Dennis Conrad, PhD

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Dennis Conrad, PhD
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• Disclaimer The opinions expressed in this
  presentation are those of the presenter and do
  not represent an official position of the
  Department of the Navy

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THE BATTLE OFF THE VIRIGNIA CAPES THE KEY MOMENT
IN THE ALLIED VICTORY AT YORKTOWN
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Victory at Yorktown
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Fateful Decisions
De Grasse
Cornwallis
Rodney
Rochambeau
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British Miscalculations

• Divided land forces outside range of mutual
  support
• Believed they would always maintain naval
  superiority in North America

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Intelligence from Admiral Barras

• Gen. Rochambeau to incorporate corps with Gen.
  Washingtons army
• Barras to command French squadron at Newport
• de Grasse to send part of West Indies squadron
  north in July or August

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The Allies Options

• New York
• Virginia

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The British in Virginia

• Spring 1781, Cornwallis enters Virginia
• July, Clinton orders Cornwallis to occupy a
  seaport
• July, Cornwallis occupies Yorktown

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Spain Cooperates

• Hurricane season postpones Spanish operations
• Spain releases French troops for a time
• Saint-Simon submits to Rochambeaus orders
• Spanish ships guard French merchant fleet
• Spanish at Havana advance war chest

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Forces in Motion

• Washington and Rochambeau march south
• de Grasse and Hood sail north
• Rodney goes home
• Clinton and Graves plan to move against Newport
• Barras sails from Newport
• Hood and Graves sail in search of Barras

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The Battle off the Virginia Capes
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The Comte de Grasse in the Chesapeake

• 30 Aug. 1781 28 French ships of the line enter
  the Chesapeake
• 2 Sept. French land 3,300 soldiers on the shores
  of the James R.
• 5 Sept. Scouting vessel reports strange fleet
• 1130 A.M. 24 French ships of the line cut their
  cables and stand out to sea

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The Decision not to Fight Inside the Capes

• Graves might enter the Chesapeake and molest the
  allied armies without defeating de Grasse
• Barrass squadron with the allied siege artillery
  would be endangered

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Strategic Imperatives

• de Grasse
• had to fight Graves so that Barras could enter
  the Chesapeake
• did not have to defeat Graves

• Graves
• unaware of Cornwalliss extreme danger
• under no compulsion to risk everything
• may have assumed that Barras had already joined
  de Grasse

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Bougainville
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The Lost Opportunity

• French fleet straggles out in bad order
• French van separates from the center
• Graves ignores opportunity to attack a portion of
  the French line
• Graves intent on fighting in line-ahead formation

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Line Ahead Formation
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British Fleet Wears Together
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Methods of Closing from Windward

• All ships turns at right angles, bear down on
  enemy, luff up to reform line of battle
• Maintain line ahead with lead ship bearing
  obliquely toward enemy, resuming parallel
  position at proper distance
• Each warship turns obliquely in its position,
  comes down with wind on its quarter, resuming
  parallel line at proper distance

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All ships turn at right angles, bear down on
enemy, luff up to reform line of battle
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Maintain line ahead with lead ship bearing
obliquely toward enemy, resuming parallel
position at proper distance
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Each ship turns obliquely in its position, comes
down with wind on its quarter, resuming parallel
line at proper distance
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The van is unsupported, the center bunched up,
and the rear out of the action
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The leeward fleet (bottom), by increasing sail,
brings the van of the windward fleet (top) to
engage unsupported
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Confused Signals
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Hood
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Allied Victory

• British plan amphibious landing to relieve
  Cornwallistoo little, too late
• Cornwallis surrenders Sept. 19

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Sea Power
Decisive local superiority at sea, attained
through the cooperation of three allies, sealed
the fate of the British Army at Yorktown. British
strategy had assumed a continuity of naval
superiority. When the British lost that, they
lost America.
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