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m Hey man im josh moved page Order of battle at the Siege of Yorktown to Siege of Yorktown order of battle: Naming conventions, per MOS:ORBAT
 
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[[File:US Army 52414 Assault on Redoubt 10 at Yorktown.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The storming of redoubt #10 at Yorktown]]
[[File:US Army 52414 Assault on Redoubt 10 at Yorktown.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The storming of redoubt #10 at Yorktown]]
The '''Siege of Yorktown''' was the culminating act of the [[Yorktown campaign]], a series of military operations occupying much of 1781 during the [[American Revolutionary War]]. The siege was a decisive Franco-American victory: after the surrender of British [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Lt. Gen. Charles, Earl Cornwallis]] on October 17, the [[North Ministry|government]] of [[Frederick North, Lord North|Lord North]] fell, and [[Second Rockingham Ministry|its replacement]] entered into peace negotiations that resulted in British recognition of American independence with the 1783 [[Treaty of Paris (1783)|Treaty of Paris]].
The '''siege of Yorktown''' was the culminating act of the [[Yorktown campaign]], a series of military operations occupying much of 1781 during the [[American Revolutionary War]]. The siege was a decisive Franco-American victory: after the surrender of British [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Lt. Gen. Charles, Earl Cornwallis]] on October 17, the [[North Ministry|government]] of [[Frederick North, Lord North|Lord North]] fell, and [[Second Rockingham Ministry|its replacement]] entered into peace negotiations that resulted in British recognition of American independence with the 1783 [[Treaty of Paris (1783)|Treaty of Paris]].


The siege involved land forces from the United States, including the [[Continental Army]] and state militias, as well as land forces under French and British command. The British forces included a large number of troops from various German principalities of the [[Holy Roman Empire]] that were collectively known as [[Hessian (soldiers)|Hessian]]s. Since [[Yorktown, Virginia]] was specifically selected by Cornwallis for its properties as a deep-water port, both sides had naval support as well: the British forces included some [[Royal Navy]] vessels, and the Franco-American allies were supported by a large French fleet, some of whose marines were landed to assist in siege operations. German historians have noted that approximately one third of all the land forces involved were either hired or recruited from German states, or were German immigrants to America; this has led the siege to be known in German historiography as "die Deutsche Schlacht" ("the German battle").
The siege involved land forces from the United States, including the [[Continental Army]] and state militias, as well as land forces under French and British command. The British forces included a large number of troops from various German principalities of the [[Holy Roman Empire]] that were collectively known as [[Hessian (soldiers)|Hessian]]s. Since [[Yorktown, Virginia]] was specifically selected by Cornwallis for its properties as a deep-water port, both sides had naval support as well: the British forces included some [[Royal Navy]] vessels, and the Franco-American allies were supported by a large French fleet, some of whose marines were landed to assist in siege operations. German historians have noted that approximately one third of all the land forces involved were either hired or recruited from German states, or were German immigrants to America; this has led the siege to be known in German historiography as "die Deutsche Schlacht" ("the German battle").
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With this force, numbering about 7,200, Cornwallis first chased after the army of the [[Marquis de Lafayette]], a much smaller force of [[Continental Army]] and local militiamen that had provided some resistance to the movements of Phillips and Arnold. Cornwallis was eventually ordered by General [[Henry Clinton (American War of Independence)|Clinton]] to establish a fortified deep-water port at either Yorktown or [[Portsmouth, Virginia|Portsmouth]]. Cornwallis chose Yorktown, and began constructing fortifications there and Gloucester Point, just across the York River from Yorktown, in August 1781.
With this force, numbering about 7,200, Cornwallis first chased after the army of the [[Marquis de Lafayette]], a much smaller force of [[Continental Army]] and local militiamen that had provided some resistance to the movements of Phillips and Arnold. Cornwallis was eventually ordered by General [[Henry Clinton (American War of Independence)|Clinton]] to establish a fortified deep-water port at either Yorktown or [[Portsmouth, Virginia|Portsmouth]]. Cornwallis chose Yorktown, and began constructing fortifications there and Gloucester Point, just across the York River from Yorktown, in August 1781.


