Name the British commander who surrendered to Washington at Yorktown

Name the British commander who surrendered to Washington at Yorktown

• A. Howe
• B. Cornwallis
• C. Clinton
• D. Gates

Answer: (B)

Charles Cornwallis was the British commander at Yorktown. He led the British forces in Virginia, where American and French troops under George Washington and the French ally Rochambeau trapped his army. With relief unlikely and supplies cut off, Cornwallis agreed to surrender. The formal act was carried out by his aide, Charles O’Hara, who surrendered the British forces to General Benjamin Lincoln in Washington’s presence, effectively receiving Washington’s acceptance of the capitulation. This victory marked the end of major fighting in the American Revolution and paved the way for the ensuing peace negotiations leading to the Treaty of Paris in 1783. The other names led campaigns elsewhere or earlier in the war, not at Yorktown.

Charles Cornwallis was the British commander at Yorktown. He led the British forces in Virginia, where American and French troops under George Washington and the French ally Rochambeau trapped his army. With relief unlikely and supplies cut off, Cornwallis agreed to surrender. The formal act was carried out by his aide, Charles O’Hara, who surrendered the British forces to General Benjamin Lincoln in Washington’s presence, effectively receiving Washington’s acceptance of the capitulation. This victory marked the end of major fighting in the American Revolution and paved the way for the ensuing peace negotiations leading to the Treaty of Paris in 1783. The other names led campaigns elsewhere or earlier in the war, not at Yorktown.