The American Revolution, Episode 9: Yorktown

This episode closes out our discussion of the American Revolutionary War. First, we track the French contribution to American victory. France's alliance was perhaps vital to America's victory, so much so that perhaps the US does not win the war without them. And, the French Navy's incredible victory in the Chesapeake Bay was necessary to make the siege of Yorktown possible. The heart of the episode is a brief look at the siege, the battle, and the results of the Franco-American victory at Yorktown, VA. We close by looking at some of the events in the final years of the war, including the loss of the founding father John Laurens, a brief mutiny by a small group of soldiers in Philadelphia, the negotiations and ratification of the Treaty of Paris, and the birth of the Society of the Cincinnati.