The Battle of Yorktown

              
    As many people in the world know, the United States was not always its own country. The Battle of Yorktown was the last major battle of the United States Revolutionary War.

                  The United States Revolutionary War started when the British military received word that the colonists were collecting weapons in Concord to use against Britain. They were gathering weapons because the crown was taxing them, going against the British law of “no taxation without representation.” The colonists had no representation in the British government, therefore, by British law; it was illegal for the colonists to be taxed. The Parliament insisted that they had the right to tax colonists because their land was not part of the British mainland.

                  General Thomas Gage sent troops to the colonies to confiscate the weapons. The colonist fired at the troops, starting the Revolutionary War. The first battle was called the battle of Lexington and Concord.

                  The battle that I am focusing on is the last major battle of the war, the battle of Yorktown. Prior to the battle of Yorktown, 5,550 French soldiers landed in Rhode Island to assist the Patriots in recapturing New York City, which was under British occupation. The fate of the United States depended on the soldiers arriving. If the French soldiers had been unable to arrive, for reasons such as weather, then the Patriots may have lost the Revolutionary War, and there would be no US.

"Siege of Yorktown." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 06 Feb. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Yorktown>.

                  The French commander, Comte de Rochambeau, convinced George Washington that an attack on New York City would be a bad idea, and recommended that they attack the 9,000 men army of Lord Cornwallis. This army was stationed in Yorktown, Virginia. Rochambeau recommended that attack because he had Comte de Grasse’s navy fleet in Yorktown, which could assist in the attack.

                  De Grasse defeated a British fleet in Yorktown, which blocked all sea escape for Cornwallis. Washington dispatched French General Lafayette to hold Cornwallis in Yorktown. Here again we can see that the fate of the United States really rested on a few very important things that happened in the battle. If Lafayette had been unable to hold Cornwallis in Yorktown, Cornwallis would have met up with more soldiers and attacked the American forces again. The American forces had been prepared for government, and were now ready to make the final attack. On October 14, 1781, Washington sent two columns to attack the remaining outer British forces. On October 17, Cornwallis asked for capitulation terms. The surrender ceremony was held on the 19^th. Cornwallis claimed to be ill and was not present. The United States began bargaining with Britain, resulting in the Treaty of Paris. The Treaty was signed in 1783.


Image Sources
 

"American Revolution : The Battle of Yorktown." British Battles - Analysing and Documenting British Battles from the Previous Centuries. Web. 06 Feb. 2012. <http://www.britishbattles.com/battle-yorktown.htm>.

"Battle Pics." Mercer Island School District. Web. 06 Feb. 2012. <http://blogs.misd.k12.wa.us/rcimprich/2011/04/26/the-battle-of-yorktown-diary-entry-5-due-427/>.

"Siege of Yorktown." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 06 Feb. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Yorktown>. 

Further Reading
 

Wikipedia on The Battle of Yorktown

Another Good Website

Weapons Information For The Battle of Yorktown

My Website on The Battle of Yorktown (For my Do/Make)