British troops had chased George Washington's Continental Army out of New York in 1776 and sent them fleeing from Philadelphia the following year. The remnants of Washington's rebel troops fled to a barren mountain top in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, where the troops-out of ammunition by then--faced freezing temperatures, starvation, and certain defeat. As desertions threatened to end the American Revolution, a fat man suddenly appeared in Washington's tent and, as if by magic-or "magick," as Washington spelled it-produced the money to pay the troops and buy them enough food, clothing, and arms to defeat the British and secure United States independence His name was Robert Morris; Washington called him his "magick money man."
