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Arnold Friberg’s painting The Prayer at Valley Forge is currently on display in Historic Mount Vernon’s Donald W. Reynolds building lobby. This dramatic image of General Washington humbly kneeling in the snow, praying for the deliverance of is troops and his country, eloquently conveys his unflagging commitment to and faith in the Revolutionary cause. Friberg has described this canvas as “a symbolic picture,” explaining that his goal was “to recall the pain, the cold of that cruel winter of 1777-1778, and to pay tribute to the tall and heavy-burdened man who alone held the struggling nation together.”Friberg developed his vision for the monumental canvas over the course of two years, which included a winter visit to Valley Forge. The artist spent countless hours in museums and libraries researching George Washington to create a painting that captures the essence of a private moment during a crucial time in this country’s history. The Prayer at Valley Forge was painted to commemorate the United States’ bicentennial in 1976. Access to the Donald W. Reynolds building is included in regular Estate admission: adults, $15.00; children ages 6-11, $7.00; and children under 5 are admitted free. About Valley Forge
As commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, George Washington moved his headquarters to Valley Forge in December 1777 and stayed there until June 19, 1778. This was a time of great hardship for the Continental Army, with food, clothing, and ammunition in short supply. Located on the Schuylkill River about twenty miles northwest of Philadelphia, where the British were headquartered, Valley Forge was Washington's choice for a winter training encampment because he thought that it would be difficult for the British to make a surprise attack there and because it was within a day's horseback ride of both York and Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where the Continental Congress and the Pennsylvania legislature had fled. Loan courtesy of Friberg Fine Art.
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