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The siege of Yorktown was the last major land battle of the American Revolutionary War in North America, and led to the surrender of General Cornwallis and the capture of both him and his army. The Continental Army 's victory at Yorktown prompted the British government to negotiate an end to the conflict.
General Cornwallis requested a cease fire on October 17, 1781, and selected the house as the site for surrender negotiations, likely due to its neutral and convenient location. [4] Washington's and Cornwallis's representatives met at the house the following day, where they negotiated Articles of Capitulation. [ 4 ]
By December 1780, the American Revolutionary War's North American theatres had reached a critical point. The Continental Army had suffered major defeats earlier in the year, with its southern armies either captured or dispersed in the loss of Charleston and the Battle of Camden in the south, while the armies of George Washington and the British commander-in-chief for North America, Sir Henry ...
His surrender in 1781 to a combined American and French force at the siege of Yorktown ended significant hostilities in North America. Cornwallis later served as a civil and military governor in Ireland, where he helped bring about the Act of Union; and in India, where he helped enact the Cornwallis Code and the Permanent Settlement.
The Surrender of Lord Cornwallis is an oil painting by John Trumbull. The painting, which was completed in 1820, now hangs in the rotunda of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. The painting depicts the surrender of British Lieutenant General Charles, Earl Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia , on October 19, 1781, ending the siege of ...
Cornwallis was expected to recruit more Loyalists, who were believed to be more numerous in the southern colonies. [52] After the fall of Charleston, Cornwallis set about establishing a British presence throughout South Carolina. Although he successfully established outposts, keeping communication and supply lines open was an ongoing challenge.
Cornwallis was eventually ordered by General Clinton to establish a fortified deep-water port at either Yorktown or Portsmouth. Cornwallis chose Yorktown, and began constructing fortifications there and Gloucester Point, just across the York River from Yorktown, in August 1781.
A three-week siege of Yorktown led to Cornwallis's surrender on October 19, 1781. The route is a designated National Historic Trail with interpretive literature, signs, and exhibits that describe the key role of French diplomatic, military, and economic aid to the United States during the American Revolutionary War. [1]