Who surrendered to George Washington at Yorktown?

• A. George Washington
• B. Thomas Jefferson
• C. Cornwallis
• D. Benjamin Franklin

Answer: (C)

Yorktown surrender shows how a well-timed siege and allied forces can force a decisive end to a war. At Yorktown, the British commander, Charles Cornwallis, surrendered to George Washington after American troops, with French allies, surrounded him by land and blocked relief by sea. This victory came after weeks of bombardment and entrenched positions, leaving Cornwallis with no viable escape or resupply. Although Cornwallis did not personally come forward, his subordinate General Charles O’Hara presented Cornwallis’s sword to Washington’s forces, and Washington accepted the surrender, symbolizing American independence and the end of major fighting in the war. This moment is a turning point that led to the subsequent peace negotiations and the Treaty of Paris.