Andrew Jackson and
William Sherman commanded the Union Army,
while General Robert E. Lee led the Confederate
Army.
• Unfortunately, these Generals were largely trained
with Revolutionary War-Era weapons and tactics.
More accurate rifles combined with old military
tactics led to high casualties.
USMA Fun Facts
• West Point is the longest continually
occupied military post in U.S. history.
• Students and alumni are known as “The
Long Gray Line.”
• The Academy was the first educational
institution to have class rings.
• Just as Fort Knox stores American gold, a
mint at West Point stores American silver.
• Today, West Point values a Cadet’s
education at over $450,000.
Works Used
• http://www.usma.edu/wphistory/SitePa
ges/Home.aspx
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Sta
tes_Military_Academy
• http://www.nps.gov/york/historycultur
e/arnoldbio.htm
• http://www.slideshare.net/guest036eb13
/usma-soldier-admissions-info-paper