T8+-+6.5B

T8 - 6.5B Daniel Sovich, Alex Tutkovics (Battle at Yorktown)

Patriots victorious in Yorktown!

__ October 19, 1781- __The British have surrendered George Washington and his Army. This victory might as well end the War. The American Patriots could not have been victorious without the help of the French Army and Navy. The Patriots used Indian stealth to sneak up on the British. This battle started on September 28. The British General sent pleas for troop reinforcements and even considered ferrying his men across the river to safety. The General was low on ammunition and men and he was scared that the Americans would beat him and take Yorktown. This was a great sign that we would win the battle and maybe the war.

The American Patriots attacked Yorktown because they knew there were limited soldiers and it was a major British post. If the American Patriots had it, they would have the upper hand against the British. The British beat the Americans at sea so the Americans had to beat the British on land. The British were surrounded in Yorktown, limiting soldiers in each part of Yorktown also giving the Patriots the upper hand. The French came from Chesapeake Bay which cut the British reinforcements off.

Cornwallis had been camped in Yorktown with very little men. He was told that he would not be in need of them. Washington did the exact opposite of Cornwallis. He kept a sizeable portion of the American army at Valley Forge to protect the fort as the rest of the American army attacked the British. They left men at Valley Forge in case a surprise attack was launched upon the Americans, like they were doing to the British. The American colonists who were more familiar with the land than the British attacked from land, as the French, the world’s strongest Navy, attacked in the Bay. Cornwallis was trapped.

After the French and the Americans surrounded the British at Yorktown, the war had completed its last major battle. The French, having the world’s strongest army, came through Chesapeake Bay. The Americans then came down across the land, because they were the most familiar with it. After being enclosed between the French and the Americans, the British had to fight there way out, or just sail away in small boats. The boats didn’t move anywhere because the wind was so powerful. After having been under attack for a number of days, and having little food supply left, Cornwallis opened negotiations with Washington. At 9:00 A.M. on October 17, the British surrendered.

The American patriots will soon gain all of us freedom from the British Empire. The Battle of Yorktown is the proof of this. The new tactics and weapons, such as bayonets supplied by the French helped the Patriots win in close combat against the British. I feel this is the beginning of something great, something that will give us freedom. This battle might later end this long depressing war against the British.