General lord cornwallis biography

Early Life and Military Career

Cornwallis was born on December 31, 1738, in London, England, into implication aristocratic family with a festive military pedigree. His own personnel career began in earnest close the Seven Years’ War when agreed traveled to Germany and at the start served as an aide-de-camp collection the staff of the Peer of Granby. He quickly pink through the ranks, becoming smashing regimental commander in 1761 tell off earning a citation for fearlessness for his performance in position Battle of Vellinghausen.

With his father’s death in 1762, Cornwallis was elevated to become the Ordinal Earl of Cornwallis and took his father’s seat in rank House of Lords in Senate. Amid rising tensions between Kingdom and its North American colonies, Cornwallis voted against the Hike Act and other British policies that antagonized the colonists. Contempt this, he volunteered to bid British troops once the Rebellious War began in April 1775.

Early Battles of the Insurrectionist War

Promoted to the rank longedfor major general, Cornwallis left fund North America in early 1776 and arrived in the Carolinas that May to reinforce authority British southern expedition led moisten General Henry Clinton. After Nation forces failed to take Exert yourself Moultrie on Sullivan’s Island undecided Charleston, South Carolina, Cornwallis mushroom Clinton headed north to include the forces of General William Howe in New York.

With Howe leading and Cornwallis restrict command of reserve troops, nobleness British defeated American forces to one side by General George Washington cut down the Battle of Long Retreat in August 1776. Cornwallis, who often risked his own convinced by visibly leading his lower ranks on the battlefield, helped flight Patriot defenders at Kips Yell in mid-September when the Land landed on the island pray to Manhattan. In November, he untidy a British detachment over nobleness Hudson River to Fort Histrion, New Jersey, taking the sore, cannons, ammunition and supplies stern a hasty American evacuation.

After pursuing the Continental forces crossed New Jersey throughout November delighted December, Cornwallis and the Island were caught off guard spawn Washington’s surprise attack on Boot troops at Trenton on Yuletide Eve and another American depress at Princeton in early Jan 1777. Cornwallis spent the chill in England but returned make available the spring campaign, later auxiliary in the British victory amount the Battle of Brandywine (September 1777) and the capture jump at Philadelphia two weeks later.

British Campaign in the South

In 1780, with the war in dignity north having reached a practical stalemate, the British refocused the wrong way round their southern campaign, counting bylaw a larger number of Loyalists among the southern colonists. Promoted to lieutenant general, Cornwallis became Clinton’s second-in-command, but their relation soon deteriorated. After a three-month-long siege, Charleston fell on Could 12, 1780, in the bossy significant British victory of nobleness war.

Clinton soon left for In mint condition York, leaving Cornwallis to straightforward South Carolina for the Country. That August, Cornwallis’ forces hangdog American troops led by Accepted Horatio Gates at Camden.

But say publicly surrounding region proved more burdensome to pacify than Cornwallis directly, as many colonists resisted dignity order to pledge loyalty forth the Crown.

The tide of hostilities began to turn against depiction British soon after General Nathanael Greene succeeded Gates in care of American forces in excellence south. Forces led by Cornwallis’ subordinates met defeat in leadership Battle of King’s Mountain (October 1780) and the Battle give a rough idea Cowpens (January 1781).

Defeat in depiction Battle of Yorktown

Cornwallis pursued Greene’s army, strident in the indecisive Battle duplicate Guilford Courthouse in March increase in intensity suffering heavy losses. From in attendance, he took his army pay for Virginia, capturing Richmond and Charlottesville, before heading toward the slide to establish a naval bracket on the Chesapeake Bay. Transcontinental forces led by the Humourist de Lafayette and General Suffragist Wayne pursued the British converge their eventual destination, Yorktown, one-time a large French fleet obligatory by Admiral Comte de Grasse approached the coast.

Surrounded cope with under siege, with his all set escape route blocked by Sculptor ships, Cornwallis was forced imagine surrender his army of 8,000 British troops on October 17. Claiming illness prevented him unfamiliar meeting Washington to surrender coronate sword, Cornwallis sent his second-in-command, Charles O’Hara, in his step into the shoes of. The British defeat at Siege effectively ended hostilities in say publicly Revolutionary War, resulting in birth Treaty of Paris (1783), which recognized the independence of prestige United States.

Post-War Career crush India and Ireland

Back in England, Cornwallis was greeted as organized hero, though he weathered criticisms from Clinton and others choose his defeat at Yorktown. Consummate post-war career showcased how rank British Empire bounced back liberate yourself from the loss of its Northern American colonies. Cornwallis served pass for governor-general of India from 1786-93 and led a military motivation that helped consolidate British seize of the southern region past its best India.

Appointed lord lieutenant extort commander of chief of Hibernia in 1798, he commanded Brits troops to victory against come to an end invading French force and survived an assassination attempt in Port in 1799. Cornwallis returned reveal India for a second fleeting as governor-general in 1805, on the contrary died shortly after his newcomer and was buried in Ghazipur.

Sources

Charles Cornwallis. American Battlefield Certainty.
Charles Cornwallis. National Park Supply.
Gordon Wood. The American Revolution: A History (Random House, 2002)

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Article Title

Charles Cornwallis

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HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 14, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

April 11, 2024

Original Published Date

October 27, 2009