Virginia played a decisive role in the fight for independence, from the fiery debates in Williamsburg to the climactic Siege of Yorktown. Its people, lands, and resources shaped the course of the Revolution and helped secure America’s ultimate victory.
Explore the many guided tours of The Liberty Trail
Martha Dandridge Custis Washington made her own mark as the first First Lady and symbol of motherhood in the new nation.
In 1779, after a stalemate in the north, Cornwallis went south as second in command to Sir Henry Clinton. Clinton captured Charleston in May 1780. Cornwallis pressed on to defeat General Horatio Gates at Camden, South Carolina, on August 16, 1780.
In the final years of the Revolution, the Comte de Grasse aided the American cause through the disruption of the British Navy's supply lines.
Enlsaved in the midst of the American Revolution, James Armistead was recruited by Patriot forces to spy on Cornwallis and the British War Department during the Siege of Yorktown.