=== British Forces ===
=== British forces ===
'''Commander,''' [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Lt. Gen. Charles, Earl Cornwallis]], commanding
'''Commander''': [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Lt. Gen. Charles, Earl Cornwallis]], commanding


* '''Headquarters'''
* '''Headquarters'''
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** [[80th Regiment of Foot (Royal Edinburgh Volunteers)]]
** [[80th Regiment of Foot (Royal Edinburgh Volunteers)]]


===German Contingents===
===German contingents===

* '''[[Ansbach-Bayreuth]] Contingent''' under Col. August von Voigt
* '''[[Ansbach-Bayreuth]] Contingent''' under Col. August von Voigt
** 1st Ansbach-Bayreuth Regiment
** 1st Ansbach-Bayreuth Regiment
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===Loyalists===
===Loyalists===


* [[Queen's Rangers|Simcoe's Rangers]] (Cavalry and Light Infantry)
* [[Queen's Rangers]]
* [[British Legion (1778)|British Legion (Cavalry, Infantry, and Artillery elements)]] – Opposite Yorktown in [[Gloucester, Virginia|Gloucester]]
* [[British Legion (American Revolutionary War)|British Legion]]
* North Carolina Volunteers
* [[List of British units in the American Revolutionary War#Local Volunteer Corps|North Carolina Volunteers]]
* Auxiliary Local Detachments
* Pioneers
* France Volunteers


==American Army==
==American Army==
The American forces that opposed Cornwallis at Yorktown also arrived in Virginia at different times, since most of the detachments were made in reaction to the British movements. After Arnold was sent to Virginia, Major General [[George Washington]], the American commander-in-chief, in January 1781 sent the [[Marquis de Lafayette]] to Virginia with 900 men. He was to be followed promptly by troops from the [[Pennsylvania Line]] under the command of Brigadier General [[Anthony Wayne]], but Wayne did not arrive in Virginia until June. Lafayette's force included a substantial number of Virginia [[militia]], and he shadowed Cornwallis during the movements that ended at Yorktown, with a skirmish [[Battle of Spencer's Ordinary|at Spencer's Ordinary]] and a larger [[Battle of Green Spring|battle at Green Spring]] being their only significant encounters.
The American forces that opposed Cornwallis at Yorktown also arrived in Virginia at different times, since most of the detachments were made in reaction to the British movements. After Arnold was sent to Virginia, General [[George Washington]], the American commander-in-chief, in January 1781 sent the [[Marquis de Lafayette]] to Virginia with 900 men. He was to be followed promptly by troops from the [[Pennsylvania Line]] under the command of Brigadier General [[Anthony Wayne]], but Wayne did not arrive in Virginia until June. Lafayette's force included a substantial number of Virginia [[militia]], and he shadowed Cornwallis during the movements that ended at Yorktown, with a skirmish [[Battle of Spencer's Ordinary|at Spencer's Ordinary]] and a larger [[Battle of Green Spring|battle at Green Spring]] being their only significant encounters.


The main [[Continental Army]] of General Washington was at first stationed outside New York City, which Washington hoped to besiege with the assistance of the French army. However, word from Admiral [[François Joseph Paul de Grasse|Paul de Grasse]] of the French [[West Indies]] fleet would sail north to assist in operations on the [[Chesapeake Bay]] convinced Washington that action was best taken against Cornwallis's army in Virginia. Accordingly, the American and French armies set out in mid-August for Virginia. Some troops went overland the entire way; others were transported on the Chesapeake by ships of the French Navy. Washington arrived in Lafayette's camp before Yorktown on September 17.
The main [[Continental Army]] of General Washington was at first stationed outside New York City, which Washington hoped to besiege with the assistance of the French army. However, word from Admiral [[François Joseph Paul de Grasse|Paul de Grasse]] of the French [[West Indies]] fleet would sail north to assist in operations on the [[Chesapeake Bay]] convinced Washington that action was best taken against Cornwallis's army in Virginia. Accordingly, the American and French armies set out in mid-August for Virginia. Some troops went overland the entire way; others were transported on the Chesapeake by ships of the French Navy. Washington arrived in Lafayette's camp before Yorktown on September 17.
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** [[Armand's Legion]]
** [[Armand's Legion]]
* '''Artillery''' under Brigadier General [[Henry Knox]]
* '''Artillery''' under Brigadier General [[Henry Knox]]
** [[1st Continental Artillery Regiment]] (1 company), Lieutenant Colonel [[Edward Carrington]], Captain Whitehead Coleman
** [[1st Continental Artillery Regiment]] (10 company), Lieutenant Colonel [[Edward Carrington]], Captain Whitehead Coleman
** [[2nd Continental Artillery Regiment]] (9 companies), Colonel [[John Lamb (general)|John Lamb]]
** [[2nd Continental Artillery Regiment]] (9 companies), Colonel [[John Lamb (general)|John Lamb]]
** [[4th Continental Artillery Regiment]] (3 companies), Captains Patrick Duffy, William Ferguson, and James Smith
** [[4th Continental Artillery Regiment]] (3 companies), Captains Patrick Duffy, William Ferguson, and James Smith
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==French Army==
==French Army==
⚫
The French forces at Yorktown came from two separate sources. The larger force, the [[Expédition Particulière]], under the command of Lieutenant General the [[Comte de Rochambeau]], landed at [[Newport, Rhode Island]] in 1780, and marched overland to join Washington's army outside New York in the summer of 1781. These troops marched with Washington's army from New York to Yorktown. More of the French troops were transported by boat on the Chesapeake than Americans, due to the French fleet commanders' preferences for transporting their own. The second source for French troops was the Caribbean colony of [[Saint-Domingue]] ([[Haiti]]), where Admiral de Grasse picked up more than 3,000 troops under the command of Major General [[Claude-Anne de Rouvroy de Saint Simon]] before departing for North America. The land forces were also supplemented by a number of marines provided by de Grasse in support of the siege.

