Yorktown, Battle of

Decisive British defeat in the American Revolution September–October 1781 at Yorktown, Virginia, 105 km/65 mi southeast of Richmond. The British commander Lord Cornwallis had withdrawn into Yorktown where he was besieged by 7,000 French and 8,850 American troops and could only wait for reinforcements to arrive by sea. However, the Royal Navy lost command of the sea at the Battle of Chesapeake and with no reinforcements or supplies forthcoming, Cornwallis was forced to surrender 19 October, effectively ending the war.