American History

Definition of the Subject
The Battle of Yorktown took place in the fall of 1781. The principle antagonists were the United States and Britain. Owing to the importance of the battle, much has been written on the subject. There are both primary and secondary sources of information on the battle which are very important for an in-depth analysis of the subject. The primary sources range from personal accounts of the battle to operational histories, war diaries, battle journals, war reports and war diaries. A thorough and balanced account of the fight demands the use of these sources since they provide detailed political, tactical, operational and historical information on the battle. Owing to the centuries that have elapsed since the battle was fought, accessing oral history interviews has been extremely difficult.

Review of the Strategic Setting
The war occurred during the period when the American colonies were determined to emancipate themselves from British rule and influence. The battle therefore occurred during the War of the American Revolution. The colonies having been under British rule, it may be well said that the adversaries were the colonists.

The battle can be properly understood by considering the events that took place from 1763 to 1789. It was during this period that the British government attempted to tax the colonists and it was also within this period that sufficient states adopted a new Constitution to ensure its operation (Grainger 2005, p.2). As such, the actual war is part of a longer process, one that gradually levered the colonists from British hold and equally slowly integrated them into a new nation. The principle even that led up to the war was the Boston Tea Party when loads of tea was dumped into Boston Harbor as protest against the tea tax. This prompted the government of Britain to close down the port of Boston. As a move to help Boston, other people from the thirteen colonies sent money and goods. The colonies were opposed to taxation without representation. The colonists had begun stocking weapons for a possible war with Britain, something that prompted British soldiers search for these weapons under orders from the British government (Flemming 1968, p.78). They were met with opposition from militiamen who were waiting for them and a fight ensued.

There were various political, economic and social factors associated with the war. The British desired to maintain control of the colonies while the colonists wanted independence. For them, control of the colonies was an indication of power apart from providing the much needed resources to control further and maintain their global supremacy. For the colonists, they were opposed tom taxes without representation. On a wider scale, the growing power of the British threatened other European powers which saw the war in the American continent as an opportunity to reduce the British influence.

For Britain to achieve its objectives in the American continent, it had to use its military might to crush the dissidents. The colonists on the other hand wanted to do away with the British governors and institute self-rule. This objective could only be realized through military intervention.  

Military Systems
The British relied on their navy during the war. The Americans on the other hand comprised of soldiers and militias with the help of French Navy. The Americans had 17,000 soldiers fighting on their side including the French while the British had 8,300 soldiers including the loyalists (Vierow 2003, p.26). The American military was composed of the French and white American and African American soldiers. A good percentage of the white Americans and Black American soldiers were part of militias. The British on the other hand derived their manpower from Hessian, white American loyalists and Black American slaves who were promised freedom after the war. Apart from the British and French soldiers, the majority of the soldiers involved in the war did not have any formal military training even though some had experience from past wars. Some of the American and French soldiers had fought in French Indian war. Others had been involved in other campaigns against the natives.

Both the France and Britain had been involved in past war with Britain recording impressive victories. The people of both the nations had supported their countries war aims and objectives. The decision to settle in the Americas, for instance, was supported by the people who themselves became the settlers. In the previous wars, the opposing armies had been well trained and equipped. In the previous conflicts, the doctrines for waging war had been unsound such as the doctrines that guided the French Indian War and the Seven Year War. The societies had not been supportive of the wars because the rationale behind them remained ambiguous.

Tactical Situation
During the battle of Yorktown, the weather was windy which favored the French forces that fought on the side of the Americans. It enabled the French to drift southwards with much ease. Apart from the wind that proved invaluable to the French, the overall weather condition was good.

The American and French forces outnumbered the British forces. There were 17,000 American and French forces against 8,300 British forces. The Americans had reinforcement from France since the French saw them a formidable force. The British on the other hand did not have adequate reinforcement since their soldiers were involved in other campaigns.

Leadership
The Continental Army had a good leader who believed in independence and the cause for which he was fighting (Ready 2002, p.14). The majority of the officers and soldiers also believed in the cause. Some of the colonists had experience fighting in the French and Indian War. As such, they knew how to use muskets. However, the continental soldiers had minimal formal military training even though the leaders were technically proficient. The United States had two types of soldiers those who belonged to the Continental Army and those who belonged to the militias. The militias lacked good leaders.

The Action
The British forces moved their parallel to the line of approach of the enemy. After ensuring the possibility of operation, they bore away, approached and engaged the enemy close. The enemys van bore away so as to make it possible for their center to support them (The Battle of Yorktown 2002, p.219).