The French order of battle is listed below.{{sfn|Greene|2005|pp=83–86}}


⚫
French troops at Yorktown came from two separate sources. The larger force (known as the ''[[Expédition Particulière]]''), which was under the command of Lieutenant-General [[Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau]], landed at [[Newport, Rhode Island]] in 1780 and marched overland to join Washington's army outside New York in the summer of 1781. These troops marched with Washington's army from New York to Yorktown. More French troops were transported by boat on the Chesapeake than Americans, due to the French navy's preference for transporting their own soldiers. The second source for French troops was the colony of [[Saint-Domingue]], where de Grasse picked up more than 3,000 soldiers under the command of Major-General [[Claude-Anne de Rouvroy de Saint Simon]] before departing for North America. French ground forces were also supplemented by a number of [[marines]] provided by de Grasse in support of the siege.{{sfn|Greene|2005|pp=83–86}} French units at the siege of Yorktown included:
* '''Commander''' Lt. Gen. [[Comte de Rochambeau]], commanding
⚫
* '''Commander of Artillery''' ''Commandament d'Artillerie'' commanded by Lt. Col. Comte d'Aboville
⚫
**[[Régiment d'Auxonne#American Service|2éme Bataillon du Régiment d'Auxonne]] (Artillery)<ref name=":4">Combatants of France</ref>
** 4 Companies from 1ére Bataillon du [[Régiment de Metz]] (Artillery)
*** Company from the [[Régiment de Grenoble]] (Artillery)<ref name=":4" />


