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The Siege of Yorktown, sometimes also referred to as the Battle of Yorktown or the Surrender of Yorktown, was the closing battle of the American Revolutionary War.

Course of battle[]

After the successes in the Battle of the Chesapeake, George Washington and Comte de Rochambeau were prepared to strike at Charles Cornwallis.[1]

Fought between Continental and British forces, the siege took place in and around YorktownVirginia. George Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette began an assault on the British-held city on 28 September 1781,[2] where the British General Cornwallis had stationed his troops with the intention of trapping the American leaders on the cape.[3]

With the support of the French Navy, Washington and Lafayette laid siege to the city and engaged Cornwallis' troops in the fields around it for the next three weeks. The British were unable to either escape or provide reinforcements due to the success of the French at the Battle of the Chesapeake, allowing for a French naval blockade of the Chesapeake Bay.[3] Aside from Connor's assistance in the blockade, the Colonial Assassins also covertly aided the American command on land, eliminating British threats as the battle went on.[4]

The main force of Continental and French troops marched to Yorktown near the end of September and began to settle in. By October 6th the trenches were built and the siege had begun. The key to Washington's strategy was the artillery brought in by the French army. It bombarded the city for more than a week, wearing down defenses until French and Continental troops successfully stormed two redoubts outside the city on October 14. This put the artillery in a place where it could reach the city itself, and Cornwallis' defenses quickly crumbled under the onslaught. He surrendered on October 19th.[3]

Aftermath[]

AC3 Washington Connor Apple Talk

Washington talking about the Apple with Connor

This fall of Yorktown essentially broke Britain's political will to continue the war, as it had become too costly, and Parliament started peace negotiations.[3] The British finally recognized the Declaration of Independence and opened negotiations to officially end the war, culminating in the Treaty of Paris in 1783.[5] In the battle's aftermath, Washington found an Apple of Eden at Yorktown, and it plagued him with visions of being corrupted by the artifact's power and ruling the United States as a tyrannical king.[6]

Appearances[]

References[]

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