page_title: Washington–Rochambeau Revolutionary Route
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Washington–Rochambeau Revolutionary Route / Background
caption_attribution_description: George Washington at the Battle of Princeton
context_page_description: The Washington–Rochambeau Revolutionary Route is a 680-mile series of roads used in 1781 by the Continental Army under the command of George Washington and the Expédition Particulière under the command of Jean-Baptiste de Rochambeau during their 14-week march from Newport, Rhode Island to Yorktown, Virginia. The route is a designated National Historic Trail with interpretive literature, signs, and exhibits that describe the key role of French diplomatic, military, and economic aid to the United States during the American Revolutionary War.
context_section_description: In 1780, French King Louis XVI dispatched Rochambeau, 450 officers, and 5,300 men to help Washington and the colonial forces. They arrived in Narragansett Bay off Newport, Rhode Island on July 10, 1780. In June 1781, Rochambeau prepared to march from Rhode Island to join the Continental Army near White Plains, New York. He divided his force into four regiments: "Royal DeuxPonts" under the Baron de Vioménil; "Soissonnais" under the Baron's brother Count de Vioménil; "Saintonge" under the Marquis de Custine; and a fourth regiment. This final unit remained in Providence where it guarded the baggage and munitions stored in the Old Market House and supported the surgeons and attendants at the hospital in University Hall.
  The French forces departed Providence on June 19 and marched 15 miles to camp near the border of Connecticut. They then continued to march across Connecticut and joined George Washington on the Hudson River at Dobbs Ferry, New York. The advance party was led by Armand Louis de Gontaut or Duc de Lauzun. Lauzun's Legion marched ahead of the main army and stayed 10 to 15 miles (16 to 24 km) to the south protecting the exposed flank from the British.
  The combined American and French armies marched through New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland, a route that allowed them to evade British troops. They reached Williamsburg, Virginia in late September 1781. On September 22, they combined with troops commanded by the Marquis de Lafayette.
  The French royal fleet blocked British sea access by winning the Battle of the Chesapeake on September 5, 1781, preventing the British from either delivering reinforcements from New York or evacuating General Cornwallis' army by sea. A three-week siege of Yorktown led to Cornwallis' surrender on October 19, 1781. Washington's force then moved to defend northern posts. Rochambeau's force wintered in Williamsburg, then marched north in the summer of 1782 to Boston, Massachusetts. Along the way, the armies were welcomed as heroes in towns and cities, a much warmer greeting than they had received on the march south.
caption: Washington at Princeton by Charles Willson Peale (1779)
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