The Guns of Independence: The Siege of Yorktown, 1781

About this book

The siege of Yorktown in the fall of 1781 was the single most decisive engagement of the American Revolution. The campaign has all the drama any historian or student could want: the wars top generals and admirals pitted against one another; decisive naval engagements; cavalry fighting; siege warfare; night bayonet attacks; and much more. Until now however no modern scholarly treatment of the entire campaign has been produced. By the summer of 1781 America had been at war with England for six years. No one believed in 1775 that the colonists would put up such a long and credible struggle. France sided with the colonies as early as 1778 but it was the dispatch of 5 500 infantry under Comte de Rochambeau in the summer of 1780 that shifted the tide of war against the British. In early 1781 after his victories in the Southern Colonies Lord Cornwallis marched his army north into Virginia. Cornwallis believed the Americans could be decisively defeated in Virginia and the war brought to an end. George Washington believed Cornwalliss move was a strategic blunder and he moved vigorously to exploit it. Feinting against General Clinton and the British stronghold of New York Washington marched his army quickly south. With the assistance of Rochambeaus infantry and a key French naval victory at the Battle off the Capes in September Washington trapped Cornwallis on the tip of a narrow Virginia peninsula at a place called Yorktown. And so it began. Operating on the belief that Clinton was about to arrive with reinforcements Cornwallis confidently remained within Yorktowns inadequate defenses. Determined that nothing short of outright surrender would suffice his opponent labored day and night to achieve that end. Washingtons brilliance was on display as he skillfully constricted Cornwalliss position by digging entrenchments erecting redoubts and artillery batteries and launching well-timed attacks to capture key enemy positions. The nearly flawless Allied campaign sealed Cornwalliss fate. Trapped inside crumbling defenses he surrendered on October 19 1781 effectively ending the war in North America. Penned by historian Jerome A. Greene The Guns of Independence: The Siege of Yorktown 1781 offers a complete and balanced examination of the siege and the participants involved. Greenes study is based upon extensive archival research and firsthand archaeological investigation of the battlefield. This fresh and invigorating study will satisfy everyone interested in American Revolutionary history artillery siege tactics and brilliant leadership. About the Author: Jerome A. Greene is a historian with the National Park Service. He is the author or editor of many books including Morning Star Dawn: The Powder River Expedition and the Northern Cheyenne 1876 and his most recent effort Washita: The U.S. Army and the Southern Cheyennes 1867-1869. He lives in Colorado.