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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 ===
'''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'''
** Staff
** Troop from [[17th Lancers|17th Regiment of (Light) Dragoons]], incorporated into [[Tarleton's Light Dragoons|British Legion]] (elements opposite Yorktown in [[Gloucester, Virginia|Gloucester]])
** [[Royal Marines|Royal Marines Infantry]]


* '''Artillery'''<ref>History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery (II Volumes), [[London]]: John Murray, Albemarle Street. 1879.</ref>
* Staff
** [[Royal Regiment of Artillery]] (plus detachments of sailors manning guns from scuttled ships) (167 men all of ranks (from RA)
* Troop from [[17th Lancers|17th Light Dragoons]], incorporated into [[Tarleton's Light Dragoons|Tarleton's Dragoons]]
***Detachments from No.1 Company, 4th Battalion, RA
* [[Royal Marines|Royal Marines Infantry]]
***Detachments from No.2 Co, 4th Btn , RA
***No.6 Co, 4th Btn, RA
***Detachments from No.8 Co, 4th Btn, RA
**[[Hesse-Hanau Troops in the American Revolutionary War|Hesse-Hanau Artillery Company]]


* '''Brigade of [[Foot Guards]]''' commanded by Brig. Gen. [[Charles O'Hara]]
'''Artillery'''<ref>History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery (II Volumes), [[London]]: John Murray, Albemarle Street. 1879.</ref>
** [[1st Regiment of Foot Guards|1st Battalion, 1st Regiment of Foot Guards]] (two companies of grenadiers, as opposed to one)<ref>North, pp. 132-3.</ref>
** 1st Consolidated Battalion
** 2nd Consolidated Battalion


* '''[[Light Infantry]] Brigade''' commanded by Lt. Col. [[Robert Abercromby of Airthrey|Robert Abercromby]]
* [[Royal Regiment of Artillery]] (plus detachments of sailors manning guns from scuttled ships) (167 men all of ranks (from RA)
** 1st Battalion (Light companies from the [[4th Regiment of Foot|4th]], [[7th Regiment of Foot|7th]], [[15th Regiment of Foot|15th]], [[17th Regiment of Foot|17th]], [[23rd Regiment of Foot|23rd]], [[Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers|27th]], [[33rd Regiment of Foot|33rd]], and [[38th Regiment of Foot|38th Foot]])
**Detachments from No.1 Company, 4th Battalion, RA
** 2nd Battalion (Light companies from the [[37th Regiment of Foot|37th]], [[43rd Regiment of Foot|43rd]], [[45th Regiment of Foot|45th]], [[49th Regiment of Foot|49th]], [[55th Regiment of Foot|55th]], [[63rd Regiment of Foot|63rd]], and [[71st Regiment of Foot, Fraser's Highlanders|71st Foot]])
**Detachments from No.2 Co, 4th Btn , RA
** [[82nd Regiment of Foot (1777)|82nd Regiment of Foot]]
**No.6 Co, 4th Btn, RA
* '''1st Brigade''' commanded by Lt. Col. John Yorke
**Detachments from No.8 Co, 4th Btn, RA
**[[17th Regiment of Foot]]
*50 German artillerymen (unknown number of guns and sub-units)
**[[23rd Regiment of Foot|23rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Welch Fuzileers)]]
**
**[[33rd Regiment of Foot]]
** 2nd Battalion, [[71st Regiment of Foot, Fraser's Highlanders|71st Regiment of Foot (Fraser's Highlanders)]]
* '''2nd Brigade''' commanded by Lt. Col. [[Thomas Dundas (British Army officer)|Thomas Dundas]]
**[[43rd Regiment of Foot]]
** [[76th Regiment of Foot (MacDonald's Highlanders)]]
** [[80th Regiment of Foot (Royal Edinburgh Volunteers)]]


===German contingents===
'''British Infantry'''
* '''[[Ansbach-Bayreuth]] Contingent''' under Col. August von Voigt

** 1st Ansbach-Bayreuth Regiment
Brigade of [[Foot Guards]] commanded by Brig. Gen. [[Charles O'Hara]]
** 2nd Ansbach-Bayreuth Regiment

** Ansbach-Bayreuth Artillery Company
* [[1st Regiment of Foot Guards|1st Battalion, 1st Regiment of Foot Guards]] (two companies of grenadiers, as apposed to one)<ref>North, pp. 132-3.</ref>
* '''[[Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel|Hesse-Kassel]] Contingent''' under Lt. Col. Matthew von Fuchs
* 1st Consolidated Battalion
** Erbprinz Musketeer Regiment
* 2nd Consolidated Battalion
** von Bose Regiment

