XLI. 1781. aoth bound trade. Sir Samuel Hoad therefore followed CHA P. him with only fourteen fail of the line, and, on his arrival, admiral Graves (who as fenior took command of the fquadron) poffeffed only nineteen fail of the 30th Aug. line, to oppose twenty-eight. De Graffe having received proper information from La Fayette, forwarded to the main army the land force he had conveyed from the Weft Indies, and blocked up York river, with four fhips of the line, and several frigates, while the remainder of the fleet was anchored in Lynhaven Bay, within the Capes of Virginia. Partial action In this pofition they were difcovered by admiral 5th Sept. Graves; a partial action enfued in which confiderable between the damage was done to both fleets; no fhip was taken, fleets. but the Terrible, a British man of war, was rendered incapable of future fervice, and burnt. The fleets continued in fight of each other feveral days; but no advantage of numbers or wind could encourage the French to make an attack; and the admiral, at length, returned to the Chesapeak, where de Barras 10th. had arrived with his fquadron, and fourteen transports laden with heavy artillery and military ftores. The British admiral, finding the pofition unaflailable, retired to New York to refit. to New Lon Soon after the arrival of lord Cornwallis in Virginia, Arnold's general Arnold returned to Sir Henry Clinton, who expedition now employed him in an attack on New London in don. Connecticut. Although deceived in his information respecting the fortifications, Arnold took the town, and a fort called Grifwold, by affault, deftroyed fifty pieces of cannon, and an immenfe quantity of military ftores, and burned twelve fhips, the flames of which fpreading to the town, great part was confumed. THE allied armies, intent on the project of befieg- York Town ing lord Cornwallis, did not fuffer their attention to invefied. be diverted by any other object. Their proceedings being arranged at a council of war held on board the 14th Sept. Ville de Paris, the flag-fhip of count De Graffe, the forces were landed in the neighbourhood of Williams- 25th. burgh, XLI. 1781. CHA P. burgh, and being joined by thofe under La Fayette, and M. de St. Simon, encamped before York Town. LORD CORNWALLIS did not impede the approaches 28th Sept, of the enemy, although La Fayette, with only two thousand men, was within a fhort distance of him, and unfupported; but appears to have relied with fanguine confidence on relief from New York, which Sir Henry Clinton expreffed hopes might arrive by the fifth of October. In expectation of this fuccour, lord Cornwallis, to the astonishment of general Wafhington, withdrew his army within the works of the town, which were immediately occupied by the enemy, and the poft at Gloucester blockaded '. 6th and 9th October 14th Oct. Two redoubts ftormed. THE time however elapfed, and no fuccours arrived; the enemy rapidly advanced their works and completed their batteries, maintaining an inceffant cannonade, which damaged the unfinished fortifications of the town, filenced the artillery, and occafioned confiderable flaughter. The garrifon were indefatigable in opening new embrafures, and particularly annoyed the invaders from two redoubts advanced three hundred yards in front of the works. These were stormed by parties of French and Americans, feparately employed on the fervice to excite emulation, and afterward, by indefatigable industry, joined to the works of the befiegers. The defences of the town were at length completely ruined, and although vigorous and fuccefsful forties, conducted by lieutenant-colonels Abercrombie and Lake, retarded the approach of the enemy, lord Cornwallis was convinced that his pofition was no longer tenable. Lord Corn- He attempted to escape, by tranfporting his army across the river in the night; but after he had landed a part on the oppofite fhore, a ftorm prevented the return of the boats, and the few troops who had been ferried over, with difficulty rejoined the gar 16th. wallis at tempts a retreat. rifon. *See Washington's letters to congrefs on that fubject, dated Oct. 1. k XLI. 1781. Capitu In this extremity, lord Cornwallis furrendered his C H A-P. whole army prifoners of war to general Washington, as commander of the combined force, and the veffels in the harbour to De Graffe; the troops as prifoners 19th. to the United States, the feamen to the French king. The garrifon obtained the fame honours of war as had been granted by Sir Henry Clinton at Charlestown; private property was retained, and the officers were allowed their freedom on parole. The tenth article of the capitulation was moft expofed to cenfure, as it yielded up the loyalifts, without protection, to the mercy of those who had already perfecuted them with fuch unrelenting favagenefs; but in extenuation, it was alleged that the British commander fecured the fafety of these persons under another form, by obtaining permiffion for the Bonetta floop of war to fail for New York, unfearched, with as many foldiers on board as he should think fit, provided they were accounted for in any future exchange. This article was devised, and used as the means of conniving at the fafe conduct of the loyalifts'. The garrifon at the time of the furrender amounted to five thoufand nine hundred and fifty men, but only four thousand and feventeen were fit for