The British surrender at the Siege of Yorktown occurred on October 19, 1781.
American and French forces surrounded the British army commanded by Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia. George Washington led the American army, while the Comte de Rochambeau commanded French troops on land. A French naval victory in the Chesapeake helped prevent British relief by sea.
Cornwallis requested terms on October 17, after the allied bombardment and capture of key redoubts. The formal surrender ceremony followed two days later. Yorktown did not immediately end every military operation, and fighting continued in other locations, but it led to peace negotiations and effectively ended major combat in North America. The Treaty of Paris, signed in 1783, formally recognized American independence.