* '''Commander''' Lt. Gen. Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau
⚫
* '''Commander of Artillery''', Lt. Col. [[François Marie d'Aboville]]
⚫
** [[Auxonne Regiment]] (1 battalion)<ref name=":4">Combatants of France</ref>
** [[Metz Regiment]] (4 companies)
** [[Grenoble Regiment]] (1 company)<ref name=":4" />
* '''Maj. Gen. Charles Gabriel, Baron de Viomenil's Division'''
* '''Maj. Gen. Charles Gabriel, Baron de Viomenil's Division'''
**'''Brigade Bourbonnois'''
**'''Bourbonnois Brigade'''
***[[Bourbonnais Regiment]] (2 battalions)
***[[Régiment de Bourbonnaise|Régiment de Bourbonnais]] (2 Battalions)
***[[Régiment de Royal–Deux–Ponts]] (2 Battalions)
***[[Royal Deux-Ponts Regiment]] (2 battalions)
* '''Maj. Gen. Joseph Hyacinthe, Comte de Viomenil's Division'''
* '''Maj. Gen. Joseph Hyacinthe, Comte de Viomenil's Division'''
**'''Brigade Soissonais'''
**'''Soissonais Brigade'''
***[[Régiment de Soissonnais]] (2 Battalions)
***[[Soissonnais Regiment]] (2 battalions)
***[[Saintonge Regiment|Régiment de Saintonge]] (2 Battalions)
***[[Saintonge Regiment]] (2 battalions)
* '''Maj. Gen. Marquis de St. Simon's Division'''
* '''Maj. Gen. Marquis de St. Simon's Division'''
**'''Brigade Agenois'''
**'''Agenois Brigade'''
***[[Agenois Regiment|Régiment d'Agenois]] (2 Battalions)
***[[Agenois Regiment]] (2 battalions)
***[[Gatinois Regiment|Régiment de Gatinois]] (2 Battalions)
***[[Gatinois Regiment]] (2 battalions)
* '''Brigade Touraine'''
* '''Touraine Brigade'''
**[[Touraine Regiment|Régiment de Touraine]] (2 Battalions)
**[[Touraine Regiment]] (2 battalions)
* '''Detachment at [[Gloucester, Virginia|Gloucester]]''' under [[Brigadier]] [[Marquis de Choisy]]
* '''Brig. [[Marquis de Choisy]]'s Detachment at Gloucester, Virginia'''
**[[1st Legion of Foreign Volunteers of the Navy]] (4 companies)
**1ére Légion (Volontaires Étrangers de la Marine) — 4 companies of infantry and detachment of 2 guns
**[[Lauzun's Legion|2éme Legion (Légion de Lauzun)]] — 2 Squadrons of Hussars
**[[5th Hussar Regiment (France)#Lauzun's Legion|Lauzun's Legion]] (2 squadrons)
**[[Troupes de marine#Royal Marine Corps (1769–1786)|Corps Royal d'Infanterie de la Marine]] (from the squadron in [[Chesapeake Bay|the Bay]])
**[[Troupes de marine#Royal Marine Corps (1769–1786)|Royal Marine Corps]]


==Notes==
==Notes==

Latest revision as of 18:11, 29 October 2024

The storming of redoubt #10 at Yorktown

The siege of Yorktown was the culminating act of the Yorktown campaign, a series of military operations occupying much of 1781 during the American Revolutionary War. The siege was a decisive Franco-American victory: after the surrender of British Lt. Gen. Charles, Earl Cornwallis on October 17, the government of Lord North fell, and its replacement entered into peace negotiations that resulted in British recognition of American independence with the 1783 Treaty of Paris.

The siege involved land forces from the United States, including the Continental Army and state militias, as well as land forces under French and British command. The British forces included a large number of troops from various German principalities of the Holy Roman Empire that were collectively known as Hessians. Since Yorktown, Virginia was specifically selected by Cornwallis for its properties as a deep-water port, both sides had naval support as well: the British forces included some Royal Navy vessels, and the Franco-American allies were supported by a large French fleet, some of whose marines were landed to assist in siege operations. German historians have noted that approximately one third of all the land forces involved were either hired or recruited from German states, or were German immigrants to America; this has led the siege to be known in German historiography as "die Deutsche Schlacht" ("the German battle").

The following units and commanders of the British, American, and French forces fought in the Siege of Yorktown, or provided significant local support.

British Army

[edit]

The British Army forces present at Yorktown arrived in Virginia in four separate detachments. The first was sent from New York City in December 1780 under the command of the turncoat Brigadier General Benedict Arnold. The second was sent from New York in March 1781 under the command of Major General William Phillips to reinforce Arnold after a Franco-American threat. The third detachment to arrive was that of General Cornwallis, who had been active in the Carolinas and, following the Battle of Guilford Court House on March 15, decided to join forces with Arnold and Phillips. This was contrary to instructions from his superior, Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton, British Commander-in-Chief in North America. He arrived at Petersburg, Virginia in late May to take command of the troops there; Phillips had died of a fever just a week before, and Arnold returned to New York not long after Cornwallis arrived. While at Petersburg, Cornwallis was joined by a fourth detachment from New York that was under the command of the Hessian Colonel August von Voigt.

With this force, numbering about 7,200, Cornwallis first chased after the army of the Marquis de Lafayette, a much smaller force of Continental Army and local militiamen that had provided some resistance to the movements of Phillips and Arnold. Cornwallis was eventually ordered by General Clinton to establish a fortified deep-water port at either Yorktown or Portsmouth. Cornwallis chose Yorktown, and began constructing fortifications there and Gloucester Point, just across the York River from Yorktown, in August 1781.

