American Revolution Almanac | The Revolution Draws to a Close (1781–1783)

• Surrender at Yorktown
• The news reaches London
• Treaty of peace is negotiated; Washington dismisses his army
• How many served and died in the Revolutionary War?
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Former American General Benedict Arnold (1741–1801)—now fighting for the British—easily took Richmond, Virginia, on January 5, 1781. George Washington (1732–1799), commander in chief of American forces, responded by sending soldiers to Virginia under the command of the Marquis de Lafayette of France (1757–1834). (The French officially joined the war on the side of the Americans in 1778.) By the spring of 1781, British General...