Revolutionary War: The Siege Of Yorktown

The Siege of Yorktown, also known as “The Battle of Yorktown,” was a significant artillery battle during the Revolutionary War which began on September 18th, 1781 and ended October 19th, 1781. The battle was fought in Yorktown, Virginia between combined forces of the Continental troops, French, Spain, and Dutch armies against the British army, with German troops on both sides numbering in the thousands. American and French artillery was a key element that led to victory during the Battle of Yorktown. Utilizing siege cannon, American gunners and professional French artillerymen fired over 14,000 rounds into British lines during the 11-day artillery bombardment. The purpose of this essay will primarily focus on how artillery played a pivotal

While this may be the case for many of the battles, the Siege of Yorktown was primarily an exchange of artillery fire, waged at long-range where there were relatively few direct troop confrontations. During the eight-day siege, the Allies fired an average of 1,700 cannonballs and bombs per-day. There were four types of British, French, and American artillery pieces used at Yorktown. These pieces include: the Field Cannon, the Garrison Cannon, the Howitzer, and the Mortar. The field cannon was characterized by a high degree of mobility on the battlefield. The two large wheels attached to a field carriage allowed commanders to position a gun in the field. Gunnery crews fired one of three types of ammunition. The solid ball was primarily used to destroy forts, while both grapeshot and canister shot were used as anti-personnel weapons. The garrison cannon is intended to be more permanently position, distinguished by the four small wheels attached to a bulky garrison carriage. The small cast iron wheels allow for limited mobility of the piece within a fort. The cannon fired solid ball shot but it also fired a variety of solid ball, known as Hot Shot. Hot Shot was a regular cannonball heated until it was red hot. Its primary function was to burn ships. During the Battle of Yorktown, the French gunners used hot shot to set a fire and sink the British Frigate HMS

However, this was not evident to most at the time, as a very large British military and naval force remained in North America. Few American historical accounts place the Yorktown Campaign in context of the larger war for American independence. The war was not confined to the American continent. The impact of the Yorktown victory is best understood in the context of the broader war between the English and the French. The concurrent global aspects of the military confrontations facing England must be recognized to place the implications of the Yorktown defeat in context of why American independence was officially won with the Peace Treaty of 1783. Some overseas theaters are covered in the webpages on the World War Context of the American Revolution, Impact of French World-Wide Involvement in the War for American Independence, and French Naval Leaders in the War for American Independence. Links to these pages are given at the end of this page. The remarkably swift execution by the joint and combined military Franco-American forces, leading to the 1781 Yorktown victory has been difficult for some to accept as the result of evolving circumstances which were exploited by the exemplary, rapid decisions of the variously allied commanders. Rather, there has been spawned, though considerable incomplete knowledge, a legend that the Yorktown Campaign was