The American Revolution Ends the War at Yorktown

Cornwallis Trapped as Americans and French Allies Defeat British Forces

Michael Streich

June 27, 2009

By 1781 the patriot cause was summarized by George Washington as “gloomy.” Under-equipped and fragmented, colonial forces had been weakened by desertions and mutinies. Yet key events in 1781 resulting from spectacular British blunders changed the outlook, leading to the victory at Yorktown late in the year. British defeat at Yorktown paved the way toward an end to the war and the 1783 peace treaty that recognized American independence.

 

Cornwallis moves north into Virginia

 

In March 1781 the British army under the command of Charles, Lord Cornwallis had been severely weakened when nearly one quarter of his force had been incapacitated by a patriot force under General Nathaniel Greene at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, just south of the Virginia border.

 

Cornwallis continued to march his men into Virginia, however, expecting reinforcement from Sir Henry Clinton in New York and hoping to link with separate British forces commanded by Benedict Arnold and Colonel Tarleton. Clinton, however, who commanded 11,000 men in New York, ordered Cornwallis to send part of his force north to reinforce his own position, an order Cornwallis refused.

 

George Washington’s forces and a 4,500 man French army under General Rochambeau were north of New York, poised to begin a siege of the well-fortified city. It was at this point that the news of the imminent arrival of a French fleet at the Chesapeake offered an opportunity to possibly end the war.

 

Cornwallis Encircled at Yorktown

 

Prior to his withdrawal to Yorktown, Cornwallis had been successful in harassing patriot forces in Virginia. British troops captured Richmond and came within minutes of capturing Governor Thomas Jefferson. So successful was Cornwallis that Nathanial Greene referred to him as a “modern Hannibal.”

 

Retiring to Yorktown, Cornwallis anticipated reinforcements and fresh supplies, not realizing that French Admiral de Grasse had sailed from Santo Domingo with 28 warships and 3,300 French troops. In New York, Sir Henry Clinton reacted to the news of de Grasse with typical vacillation. Ironically, a British naval force under Sir Samuel Hood had actually arrived at the Chesapeake before de Grasse from the Caribbean but concluded that the French had sailed to New York instead. Departing north, Hood left the Chesapeake open for the French fleet.

 

Cutting off all Hope for Cornwallis

 

Cornwallis began fortifying Yorktown but abandoned the outer defenses. His troops were weary and sick. Smallpox began to take its toll among the men and Yorktown’s inhabitants. At the same time, Washington and Rochambeau, sensing a great opportunity, force-marched their men south into Virginia, linking with General Lafayette’s force of 3,000.

 

By the time Clinton realized what had happened (Washington had left enough men behind to confuse the British), it was too late. Admiral Sir Thomas Graves, perhaps the most criminally ineffectual British commander, arrived at the Chesapeake, briefly engaged the French fleet after dispersing his own ships in such a manner as to render them useless, and retreated back to New York.

 

Admiral de Grasse had been reinforced by a smaller French force commanded by Admiral de Barra. It was this smaller fleet that anchored in the Chesapeake while de Grasse fought the British in the open sea.

 

Believing until the last that reinforcements would arrive, Cornwallis made no attempt to break out of Yorktown or ferry his men across the York River, both actions still feasible before the arrival of Washington and Rochambeau. The end came after French forces, in the stealth of darkness, overran Redoubt 9 and American forces took Redoubt 10, two strategically important defensive fortifications.

 

Cornwallis Maligned in History

 

Lord Cornwallis has often been the scapegoat for British defeat, even as recently as the popular film The Patriot. Yet the evidence suggests that he was a capable commander. The loss at Yorktown can best be blamed on the incompetence of Admiral Graves and the jealous indecision of Sir Henry Clinton.

 

Sources:

 

Walter Edgar, Partisans and Redcoats (HarperCollins,2001)

Robert Harvey, A Few Bloody Noses: The Realities and Mythologies of the American Revolution (Overlook Press, 2002)

Henry Wiencek, An Imperfect God: George Washington, His Slaves, and the Creation of America (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2001)

First published in Suite101. Copyright owned by Michael Streich. No reprints of any kind without written permission from Michael Streich.