** [[Jäger (military)|Jaeger]] Korps (company)
[[Light Infantry]] Brigade commanded by Lt. Col. [[Robert Abercromby of Airthrey|Robert Abercromby]]
** Unknown Artillery Company

* 1st Battalion (Light companies from the [[4th Regiment of Foot|4th]], [[7th Regiment of Foot|7th]], [[15th Regiment of Foot|15th]], [[17th Regiment of Foot|17th]], [[23rd Regiment of Foot|23rd]], [[Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers|27th]], [[33rd Regiment of Foot|33rd]], and [[38th Regiment of Foot|38th Foot]])
* 2nd Battalion (Light companies from the [[37th Regiment of Foot|37th]], [[40th Regiment of Foot|40th]], [[43rd Regiment of Foot|43rd]], [[45th Regiment of Foot|45th]], [[49th Regiment of Foot|49th]], [[55th Regiment of Foot|55th]], [[63rd Regiment of Foot|63rd]], and [[71st Regiment of Foot, Fraser's Highlanders|71st Foot]])
* [[82nd Regiment of Foot]]

1st Brigade commanded by Lt. Col. [[John Yorke (British Army officer)|John Yorke]]

* [[17th Regiment of Foot]]
* [[23rd Regiment of Foot]]
* [[33rd Regiment of Foot]]
* 2nd Battalion, [[71st Regiment of Foot]]

2nd Brigade commanded by Lt. Col. [[Thomas Dundas (British Army officer)|Thomas Dundas]]

* [[43rd Regiment of Foot]]
* [[76th Regiment of Foot]]
* [[80th Regiment of Foot]]

===German Infantry===

'''[[Ansbach-Bayreuth]] Contingent''' under Col. August von Voigt

* 1st Regiment
* 2nd Regiment
* Artillery company

'''[[Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel|Hesse-Kassel]] Contingent''' under Lt. Col. Matthew von Fuchs

* Erb Prinz (Prince Hereditaire) Regiment
* von Bose Regiment
* [[Jäger (military)|Jaeger]] Company
* Artillery Company


===Loyalists===
===Loyalists===


* [[Queen's Rangers]]
* [[Queen's Rangers]]
* [[British Legion (1778)|British Legion]]
* [[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]]
* Detachments
* Pioneers


==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.


'''Commander,''' General [[George Washington]], commanding
* '''Commander,''' General [[George Washington]], commanding
* '''Headquarters'''

** [[4th Continental Light Dragoons]]
'''Headquarters'''
** [[Armand's Legion]]

* '''Artillery''' under Brigadier General [[Henry Knox]]
* [[4th Continental Light Dragoons]]
** [[1st Continental Artillery Regiment]] (10 company), Lieutenant Colonel [[Edward Carrington]], Captain Whitehead Coleman
* [[Armand's Legion]], Colonel [[Charles Armand Tuffin, marquis de la Rouërie]]
** [[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
'''Artillery''' under Brigadier General [[Henry Knox]]
** Sappers and Miners (4 companies)

* '''Light Division''', under Major General [[Marquis de Lafayette|Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette]]
* [[1st Continental Artillery Regiment]] (1 company), Lieutenant Colonel [[Edward Carrington]], Captain Whitehead Coleman
** '''1st Brigade''', commanded by Brigadier General [[Peter Muhlenberg]]
* [[2nd Continental Artillery Regiment]] (9 companies), Colonel [[John Lamb (general)|John Lamb]]
*** Colonel Joseph Vose's Battalion (8 Massachusetts [[light infantry]] companies)
* [[4th Continental Artillery Regiment]] (3 companies), Captains Patrick Duffy, William Ferguson, and James Smith
*** Lieutenant Colonel [[Jean-Joseph Sourbader de Gimat]]'s Battalion (5 Connecticut, 2 Massachusetts, and 1 Rhode Island light infantry companies)
* Sappers and miners (4 companies)
*** Lieutenant Colonel [[Francis Barber (Colonel)|Francis Barber]]'s Battalion (2 New Hampshire, 2 New Jersey, and Canadian Regiment light infantry companies and 3 New Jersey line companies)

** '''2nd Brigade''', commanded by Brigadier General [[Moses Hazen]]
'''Infantry'''
*** Lieutenant Colonel [[Alexander Scammell]]'s [[Scammell's 1781 Light Infantry Regiment|battalion]]<ref name="reorg">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.</ref> (2 [[New Hampshire Line|New Hampshire]], 3 [[Massachusetts Line|Massachusetts]], 3 Connecticut light infantry companies, 1 Rhode Island light platoon under Lieutenant Benjamin Sherburne)

*** Lieutenant Colonel [[Alexander Hamilton]]'s Battalion<ref name="reorg" /> (2 New York light infantry companies; 2 New York and 2 Connecticut provisional light infantry companies)
'''Light Division''' under Major General [[Marquis de Lafayette]]
***[[2nd Canadian Regiment|Hazen's Canadian Regiment]]

