Fields of battle
2 total works
After several years of campaigning, by the summer of 1781 the War of Independence was finally turning in favour of the American rebels. When the British under Cornwallis retreated to Yorktown, George Washington saw an opportunity to clinch the decisive victory of the war. The British had their backs to the York River, and were dependent on supplies arriving by ship. Enlisting the help of a powerful French fleet, Washington cut off the mouth of the river, and began the siege that was to finally break Cornwallis's force for good. In this illustrated history of the battle, Stephen Wood describes the far-sighted strategy and brilliant tactics of the American commander.