duty, while the befiegers were nineteen thoufand. They acquired by the conqueft a large train of artillery, with a confiderable quantity of arms, ammunition, and ftores, a frigate, two fhips of twenty guns, and a great number of tranfports and other veffels. Clinton. DURING the progrefs of this disastrous event, Sir Efforts of Henry Clinton had ufed every exertion to affift lord Cornwallis. He was deceived even at the moment of The article was in thefe words, "Natives or inhabitants of different parts of this country, at prefent in York or Gloucefter, are not to be punished on account of having joined the British army." Anfwer, "This article cannot be affented to, being altogether of civil resort.' The plea of neceffity, and the fecurity afforded by using the Bonetta floop as an afylum, did not tranquillize the feelings, or calin the apprehenfions of the loyalifts throughout America. The word punished, in the 10th article, was construed as an admiffion of guilt, and of confequent right in the victors to profecute them for acts of allegiance to their lawful fovereign. XLI. 1781. CHA P. Sir Samuel Hood's arrival, in his information on the comparative force of the fleets; nor could he believe the French admiral had left the Weft Indies without detaching any part of his force for protection of the trade, or that Sir George Rodney would, unlefs affured of a fuperiority, have proceeded with three ships of the line for Europe, and left others in the West Indies, contrary to his pofitive orders from government to watch and controul the operations of de Graffe. Sir Samuel Hood contributed to Sir Henry Clinton's error, by a pofitive statement that he poffeffed a force fuperior to that of the enemy; an affurance which was not known to be unfounded, till after the engagement between Graves and de Graffe on the fifth of September. Sir Henry juftly confidered an attack on lord Cornwallis at York Town impoffible, unless the British fleet was overmatched in the Chesapeak; he knew that the original intention of the combined forces was to attack New York, and therefore confidered their first efforts against York Town as a feint. Yet he imparted the intelligence he received to lord Cornwallis, countermanded his firft order for returning the detachments, and fent all the recruits and convalefcents he could frare from the defence of New York, Long Island, and Staten Island, which required nine thousand men, for the augmentation of his lordfhip's force. When the intention to attack York Town became certain, Clinton prepared to dispatch a reinforcement of seven thousand men, but the condition of the fleet delayed their failing till the nineteenth of October, the day on which the British army furrendered: On his arrival off the Chesapeak, Sir Henry Clinton received information that lord Cornwallis had capitulated, which rendered unneceffary the plans he had preconcerted with the admiral for forcing the enemy at anchor, and taking up a position within them in James river. The practicability of this attempt was afcertained by captain Elphinstone in the Experiment, who had reconnoitred the enemy's pofition, and made the fignal 27th Aug. .8 XLI. 1781. fignal accordingly. Had lord Cornwallis not furren CHAP. dered, it was Sir Henry Clinton's intention to land his forces on that river, and move toward the enemy, lord Cornwallis making a fally to favour their joint operations. The terms in which lord Cornwallis an nounced and accounted for his capture, occafioned a feries of difcuffions. On his arrival at New York, his lordship complained that his fervice was flighted in fome inftances, and in others not adequately fupported by the commander in chief. His plan for reducing Virginia had been approved, he faid, by the miniftry, and was favoured by the king, but difcou raged by Clinton; and in his public difpatch on the furrender of York Town, he accused Sir Henry Clinton of withholding a reinforcement which he had pofitively promifed by the fifth of October. IN anfwer to these allegations, Sir Henry Clinton alleged that the plan for invading Virginia, the most warlike of all the provinces, was improper as to time and circumftances, improperly forced on adminiftration by an inferior, without the privity of his fuperior officer, and undertaken in a rash and unadvised manner". His pofitive orders were to consider the prefervation of South Carolina, and fafety of Charleftown, paramount to all other objects, both which were endangered and even loft to view, by the chafe of Greene acrofs North Carolina, and the fubfequent incurfion into Virginia. In that province Sir Henry Clinton had never projected any folid operation, convinced that the predatory and destructive excurfions he had directed, added to the general diftrefs, would have terminated the American war, if the British army could be preferved from any ferious difafter. It is prefumed, however, his lordship's error arofe from the circumftance of expecting to fucceed to the command, as Sir Henry Clinton, after the capture of Charlestown, had requested leave to refign to him, which his lordship expecting would take place, tranfinitted his own plans to minifters (as being the moft expeditious mode) without confulting with Sir Henry Clinton, whofe refignation was not accepted. See letter from lord George Germaine, dated July 7, 1781, in SirHenry Clinton's Narrative, page 36. Washington's |