On This Day In History: The World Turned Up Side Down

YORKTOWN, VIRGINIA October 19, 1781 - In a stunning reversal of fortune that may signal the end of fighting in the American colonies, Charles Lord Cornwallis today signed orders surrendering his British Army to a combined French and American force outside the Virginia tobacco port of Yorktown. Cornwallis' second-in-command, Charles O'Hara, attempted to deliver Cornwallis's sword to French general, Comte de Rochambeau. But Rochambeau directed O'Hara to American General George Washington, who coolly steered the British officer to Washington's own second in command, Major General Benjamin Lincoln.

Thus ended a three-week old siege which had begun with the miraculous convergence of French and American forces on the Chesapeake Bay. With just a brief window of opportunity to pin Cornwallis in Virginia, Washington and Rochambeau raced southward from New York to link up with the French fleet under Admiral Comte de Grasse in Chesapeake Bay. They arrived just in time to corner the British, who were anticipating relief that never came from either General Henry Clinton or the British fleet.

Off shore, the French fleet effectively blocked aid from Cornwallis. On shore, the incessant shelling of the French and American guns made life miserable for the British troops.

When a British officer finally appeared with a white flag on the parapet surrounding Yorktown, the French and American guns fell quiet. The Continental forces let go a momentous cheer until Washington ordered it silenced. "Let history huzzah for you," he was heard to shout.

Cornwallis' surrender ended a disastrous southern campaign for the British army. Britain's strategy—an attempt to incorporate loyalist support with British efforts—had begun with high hopes and a victory in Charleston, South Carolina just a year and a half before. But the plan backfired as loyalist and Patriot forces in the south fought a series of savage fights that left both sides bloodied, but only the Patriots unbowed.

Cornwallis limped into Virginia in late summer trailed by a force led by the The Marquis de Lafayette, long a supporter of American efforts both as a soldier in this country, and as an advocate for the cause in France.

As Cornwallis' 8,000 man force became prisoners-of-war, the British band played the The World Turned Upside Down, a tune that underscored the strange turn of events which had brought defeat at the hands of the provincial forces of America, to the most powerful country in Europe.

As the "world war" engendered by the American Revolution continues to plague British foreign policy, it looks more and more likely that King George and Parliament will cut its losses in the colonies and begin a withdrawal of troops.

Battle: YORKTOWN

War: American Revolutionary War

Date: 28th September to 19th October 1781
Place: Virginia, United States of America
Combatants: Americans and French against the British
Generals: General Washington commanded the Americans,
Lieutenant General de Rochambeau commanded the French
Major General Lord Cornwallis commanded the British.
Size of the armies: 8,800 Americans, 7,800 French and 6,000 British

Uniforms, arms and equipment: The British wore red coats and headgear of bearskin caps, leather caps or tricorne hats depending on whether the troops were grenadiers, light infantry or battalion company men. The German infantry wore blue coats and retained the Prussian style grenadier mitre with brass front plate.

The Americans dressed as best they could. Increasingly as the war progressed regular infantry regiments of the Continental Army wore blue uniform coats but the militia continued in rough clothing.

The French royal regiments of foot wore white coats.

Both sides were armed with muskets and guns. The back country riflemen carried long, small calibre rifles, weapons of considerably greater accuracy than the ordinary musket and which their owners used with proficiency.

Winner: The Americans and French

British Regiments:
1 troop of 17th Light Dragoons (in Tarleton’s Legion)
Royal Artillery
A composite brigade of Foot Guards (comprising 1st, 2nd and 3rd Foot Guards)
17th Foot later the Royal Leicestershire Regiment and now the Royal Anglian Regiment
23rd Royal Welch Fusiliers
33rd Foot now the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment
43rd later the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry and now the Royal Green Jackets
71st Fraser’s Highlanders (disbanded at the end of the war)
76th Foot (disbanded at the end of the war)
80th Foot (disbanded at the end of the war)
Regiment of de Voit (Anspach)
Regiment of de Seybothen (Anspach)
Regiment of Prince Hereditary (Hesse)
Regiment of von Bose (Hesse)
Tarleton’s Legion
Simcoe’s Legion
North Carolina Loyalists

French Regiments:
Artillery
Lauzun’s Legion
Bourbonnois Regiment of Foot
Royal Deux-Ponts Regiment of Foot
Soissonois Regiment of Foot
Agenois Regiment of Foot

Americans Regiments:
4th Dragoons (Moylan)
Armand’s Horse
Lafayette’s Light Infantry
Muhlenburg’s Brigade
Hazen’s Canadian Regiment
1st New York Regiment
2nd New York Regiment
1st New Jersey Regiment
2nd New Jersey Regiment
Rhode Island Regiment
1st Pennsylvania Regiment
2nd Pennsylvania Regiment
Virginia Regiment
3rd Maryland Regiment
4th Maryland Regiment
3 brigades of Virginia Militia
Sappers and Miners

Account:
Losing his grip on the Carolinas, Cornwallis marched his army into Virginia and seized Yorktown and Gloucester, towns on each side of the York River.
With the arrival of the French fleet of Admiral De Grasse, General Washington was able to march south from New York with the joint American and French army to attack Cornwallis.

The Americans and French marched out of Williamsburg and arrived before Yorktown on 28th September 1781, forming a semi-circle around the entrenchments and putting the British under siege. Cornwallis expecting Major General Clinton to sail from New York with a relieving force had decided to remain in Yorktown rather than march south to the Carolinas or attempt to reach New York.
His first move was the inexplicable one of abandoning a line of four redoubts that dominated the British positions. The Americans immediately occupied the empty redoubts.

The Americans began formal siege operations on the eastern side of Yorktown on 30th September and on 9th October were sufficiently close to began an artillery bombardment.

On 14th October the Americans and French stormed two redoubts in front of their trenches and the position of the British in Yorktown became untenable.
The British carried out a sortie on the 16th in which several guns in the two redoubts were spiked. On the same day Cornwallis attempted to pass the Guards, the 23rd and the Light Infantry across the York River to Gloucester but was thwarted by a storm.

With no sign of Clinton’s relief and with inadequate supplies of artillery ammunition and food, on 19th October 1781 Cornwallis’ army marched out of Yorktown and surrendered.

Casualties:
6,000 British surrendered to the Americans and French with 10 stands of German and British colours, 240 pieces of artillery, small arms, ammunition and equipment.
The casualties during the siege had been 500 British, 80 Americans and 200 French.

Follow-up:
The capitulation of the British to the Americans and French ended the fighting in the war and led to the Peace Treaty that acknowledged the independence of the American states. Clinton’s relieving force arrived in the Chesapeake on 24th October.

Anecdotes and traditions:
The British bands are reputed to have played “The world turned upside down” as the troops marched out to surrender.
After the surrender the American and French officers entertained the British officers to dinner, other than Tarleton with whom the Americans refused to eat, due to the atrocities committed by his troops in North and South Carolina.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.