The Second Battle of the Virginia Capes Poster

The Battle of the Chesapeake, also known as the Battle of the Virginia Capes or simply the Battle of the Capes, was a crucial naval battle in the American War of Independence that took place near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay on 5 September 1781, between a British fleet led by Rear Admiral Sir Thomas Graves and a French fleet led by Rear Admiral François Joseph Paul, comte de Grasse. The battle was tactically inconclusive but strategically a major defeat for the British, since it prevented the Royal Navy from reinforcing or evacuating the blockaded forces of General Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia. It also prevented British interference with the transport of French and Continental Army troops and provisions to Yorktown via Chesapeake Bay. As a result, Cornwallis surrendered his army after the Siege of Yorktown. The major consequence of Cornwallis's surrender was the beginning of negotiations that eventually resulted in peace and British recognition of the independent United States of America. Image reproduction rights can be found in the link near the bottom of this description. This image has been digitally filtered to reduce blurring. This effect is more noticeable the larger the image is. Sign up to Mr. Rebates for FREE and save 12% on any zazzle order in addition to a $5.00 sign up bonus All Rights Reserved; without: prejudice, recourse or notice (U.C.C. 1-308) Image Reproduction Rights: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:BattleOfVirginiaCapes.jpg "virginia capes" battle chesapeake "revolutionary war" "american revolution" " Battle of the Virginia Capes" "Second Battle of the Virginia Capes" "Battle of the Chesapeake" "Battle of the Capes" "Chesapeake Bay" "Thomas Graves" "admiral Thomas Graves" "rear admiral Thomas Graves" "François Joseph Paul" "admiral François Joseph Paul" "rear admiral François Joseph Paul" "comte de Grasse" "royal navy" cornwallis yorktown "lord cornwallis" "general lord cornwallis" ship battleship "battle ship" "war ship" warship navy naval "american navy" "british navy" "naval battle"