British forces surrendered at Yorktown on October 19, 1781, the last major land victory of the American Revolution.
The siege took place in Virginia from September 28 to October 19, 1781. American and French armies under George Washington and the Comte de Rochambeau surrounded the British army commanded by Lord Cornwallis. French naval control of the Chesapeake Bay helped prevent Cornwallis from escaping or receiving effective reinforcement.
After allied artillery weakened the defenses, American and French troops captured key redoubts on October 14. Cornwallis requested capitulation terms on October 17. After two days of negotiation, the articles of capitulation were signed and the surrender ceremony occurred on October 19.
Yorktown did not legally end the war immediately. Hostilities continued elsewhere, and the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783. However, Yorktown made continued British offensive operations in North America impractical and led to peace negotiations.