Battles & Wars › Revolutions & Napoleon › American Revolutionary War
Siege of Yorktown
September 28 – October 19, 1781· Battle· Americas
Well documentedSolid records, physical evidence or scientific consensus.
A Franco-American army and a French fleet trapped and captured Lord Cornwallis's British army in Virginia, effectively deciding the war.
See it on the Battles & Wars map →What happened
Cornwallis had dug in at Yorktown, near Chesapeake Bay, expecting the Royal Navy to supply or evacuate him. Instead a French fleet under Admiral de Grasse drove off a British fleet on September 5. Washington and the French general Rochambeau marched south from New York; their combined army of about 17,000 was roughly half French. Their siege trenches crept closer; on October 14 French and American troops stormed two key redoubts, small earth forts. Cornwallis surrendered about 8,000 men on October 19.
Why it matters
Britain lost its will to keep fighting. Parliament voted to end offensive war in America in early 1782, leading to the 1783 peace.
How we know
The signed Articles of Capitulation, Washington's and French officers' journals, naval records, and the siege lines preserved at Colonial National Historical Park.
Still debated
How much Yorktown owed to French ships and troops rather than American arms is debated, as is whether Britain could have fought on.
Connections (3)
▸George Washington led the Franco-American victory at Siege of YorktownWell documented
The connection
In August 1781 Washington learned that a French fleet under de Grasse would sail to the Chesapeake. He and Rochambeau left a screen to fool the British in New York and marched their armies to Virginia in just over a month. He commanded the combined army through the siege, and his deputy, Benjamin Lincoln, received the British surrender.
When and how
Yorktown, Virginia, September–October 1781; Washington, Rochambeau, de Grasse and Lafayette against Cornwallis.
How we know
Washington's diary and orders, the Articles of Capitulation he signed, and French officers' journals record his command.
Debates and open questions
Washington had wanted to attack New York instead; how much the plan was Rochambeau's and de Grasse's rather than his own is debated.
▸Battles of Saratoga won the French alliance decisive at Siege of YorktownWell documented
The connection
The alliance won at Saratoga made Yorktown possible four years later. France supplied money, about 7,800 soldiers under Rochambeau, and above all de Grasse's fleet, which beat the British at the Battle of the Chesapeake and cut Cornwallis off. Without French sea power, the British could simply have evacuated by sea.
When and how
From Saratoga, New York, in 1777, through the French alliance of 1778, to Yorktown and Chesapeake Bay in 1781.
How we know
French troop and fleet records, and surrender documents signed by both French and American commanders, show French forces at the center.
Debates and open questions
How directly to connect the two is a judgment call; many other events, including Spanish and Dutch entry into the war, shaped the years between.
▸Siege of Yorktown effectively ended American Revolutionary WarWell documented
The connection
Losing a second whole army broke Britain's political will. Prime Minister Lord North resigned in March 1782, and Parliament voted against further offensive war in America. Some fighting continued at sea and on the frontier, but peace talks in Paris led to the treaty of September 1783 recognizing American independence.
When and how
Yorktown, October 1781; London, February–March 1782; Treaty of Paris signed September 3, 1783.
How we know
Parliament's votes, North's resignation and the peace talks are fully documented; North reportedly greeted the news with 'Oh God! It is all over.'
Debates and open questions
Whether Britain could have kept fighting, since it still held New York and Charleston and had a strong navy, is debated.