They thought Cornwallis was a traitor.
NEW RESPONDENT
Because the British fleet had been driven off in the Battle of Chesapeake Capes on September 5, 1781 and therefore couldn't prevent Cornwallis Army from being blockaded by the French fleet.
Yorktown was on the water on one side, so the British army could not escape the large American/French army that was bombarding them. Rather than let his soldiers die, their commander, Cornwallis, elect to surrender. Cornwallis had pleaded for help from General Clinton's ships up in New York, but Clinton would not hurry for anybody, and so the ships made it to Yorktown a couple of days after Cornwallis had surrendered.
During the Battle of Yorktown, the British ships could not support Cornwallis because the French were established in trenches and on the sea and were firing upon them. Also, another French ship, captained by the Comte de Grasse prevented them from going out to sea.
Yorktown's location on a peninsula was a tremendous aid to the American cause as it sought to defeat Cornwallis and his army in 1781. Having pinned down the British in the peninsula, and with no mass-escape possible due to the presence of the French fleet that patrolled the deep waters nearby, the Americans forced Cornwallis to fight or to surrender -- and without hope of being resupplied, as there were no land- or sea-routes available that were not contested.
The French Navy has rarely played an important role in world affairs, but the presence of the French fleet was enough to prevent British reinforcements from arriving at Yorktown. Because they were cut off, the British Army was forced to surrender to George Washington, allowing the American colonies to claim their independence from Britain.
Cornwallis decided to take his troops north and camp at Yorktown because Cornwallis was quite tired of marching. Washington's army and himself were only hundreds of miles north. Washington thought of a plan to trap the British. His plan was to bring his army south to join Greene. So the American and French Soldiers could surround Yorktown by land. If the French navy sailed into Chesapeake Bay, French Ships could also trap the British. Finally the British Army was trapped.
American and French troops and ships surrounded Yorktown in 1781. British General Charles Cornwallis surrendered on October 19th, bringing an end to the American Revolution.
General Cornwallis had set up his base at Yorktown, on the inner shores of the Chesapeake Bay. Well he had expected that his troops could be reinforced from New York by ship but the British had no way in.
Yorktown was on the water on one side, so the British army could not escape the large American/French army that was bombarding them. Rather than let his soldiers die, their commander, Cornwallis, elect to surrender. Cornwallis had pleaded for help from General Clinton's ships up in New York, but Clinton would not hurry for anybody, and so the ships made it to Yorktown a couple of days after Cornwallis had surrendered.
Cornwallis decided to take his troops north and camp at Yorktown because Cornwallis was quite tired of marching. Washington's army and himself were only hundreds of miles north. Washington thought of a plan to trap the British. His plan was to bring his army south to join Greene. So the American and French Soldiers could surround Yorktown by land. If the French navy sailed into Chesapeake Bay, French Ships could also trap the British. Finally the British Army was trapped.
Cornwallis decided to take his troops north and camp at Yorktown because Cornwallis was quite tired of marching. Washington's army and himself were only hundreds of miles north. Washington thought of a plan to trap the British. His plan was to bring his army south to join Greene. So the American and French Soldiers could surround Yorktown by land. If the French navy sailed into Chesapeake Bay, French Ships could also trap the British. Finally the British Army was trapped.
During the Battle of Yorktown, the British ships could not support Cornwallis because the French were established in trenches and on the sea and were firing upon them. Also, another French ship, captained by the Comte de Grasse prevented them from going out to sea.
Yorktown's location on a peninsula was a tremendous aid to the American cause as it sought to defeat Cornwallis and his army in 1781. Having pinned down the British in the peninsula, and with no mass-escape possible due to the presence of the French fleet that patrolled the deep waters nearby, the Americans forced Cornwallis to fight or to surrender -- and without hope of being resupplied, as there were no land- or sea-routes available that were not contested.
Cornwallis feared his army would be totally annihilated by the French and Americans who threatened to bomb Yorktown. Cornwallis was so humiliated to surrender, he stated he was sick and sent a second-in-command officer to surrender Cornwallis sword.
at Yorktown, General Cornwallis was unable to retreat because Washington's Army surrounded him on land, and the French fleet of ships surrounded him on sea, so General Cornwallis surrendered and the colonies won the Revolutionary War.
The Aamericans ships defeated a larger British fleet in Yorktown.
The battle of Yorktown. Cornwallis (a British general) was cornered in Yorktown because Washington closed him in on the North, and American Guerrillas (solders who fought behind enemy lines) were lining the near East and West. Cornwallis's only escape route left was the Chesapeake Bay, but to his surprise, French ships Had moved into position and formed a blockade. Cornwallis surrendered. American victory! Hope this helped!
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