VA, USA
Cornwallis's Failed Escape Across the York River
October 16, 1781
On the night of October 16, 1781, Cornwallis attempted a desperate evacuation of his army across the York River to Gloucester Point, from where he hoped to break through the allied lines and march north. The first wave of boats made it across, but a violent storm scattered the remaining boats and made further crossings impossible.
The failed escape attempt was Cornwallis's last gamble. By morning, with his army divided by the river and the storm abating, he ordered the troops at Gloucester back to Yorktown. Later that morning, a British drummer appeared on the parapet and beat for a parley. The end had come.
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British general whose Southern campaign brought him to Yorktown, where his decision to fortify the town rather than retreat left him vulnerable to the combined French and American siege. His surrender on October 19, 1781, effectively ended the war. Cornwallis himself did not attend the surrender ceremony, claiming illness.