On Saturday, October 19, we arrived at the Inn at Warner Hall, the 1642 home of George Washington’s great-great-grandfather.
Located in Gloucester, the inn is on a peninsular bounded by the Chesapeake Bay and the York River.
Today the inn was the scene for a reenactment of the Battle of the Hook which occurred a bit further south on Gloucester Point on October 3, 1781.
Across the York River from Gloucester Point was Yorktown, where British General Cornwallis was surrounded by the allied forces of General Washington and Rochambeau who conducted a siege against the British.
Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton (in the green coat and bushy helmet, above) commanded the British Legion, which is comprised of both calvary and infantry.
Tarleton and his legion had been sent by Cornwallis to defend Gloucester Point, especially since a calvary battle was impossible during a siege.
The Battle of the Hook sealed General Cornwallis’ fate on October 3, 1781.
FRENCH ARRIVE BY SEA
To the surprise of the British, the French arrived by sea!
(This waterway on the property of Inn at Warner Hall feeds into the Chesapeake Bay.)
The shooting that followed was a skirmish, a prelude to the main Battle of the Hook, that would be reenacted later in the day.
LARGEST CALVARY BATTLE OF WAR
It was Tarleton’s Legion (British) against Lauzun’s Legion (French)!
The calvary battled on horseback, while the foot soldiers fought behind them.
It was quite fascinating seeing all the individual components we had learned in books and other reenactments, now coming together as a whole.
The calvary engagement in the actual Battle of the Hook was the largest in the American Revolution.
I think the mean in green and red (below) are sharp shooters.
PARADE OF TROOPS
After the battle reenacment lasted a couple of hours, the reenactors paraded by…
CAMP LIFE
At various parts of the day, we visited the camps…the British on one section of the property and the French on the other.
MEETING THE GEOGRAPHER
In between battles and skirmishes, we visited with a mighty familiar looking gent in the Geographer’s Tent!
Geography is important to any battle formation, as well as travel of troops, not to mention where an army settles.
When I mentioned my son’s interest in studying engineering, the geographer said he should get a set of tools like this!
Then he proceeded to explain what each piece was used for.
These are reproduction maps made by geographers, as the allied troops marched south from New York to Yorktown.
Here the geographer is demonstrating the differences in the use of ink with the geographer’s pen compared to that of the everyday 18th century use of the quill.
Many thanks to all the reenactors for this great event!
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE BATTLE OF THE HOOK
In 1781 British General Clinton in New York sent communication to General Cornwallis in Virginia to settle at a deep sea port to be resupplied.
Cornwallis, in a move that surprised General Lafayette, who had been chasing him with limited forces in a “cat and mouse” campaign throughout Virginia, fatefully settled at Yorktown.
Quickly, Lafayette communicated this surprising news to General Washington, in New York.
The geography of Yorktown is a mere peninsula, bordered by the York River on one side, the deep James River on the other, with the deep waterways of Hampton Roads at the tip.
There was no escape by land, because Lafayette and his dragoons initially cornered the unsuspecting Cornwallis who had no fear of the boy, Lafayette.
Upon receiving Lafayette’s communication, Generals Washington and Rochambeau led their American and French allied forces from New York to Yorktown.
Meanwhile British ships from the deep-sea port of New York headed to Yorktown to resupply Cornwallis, only to be attacked by the French navy at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay!
Winning the Battle of the Capes, French Admiral de Grasse sent more forces to Gloucester, across the river from Yorktown, where they were victorious at the Battle of the Hook.
Meanwhile Washington and Rochambeau arrived with their troops, who quickly prepared siege works against the British in Yorktown.
Cornwallis was doomed.
After the siege of Yorktown began on October 9, Cornwallis surrendered on October 19, effectively ending the American Revolution.
Many thanks to all the reenactors for bringing this battle to life!
COMMENTS FROM MY OLD BLOG
Alexa October 23, 2013, at 10:28 AM-I am loving your posts! The Hessians playing chess is priceless…I was at the Battle of the Hook this weekend and am still giddy 🙂 Can’t wait to see more of your photos – I only had an iPhone camera so I’m relying on others for commemoration.
For more photos, over 90 of this event, check my Flickr set.