One side did enjoy tactical victory even though it was by chance and not from clear planning. The French and the Americans seemed better placed tactically while the British made various tactical errors. According to an account by one French soldier regarding the events, the British committed various tactical errors. At some point, they had the opportunity to alter the outcome of the war but wrong decisions resulted in them losing the war. From the Frenchmans account, the British ought to have entered and anchored at Chesapeake as soon as the French forces left. They were before the wind, and by hugging Cape Charles, they might easily have moored with a spring on the cable, before we were formed in line and ready to attack them this would leave us no alternative but to grapple them, otherwise our army would have run a great risk of being deprived of everything, perhaps been captured even our vessels stationed in the York, Baltimore, and James rivers would have been taken, as well as all the boats of the fleet (Operation of the French Fleet 1864, 73-74). This account indicates that there was an opportunity for the British to alter the course of the war but wrong tactical decisions resulted in them losing it.

Even the French made a tactical mistake but the British did not take advantage of that. This incident indicates that any fleet of reasonable size was capable of blocking the entrance to the Bay regardless of the number of the enemy. In this regard, it may not be said with certainty that one side enjoyed tactical victory. There are various factors that contributed to the colonists winning the war. They had good leadership the soldiers believed they were fighting for a cause which meant that they had stronger unit cohesion and better morale. The victory can also be attributed to other factors which included increased pressure that the British had from the international community which made peace seem better than war. In this regard, it may be said that the opposition was just lucky.

The above factors contributed to the British losing the war or rather preferring peace than war even though they had better organization, experience and equipment. The opposing sides did accomplish their missions. The French mission was to see the British defeated which was accomplished. The colonists on the other hand wanted independence which they later achieved.

The battle was fought according to the plans of the commanders. For instance, Hood suggested that the fleet be turned back to occupy Chesapeake Bay which the fleet finally managed to do. A large percentage of the commanders plans were on course even though other factors dictated that some of the plans be changed to suit the circumstances.

The Significance of the Action
The concept of a decisive battle is to some extent obscured. This is due to the fact that the course of an extended war will have a number of events that can be described as decisive. However, if the concept implies the last battle after which the loser cannot fight anymore, then the battle of Yorktown was decisive. In order to consider this position, it is important to look at the aims and purposes of the various combatants. The war was not only fought between Britain and the thirteen colonies but other countries were also involved. Each participant had its own objectives in entering the war.

The immediate effect of the battle was the loss of lives during the war. Apart from this, the colonists managed to free themselves from the taxes that they felt were unjust. In this regard, the outcome of the battle was undesirable for Britain. Britain lost control of the colonies. The British soldiers also lost morale to continue fighting which further influenced wars outcome. The battle helped France to achieve its strategic objective. France desired to revenge the humiliating defeat it suffered during the Seven Years War and this can be seen in her involvement in the war on the side of the colonists.

The outcome of the battle provided significant advantage to the winning side in the sense that their morale was boosted which instilled a general feeling that they could fight battles and win. This motivated the colonists to continue pushing for their independence at every cost. The British on the other hand had a significant disadvantage since there was a high likelihood of other colonies outside the American continent revolting with the aid of enemy European countries. The supremacy of Great Britain was thwarted especially after being defeated by an army that was largely inexperienced and ill equipped. By any standards, Britain was a major power and it had the experience and the technology to win the war. Her Navy by then was the best in the world.

Long-Term Objectives of the Nations and Their Armies
The outcome of the war impacted on the long-term objectives of United States and Britain and their armies. The colonists rooted and pursued the establishment of a strong nation with a unified military. Britain on the other hand lost its hold in the colonies and was therefore forced to grant independence. It also recognized the importance of communication in military campaign. The importance of alliances in campaigns was also acknowledged by the nations involved in the war.

The outcome of the battle placed the British in a position from which they could not recover because they were not only outnumbered but they also did not have adequate supplies to continue with the campaign. The battle of Yorktown therefore decided the outcome of the war. It was during this battle that the British learned of the force of the enemy.

Military lessons learned
In every battle, there are lessons to be learned. The battle of Yorktown is no exception. From the onset, the British forces assumed that they would easily defeat the colonists. They knew that the colonists had no equipment and military capability or experience to put up a fight. However, the results were disappointing. The colonists had support from the French who provided weapons and financial support. In this regard, the major lesson that the British learnt was the major role played by international intervention in deciding the outcome of war. As such, they did not expect a worthy opposition. This very reason was acknowledged by the opposing sides who have are still rooting for international support up to this moment when it comes to military intervention. The importance of alliances cannot be overruled even by the contemporary military student a war cannot be won alone.