AMERICAN
REVOLUTION
The 1781 Battle of Yorktown was a decisive victory by American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by General Rochambeau over British forces led by General Charles Cornwallis. This was the last major battle of the American Revolutionary War. The surrender of over 8,000 of Cornwallis' soldiers eventually prompted the British government to negotiate an end to this conflict and sign the Treaty of Paris granting independence for the United States of America.
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Step #2: Meet Some of the Significant People Related to the Battle of Yorktown and the American Revolution
King George III
George III took the throne in 1760. He opposed the colonial quest for independence to the very end.
The adjustment of previous colonial policies that angered some colonists were primarily due to the substantial financial burdens of a series of wars with France and Spain in North America as well as the expanding costs of administering and protecting the tremendous expansion of the British empire.
He did not personally develop the infamous policies such as the Stamp Act of 1765 or the Townshend duties of 1767, policies which had the support of Parliament. But he is always tied to losing the northern British colonies.
Lord Charles Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis was a British military commander during the American Revolution, beginning with his service as second in command to Henry Clinton. Having fought well in the Battle of Long Island, the Battle of White Plains, and assisting in the capture of Fort Washington, he was given his own command in which he captured Fort Lee and pushed Washington's men as far as New Brunswick.
Cornwallis led his forces through the Southern states with a high degree of success, and established a deep-water port at Yorktown on orders from Henry Clinton. His 1781 defeat by combined American-French forces at the Siege of Yorktown is generally considered the end of the war, as the bulk of British troops surrendered with Cornwallis. Minor skirmishes continued for two more years.
Marquis de Lafayette
Lafayette came from a wealthy family in southern France and was commissioned an officer at the young age of 13. Lafayette felt the causes of the American Patriots were noble and ingratiated himself with George Washington. He was involved in many important events, such as the Battle of Brandywine, Valley Forge, the Battle of Monmouth, and most importantly, the Siege of Yorktown.
Sent to Virginia by Washington, Lafayette engaged in operations against Benedict Arnold and shadowed the army of General Cornwallis as it moved north from the Carolinas. He evaded capture at the Battle of Green Spring in July and effectively monitored British activities until the arrival of Washington's army in southern Virginia in September of 1781. Taking part in the Siege of Yorktown, Lafayette was present at the British surrender. Lafayette later became a key figure in the French Revolution of 1789.
Comte De Rochambeau
General Rochambeau arrived in Newport, R.I. in the summer of 1780 with a 5,500-man force. He collaborated extremely well with George Washington and acknowledged Washington's guidance over the allied French and Continental troops.
Rochambeau joined Washington in the land campaign of 1781 against the British forces stationed at Yorktown and assured Washington that the French navy under the command of Admiral de Grasse would support their armies. Admiral de Grasse did indeed arrive and defeated the British in the Battle of the Virginia Capes (a.k.a. the Battle of the Chesapeake), while 10,000 American and French forces marched toward the final siege at Yorktown. When Cornwallis finally surrendered (although he did not attend the capitulation ceremony due to illness), General Rochambeau insisted that the surrender be made to the American forces, not the French forces. The French assistance, particularly at the Battle of Yorktown, helped pave the way for the establishment of the new nation.
Baron von Steuben
Von Steuben's experience in the Prussian army gave him excellent experience for training soldiers and he utilized those skills to assist in the training of American soldiers at Valley Forge. Even though he didn't speak English and had accepted the position without pay, he was able to communicate adequately; and through tough discipline and better camp sanitation, he was able to improve the expertise of Washington's army.
He commanded three divisions of Washington's troops at the Battle of Yorktown and even aided Washington in demobilizing the military in 1783. He was declared an American citizen by an act of Pennsylvania Legislature in March, 1784.
François Joseph Paul de Grasse
De Grasse helped rebuild the navy of France after France's defeat in the Seven Years' War (French and Indian War) in 1763. Although France remained officially neutral in the Revolutionary War until 1778, France did provide materials for the Patriots' fight for independence.
De Grasse assisted Washington and Rochambeau's land assault at Yorktown. He set sail with 3,000 men from Saint-Domingue, and his victory at the Battle of the Chesapeake in September, 1781 effectively shut off Cornwallis' ability to escape via sea. Just 24 miles from where the British dream of a colonial empire began at Jamestown, this decisive victory at Yorktown helped create the United States of America.