British forces

[edit]

Commander: Lt. Gen. Charles, Earl Cornwallis, commanding

  • Artillery[1]
    • Royal Regiment of Artillery (plus detachments of sailors manning guns from scuttled ships) (167 men all of ranks (from RA)
      • Detachments from No.1 Company, 4th Battalion, RA
      • Detachments from No.2 Co, 4th Btn , RA
      • No.6 Co, 4th Btn, RA
      • Detachments from No.8 Co, 4th Btn, RA
    • Hesse-Hanau Artillery Company

German contingents

[edit]
  • Ansbach-Bayreuth Contingent under Col. August von Voigt
    • 1st Ansbach-Bayreuth Regiment
    • 2nd Ansbach-Bayreuth Regiment
    • Ansbach-Bayreuth Artillery Company
  • Hesse-Kassel Contingent under Lt. Col. Matthew von Fuchs
    • Erbprinz Musketeer Regiment
    • von Bose Regiment
    • Jaeger Korps (company)
    • Unknown Artillery Company

Loyalists

[edit]

American Army

[edit]

The American forces that opposed Cornwallis at Yorktown also arrived in Virginia at different times, since most of the detachments were made in reaction to the British movements. After Arnold was sent to Virginia, General George Washington, the American commander-in-chief, in January 1781 sent the Marquis de Lafayette to Virginia with 900 men. He was to be followed promptly by troops from the Pennsylvania Line under the command of Brigadier General Anthony Wayne, but Wayne did not arrive in Virginia until June. Lafayette's force included a substantial number of Virginia militia, and he shadowed Cornwallis during the movements that ended at Yorktown, with a skirmish at Spencer's Ordinary and a larger battle at Green Spring being their only significant encounters.

The main Continental Army of General Washington was at first stationed outside New York City, which Washington hoped to besiege with the assistance of the French army. However, word from Admiral Paul de Grasse of the French West Indies fleet would sail north to assist in operations on the Chesapeake Bay convinced Washington that action was best taken against Cornwallis's army in Virginia. Accordingly, the American and French armies set out in mid-August for Virginia. Some troops went overland the entire way; others were transported on the Chesapeake by ships of the French Navy. Washington arrived in Lafayette's camp before Yorktown on September 17.

French Army

[edit]

French troops at Yorktown came from two separate sources. The larger force (known as the Expédition Particulière), which was under the command of Lieutenant-General Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau, landed at Newport, Rhode Island in 1780 and marched overland to join Washington's army outside New York in the summer of 1781. These troops marched with Washington's army from New York to Yorktown. More French troops were transported by boat on the Chesapeake than Americans, due to the French navy's preference for transporting their own soldiers. The second source for French troops was the colony of Saint-Domingue, where de Grasse picked up more than 3,000 soldiers under the command of Major-General Claude-Anne de Rouvroy de Saint Simon before departing for North America. French ground forces were also supplemented by a number of marines provided by de Grasse in support of the siege.[5] French units at the siege of Yorktown included:

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery (II Volumes), London: John Murray, Albemarle Street. 1879.
  2. ^ North, pp. 132-3.
  3. ^ a b Reorganized on October 1 after Scammell was mortally wounded. All the Connecticut companies were grouped under Lieutenant Colonel John Laurens in Scammell's Battalion. All of the Massachusetts companies were sent to Hamilton.
  4. ^ Morrissey, p. 30
  5. ^ Greene 2005, pp. 83–86.
  6. ^ a b Combatants of France

Sources

[edit]
  • Greene, Jerome A. (2005). The Guns of Independence: The Siege of Yorktown, 1781. New York, N.Y.: Savas Beatie. ISBN 1-932714-05-7.
  • Morrissey, Brendan (1999), Yorktown 1781: The World Turned Upside Down, Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Military. ISBN 1-85532-688-4
  • Theodore P. Savas & J. David Dameron, The New American Revolution Handbook, New York and California: Savas Beatie, 2010/2011. ISBN 978-1-932714-93-7.
  • Digby Smith & Kevin F. Kiley, An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Uniforms of the American War of Independence 1775-1783, Lorenz Books. ISBN 978-0-7548-1761-1.
  • Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Les Combattants Français de la Guerre Américaine 1778–1783, 1903 Paris, France.
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