American Revolutionary War (1775–1783)
British defeat in America (1781)
Cornwallis had discovered that the majority of the American's supplies in the Carolinas were passing through Virginia, and had written to both Lord Germain and Clinton detailing his intentions to invade. Cornwallis believed a successful campaign there would cut supplies to Greene's army and precipitate a collapse of American
The United States of America (USA), is a country in North America. The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 - September 3, 1783) was the military conflict in which American patriot forces under George Washington's command defeated the British, establishing and securing the independence of the United States. After the Revolution, the United States gained independence, the first nation-state founded on Enlightenment principles of liberal democracy. resistance in the South. Clinton strongly opposed the plan, instead favoring conducting a campaign further north in the Chesapeake region. Lord Germain wrote to Cornwallis approving his plan, neglecting to include Clinton in the decision-making entirely, despite him being Cornwallis' superior officer. Cornwallis then decided to move into Virginia without informing Clinton. Clinton, however, had failed to construct a coherent strategy for British operations in 1781, owing to his difficult relationship with his naval counterpart, Marriot Arbuthnot.
The French (left) and British (right) lines exchange fire at the Battle of the Chesapeake
Following the calamitous operations at Newport and Savannah, French planners realized closer cooperation with the Americans was required to achieve success. The French
The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the medieval and early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe since the High Middle Ages. It was also an early colonial power, with possessions around the world. Colonial conflicts with Great Britain led to the loss of much of its North American holdings by 1763. The Kingdom of France adopted a written constitution in 1791, but the Kingdom was abolished a year later and replaced with the First French Republic. fleet, led by the Comte de Grasse, had received discretionary orders from Paris to assist joint efforts in the north if naval support was needed. Washington and his French counterpart, the Comte de Rochambeau, discussed their options. Washington pushed for an attack on New York, while Rochambeau preferred a strike in Virginia, where the British
The Kingdom of Great Britain was a sovereign country in Western Europe from 1 May 1707 to the end of 31 December 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of Union 1707, which united the kingdoms of England (which included Wales) and Scotland to form a single kingdom encompassing the whole island of Great Britain and its outlying islands, with the exception of the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. were less well-established and thus, easier to defeat. Franco-American movements around New York caused Clinton a great deal of anxiety, fearing an attack on the city. His instructions to Cornwallis during this time were vague, rarely forming explicit orders. However, Clinton did instruct Cornwallis to establish a fortified naval base, and transfer troops to the north to defend New York. Cornwallis dug in at Yorktown, and awaited the Royal Navy.
Washington still favored an assault on New York, but was essentially overruled when the French opted to send their fleet to their preferred target of Yorktown. In August, the combined Franco-American army moved south to cooperate with de Grasse to defeat Cornwallis. Lacking sufficient naval resources to effectively counter the French, the British dispatched an inadequate fleet under Thomas Graves to assist Cornwallis and assume naval dominance. On September 5, the French fleet decisively defeated Graves, giving the French control of the seas around Yorktown, cutting Cornwallis off from reinforcements and relief. Despite the continued urging of his subordinates, Cornwallis made no attempt to break out and engage the Franco-American army before it had established siege works, instead expecting reinforcements would arrive from New York.
On September 28, the Franco-American army laid siege to Yorktown. Believing relief from Clinton was imminent, Cornwallis prematurely abandoned all of his outer defences, which were then occupied by the Franco-American troops, serving to hasten his subsequent defeat. A British attempt to break out of the siege across the river at Gloucester Point failed when a storm hit. Under increasing bombardment and with dwindling supplies, Cornwallis and his subordinates agreed their situation was untenable, and negotiated a surrender on October 17. Some 7,685 soldiers became prisoners of the Franco-American army. The same day as the surrender, 6,000 troops under Clinton had departed New York, sailing to relieve Yorktown.
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This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "American Revolutionary War (1775–1783)", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.
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