* 1st Brigade commanded by Brigadier General [[Peter Muhlenberg]]
* '''2nd Division''', commanded by Major General [[Benjamin Lincoln]]
** '''1st Brigade''', commanded by Brigadier General [[James Clinton]]
** Colonel Joseph Vose's Battalion (8 Massachusetts [[light infantry]] companies)
***[[1st New York Regiment]]
** Lieutenant Colonel [[Jean-Joseph Sourbader de Gimat]]'s Battalion (5 Connecticut, 2 Massachusetts, and 1 Rhode Island light infantry companies)
***[[2nd New York Regiment]]
** Lieutenant Colonel [[Francis Barber (Colonel)|Francis Barber]]'s Battalion (2 New Hampshire, 2 New Jersey, and Canadian Regiment light infantry companies and 3 New Jersey line companies)
* 2nd Brigade commanded by Brigadier General [[Moses Hazen]]
** '''2nd Brigade''', commanded by Colonel [[Elias Dayton]]
***[[1st New Jersey Regiment]]
** Lieutenant Colonel [[Alexander Scammell]]'s [[Scammell's 1781 Light Infantry Regiment|battalion]]<ref name="reorg">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.</ref> (2 [[New Hampshire Line|New Hampshire]], 3 [[Massachusetts Line|Massachusetts]], 3 Connecticut light infantry companies, 1 Rhode Island light platoon under Lieutenant Benjamin Sherburne)
***[[2nd New Jersey Regiment]]
** Lieutenant Colonel [[Alexander Hamilton]]'s Battalion<ref name="reorg" /> (2 New York light infantry companies; 2 New York and 2 Connecticut provisional light infantry companies)
***[[Rhode Island Regiment]]
** [[2nd Canadian Regiment|Hazen's Canadian Regiment]], Lieutenant Colonel [[Edward Antill (soldier)|Edward Antill]]
* '''3rd Division''', under Major General [[Baron von Steuben]]

'''2nd Division''' commanded by Major General [[Benjamin Lincoln]]
** '''1st Brigade''', commanded by Brigadier General [[Anthony Wayne]]
***[[1st Pennsylvania Battalion]]

***[[2nd Pennsylvania Battalion]]
* 1st Brigade commanded by Brigadier General [[James Clinton]]
** '''2nd Brigade''', commanded by Brigadier General [[Mordecai Gist]]
** [[1st New York Regiment]], Colonel [[Goose Van Schaick]]
** [[2nd New York Regiment]], Colonel [[Philip Van Courtlandt]]
*** [[3rd Maryland Regiment]]
***[[4th Maryland Regiment]]
* 2nd Brigade commanded by Colonel [[Elias Dayton]]
*** Gaskins's Virginia Battalion - Major John Poulson
* [[1st New Jersey Regiment]], Colonel [[Matthias Ogden]]
* '''[[Virginia Militia]]''', commanded by [[Governor of Virginia]], General [[Thomas Nelson, Jr.|Thomas Nelson]]
* [[2nd New Jersey Regiment]], Colonel [[Matthias Ogden]]
* [[Rhode Island Regiment]], Lieutenant Colonel [[Jeremiah Olney]]
** Dabney's Virginia State Regiment - Lieutenant Colonel Charles Dabney
**Campbell's Riflemen

'''3rd Division''' under Major General [[Baron von Steuben]]
** '''1st Brigade''', commanded by Brigadier General [[George Weedon]]
***Mercer's Virginia Militia Battalion<ref>Morrissey, p. 30</ref>

***Weedon's Virginia Militia Battalion
* 1st Brigade commanded by Brigadier General [[Anthony Wayne]]
** '''2nd Brigade''', commanded by Brigadier General [[Robert Lawson (Virginia)|Robert Lawson]]
** [[1st Pennsylvania Battalion]], Colonel [[Walter Stewart (general)|Walter Stewart]]
***Lawson's Virginia Militia Battalion
** [[2nd Pennsylvania Battalion]], Colonel [[Richard Butler (general)|Richard Butler]]
* 2nd Brigade commanded by Brigadier General [[Mordecai Gist]]
** '''3rd Brigade''', commanded by Brigadier General [[Edward Stevens (general)|Edward Stevens]]
***Steven's Virginia Militia Battalion
** [[3rd Maryland Regiment]], Lieutenant Colonel Peter Adams
** [[4th Maryland Regiment]], Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Roxburg
** Virginia Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Gaskins

'''[[Virginia Militia]]''' commanded by General [[Thomas Nelson, Jr.|Thomas Nelson]]

