Cornwallis After Yorktown: A Brief Look
We know Cornwallis’ surrender at Yorktown, Virginia, marked a significant turning point in the War of Independence, but what actually happened to the British general following that defeat?
According to the Virginia Library, the Siege of Yorktown, the last significant military engagement of the Revolutionary War, took place in the fall of 1781.
Interestingly, Cornwallis delegated the task of surrendering to his second-in-command, rather than facing it directly himself.
His forces were positioned in coastal Virginia when things took a turn. The French fleet, commanded by Admiral Francois-Joseph Paul de Grasse, drove away the British fleet from the Virginia Capes, which cut off any supplies or reinforcements that Cornwallis desperately needed.
General George Washington, along with a large French and American contingent led by Count Rochambeau, advanced from New York into Virginia. They besieged Cornwallis after joining forces with the Marquis de Lafayette, who had been actively engaging the British in Virginia for months.
To shed more light on the situation, the siege commenced on October 6, 1781. American and French troops surrounded Yorktown, starting a bombardment. After successfully overtaking two British forts, Cornwallis realized his position was hopeless and, on October 19, made the decision to surrender his troops to the combined forces. However, as mentioned earlier, he sent his second-in-command instead to handle the surrender.
Famous depictions, like in the film “The Patriot” featuring Mel Gibson, capture Cornwallis’ shock that his forces were bested by what he termed an army of “peasants.”
Nine days after the surrender, Cornwallis signed his parole papers, which permitted his return to England while ensuring he would not engage in further military actions against the United States.
However, his troops remained as prisoners of war in the U.S., according to records. Cornwallis, noted as a capable military leader, was welcomed back in England and later served as Governor-General of India until his death in 1805.
Interestingly, it was about two years post-surrender that a formal peace treaty was signed, conclusively ending the War of Independence and securing the acknowledgment of U.S. independence by King George III.
