WEST POINT ON THE HUDSON

[Applause] Oh you [Applause] [Music] on a deserted Road near Tara to New York a horseman was riding at a hard gallop it was midway through the Revolutionary War although the rider was wearing a civilian coat he was really an officer in the British Army Major John Andre he was behind the American lines suddenly he came upon some armed men Americans who barred his way he might have been allowed to go on but the men became suspicious when they saw his new expensive boots which contrasted with his old worn coat this led to a search of his clothing they found documents in one of the boots sheets of paper a map of the American army fort at West Point a list of its defenses and additional information that would help the British to capture the fort a more shocking discovery was to come later when it was discovered that the instructions had been prepared by the commander of West Point general Benedict Arnold hello I'm William Shatner your host on this visit to West Point today of course West Point is best known as the site of the United States Military Academy but why was it so important during the Revolutionary War in those days most Commerce depended on water transportation before the Revolution the Hudson River carried much of that commerce raw materials downstream and imported goods back up north after the war began the Hudson was busy with another kind of Commerce Men and military supplies between the colonies in those days there were no bridges across the river General Washington's army held the Hudson Highlands and kept the river open that the British controlled the river they could separate the colonies New York City had been taken by the British during the early days of the war they recognized the importance of the Hudson Valley and moved to take over the northern portion but they were defeated in the Battle of Saratoga and withdrew to New York City General Washington knew that the British commander General Sir Henry Clinton might make another and stronger attempt to cut the colonies apart he recognized that the one place on the Hudson which might be used to stop the British was at West Point about 30 miles north of Manhattan the Americans built forts and placed cannon high up in the hills overlooking this narrow point in the river they tied logs together and floated them on the river from bank to bank then they stretched a huge chain across the river all this prevented any British ship movements up the river but it also provided the temptation for one of the revolutions early heroes major-general Benedict Arnold had distinguished himself in battle particularly the Battle of Saratoga but since that time he had become disappointed in jealous his biographers say that he had lost faith in the American cause he wanted to force a surrender of General Washington's army and have the colonies return to British rule knowing how important the fort was Arnold maneuvered to win the appointment to command West Point Arnold made his headquarters at the Robinson house across the Hudson from the fort from here he was able to send messengers to the British commander General Sir Henry Clinton in New York Sir Henry wanted West Point he needed West Point and he was willing to pay he instructed one of his aides Major John Andre to negotiate with general Arnold for the surrender of the fort after an exchange of messages Arnold was not satisfied he insisted on a face-to-face talk with someone in authority so Clinton dispatched Andre to meet with him from the British ships vulture Andre went ashore to meet general Arnold a few miles downstream from West Park that conference lasted until dawn and the British sympathizers who had brought major Andre ashore on a small boat were afraid to return to the vulture in daylight Andre was forced to hide through the day in the home of a Tory a pro British American to avoid discovery cannon fire from the shore forced the voter to move downstream so it was impossible for Andre to get back to the ship he disguised himself in an old civilian coat crossed the Hudson and tried to reach British held territory on land [Music] after his capture Andre was taken to Continental Army headquarters in Tappan New York where several historical sites attract visitors today he was held prisoner in Maeby's tavern and tried in the old Dutch Church which stood across the street convicted of spying the sentence was death by hanging when general Arnold heard the news of Andrews capture he hurriedly escaped to the ship vulture and joined the British but West Point the key to the success of the American Revolution remained safe in Washington's hands more than two and a half million people come here each year to see the area and the military academy most visitors come on parade days to watch the cadets march on the plane as the parade ground is called others stay long enough to absorb a bit of the flavor of the history of the Academy [Music] they visit its superb Museum and learn about some of its traditions and the reason that the US Military Academy exists the Academy is actually an army coach officers and cadets live work and study on the campus it has been an army post since the days in the Revolution when it was fortified against the British after the war and after the Constitution was adopted General Washington now President Washington felt that the country needed an academy to Train military officers particularly in a science of engineering during the war all the engineering had been performed by foreigners such as the polish officer Fabius Kosciusko but Congress was not in the mood to provide funds for a military academy at that time the total army consisted of only 80 men and a big standing army was not thought necessary [Music] our third President Thomas Jefferson believed the country needed an Academy of Science he put his plan together with that of Washington and finally got congressional approval why would establishing a school to train army officers be so significant it was the first engineering school the only one in the country until 1835 and the leading school of this type until after the Civil War the u.s. Army Corps of Engineers traditionally staffed by West Point graduates is still responsible for flood control and the waterways of our country West Point graduates surveyed national borders built canals improved harbors and rivers installed coastal beacons and supervised the construction of hundreds of railroads a West pointer built the railroad from Moscow to st. Petersburg for the Tsar of Russia another Academy man oversaw the construction of the Great Dome of the Capitol building in Washington DC [Music] George Google's a West Point graduate was called in to build the Panama Canal when other supervisors had failed more recently another alumnus Major General Leslie groves headed our atomic research program West Point has developed men who became leaders in every field explorers diplomats university presidents churchmen scientists governor's senators judges authors doctors - presidents of the United States and one president of Nicaragua every college has its distinguished alumni but West Point isn't like the average college or university that's because of the educational ideas of Sylvania sphere he sets standards of training and instruction which can only be described as among the toughest to be found anywhere and these standards are still maintained traditions run deep at West Point every superintendent since there's time in the early 1800s has lived in this house cadets wear grey instead of Regular Army uniforms as a tribute to Winfield Scott's Brigade which won the battle of Chippewa in 1814 you [Applause] [Music] [Applause] and no tradition could be stronger than the rivalry between West Point and Annapolis the Naval Academy [Applause] [Music] the school places great emphasis on physical fitness military drill top of the body and sharpens the reflexes cadets learn to march with great precision and without cadence counting [Music] 20 different sports are part of the Academy's athletic program West Point isn't all marching and exercise cadets today probably spend almost as much time learning computer science as they do on the parade ground a subject studied by cadets change to keep pace with a changing world when you take a walking tour Westpoint you're covering ground that great men have trod men like Robert Ely the leader of the Confederate armies who never received a demerit while he was a cadet President Dwight Eisenhower more recent graduates the astronauts Borman Aldrin and fight here surrounded by monuments among the stone buildings and ivy-covered walls the reminders of tradition wherever you turn it's easy to understand that there is a special spirit at West Point it's 4,000 students come from every walk of life all races all kinds of backgrounds and they graduate as exceptional men it's not The Bachelor of Science degree they receive now the Commission as a second lieutenant in the Army that keeps each cadet striving for four years it's a desire to excel to achieve up to the standards of those who have passed this way before the tradition of the long gray line [Music] the result is an honesty and integrity and the fullest use of an individual's talent the Academy model duty honor country lives with each graduate West Point began as the key to our survival as a nation the students and the faculty feel that its status has never changed [Music] ah you [Music] [Music]