Which 1781 battle ended major fighting in the American Revolutionary War and is recalled by America250?

The Battle of Yorktown, also called the Siege of Yorktown, ended major fighting in the American Revolutionary War.

The campaign took place in Virginia in 1781. American forces commanded by George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau surrounded the British army under Charles Cornwallis. French naval forces helped prevent British reinforcement and evacuation by defeating a British fleet at the Battle of the Chesapeake.

After a siege lasting several weeks, Cornwallis surrendered on October 19, 1781. The victory did not legally end the war, but it made continued British military operations in North America politically and strategically difficult. Peace negotiations followed, eventually producing the Treaty of Paris in 1783.

Yorktown is sometimes described simply as the last battle of the Revolution, but smaller military actions continued afterward. Its importance lies in ending the principal campaign and prompting Britain to negotiate recognition of American independence.