* 1st Brigade commanded by Brigadier General [[George Weedon]]
* 2nd Brigade commanded by Brigadier General [[Robert Lawson (Virginia)|Robert Lawson]]
* 3rd Brigade commanded by Brigadier General [[Edward Stevens (general)|Edward Stevens]]
* Dabney's State Legion, Charles Dabney


==French Army==
==French Army==
The French forces at Yorktown came from two separate sources. The larger force, 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}}

'''Commander''' Lt. Gen. [[Comte de Rochambeau]], commanding

'''Artillery''' commanded by Lt. Col. Comte d'Aboville
* Auxonne Artillery Regiment
* Metz Artillery Regiment
'''Maj. Gen. Charles Gabriel, Baron de Viomenil's Division'''
* Brigade Bourbonnois
** Col. Alexander de Montmorency, Marquis de Laval commanding Bourbonnois Regiment
** Col. Christian de Forbach commanding [[Royal Deux-Ponts Regiment]]

'''Maj. Gen. Joseph Hyacinthe, Comte de Viomenil's Division'''

* Brigade Soissonois
** Col. Jean-Baptiste de Felix, Marquis de Saint-Maisme commanding Soissonois Regiment (2 battalions)
** Col. [[Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine]] commanding [[Saintonge Regiment]] (2 battalions)

'''Maj. Gen. Marquis de St. Simon's Division'''
<br>Major General [[Claude-Anne de Rouvroy de Saint Simon]]

* Brigade Agenois
** Col. Antoine de Beaumont, Marquis d'Audechamp commanding [[Agenois Regiment]] (2 battalions)
** Col. Juste-Antoine, Marquis de Rostaing commanding [[Gatinois Regiment]]

'''Separate Unit''' ''Brigade Touraine''

* Col. Henri Liamont, Vicomte de Pondeux commanding [[Touraine Regiment]] (2 battalions)


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:
'''Detachment at [[Gloucester, Virginia|Gloucester]]''' under Brig. Gen. [[Marquis de Choisy]]


* '''Commander''' Lt. Gen. Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau
* French Marines
* '''Commander of Artillery''', Lt. Col. [[François Marie d'Aboville]]
* Col. [[Armand Louis de Gontaut]], Duc de Lauzun commanding [[Lauzun's Legion]] (2 squadrons of Hussars from the Compagnie Générale and 2nd Légion, 4 companies of infantry and detachment of gunners, 2nd Légion)
** [[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'''
**'''Bourbonnois Brigade'''
***[[Bourbonnais Regiment]] (2 battalions)
***[[Royal Deux-Ponts Regiment]] (2 battalions)
* '''Maj. Gen. Joseph Hyacinthe, Comte de Viomenil's Division'''
**'''Soissonais Brigade'''
***[[Soissonnais Regiment]] (2 battalions)
***[[Saintonge Regiment]] (2 battalions)
* '''Maj. Gen. Marquis de St. Simon's Division'''
**'''Agenois Brigade'''
***[[Agenois Regiment]] (2 battalions)
***[[Gatinois Regiment]] (2 battalions)
* '''Touraine Brigade'''
**[[Touraine Regiment]] (2 battalions)
* '''Brig. [[Marquis de Choisy]]'s Detachment at Gloucester, Virginia'''
**[[1st Legion of Foreign Volunteers of the Navy]] (4 companies)
**[[5th Hussar Regiment (France)#Lauzun's Legion|Lauzun's Legion]] (2 squadrons)
**[[Troupes de marine#Royal Marine Corps (1769–1786)|Royal Marine Corps]]


==Notes==
==Notes==
Line 179: Line 145:


==Sources==
==Sources==
*{{cite book|ref=harv |last=Greene |first=Jerome A. |title=The Guns of Independence: The Siege of Yorktown, 1781 |year=2005 |publisher=Savas Beatie |location=New York, N.Y. |isbn=1-932714-05-7 }}
*{{cite book|last=Greene |first=Jerome A. |title=The Guns of Independence: The Siege of Yorktown, 1781 |year=2005 |publisher=Savas Beatie |location=New York, N.Y. |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}}
*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 City|New York]] and [[California]]: Savas Beatie, 2010/2011. {{ISBN|978-1-932714-93-7}}.
*Theodore P. Savas & J. David Dameron, ''The New American Revolution Handbook'', [[New York City|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|978-0-7548-1767-1}}.
*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 (France)|Ministry of Foreign Affairs]], ''Les Combattants Français de la Guerre Américaine 1778–1783'', 1903 Paris, France.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yorktown order of battle}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yorktown order of battle}}
[[Category:American Revolutionary War orders of battle]]
[[Category:American Revolutionary War orders of battle]]

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

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  • 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

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American Army

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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

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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

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  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

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  • 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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