Battle of the Chesapeake

A naval battle fought off Virginia on September 5, 1781, in which a French fleet under François Joseph Paul de Grasse defeated a British fleet and blocked relief of the besieged army at Yorktown.

Battle of the Chesapeake order of battle: The opposing ships and commanders engaged in the Battle of the Chesapeake. The fleets’ composition and command structure shaped the battle’s outcome.
Yorktown campaign: The 1781 military campaign in Virginia that culminated in the British surrender at Yorktown. The naval battle was planned as part of this campaign’s effort to trap Cornwallis.
Surrender of Cornwallis: The British surrender at Yorktown on October 19, 1781, which ended major combat in the American Revolutionary War. The blocked relief effort helped make Cornwallis’s surrender unavoidable.
Battle of the Chesapeake and Battle of the Saintes: A comparison of two major Franco-British naval battles fought in 1781 and 1782. The comparison shows how a French victory at Chesapeake preceded a British recovery at sea.
François Joseph Paul de Grasse: A French admiral who commanded the fleet that won the Battle of the Chesapeake. His command brought French naval power to the Virginia coast.
French alliance: The 1778 alliance between France and the United States during the American Revolutionary War. The alliance enabled French naval forces to support American operations.
Treaty of Paris (1783): The treaty that ended the American Revolutionary War and recognized United States independence. The Yorktown defeat accelerated political pressure for Britain to negotiate an end to the war.
Naval blockade: The use of naval forces to prevent ships from entering or leaving a designated area. The French fleet’s continued presence functioned as a blockade against British relief.
Thomas Graves: A British admiral who commanded the fleet that fought de Grasse off the Chesapeake in 1781. His decision to engage failed to dislodge the French fleet.
American Revolutionary War: The war from 1775 to 1783 in which Great Britain fought to retain control of its North American colonies. The battle was a decisive naval episode within this wider conflict.

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