Which Revolutionary War battle is widely described as the conflict’s final major land engagement?

The Siege of Yorktown is widely described as the final major land engagement of the American Revolutionary War.

The siege took place in Virginia from September 28 to October 19, 1781. American forces led by George Washington joined French troops commanded by the Comte de Rochambeau, while French naval forces under the Comte de Grasse blocked British support by sea.

British Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis commanded the force trapped at Yorktown. Allied artillery and trench operations steadily tightened the position, and American and French troops captured key British redoubts on October 14. Cornwallis surrendered six days later, on October 19.

Yorktown did not instantly end every military action. Fighting continued at sea and in other regions, and formal peace came with the Treaty of Paris in 1783. Nevertheless, the surrender destroyed Britain’s hope of winning the war through a decisive campaign in the southern colonies and prompted peace negotiations.