Norfolk and Yorktown

Adagio emerged from the Dismal Swamp Canal for an overnight in Norfolk, Virginia, where Charles toured the USS Wisconsin docked just around the corner from our marina. The last of the four huge Iowa-class battleships built by the US in WWII, the Wisconsin served in WWII, Korea, Viet Nam, and the Gulf Wars. Norfolk is the largest naval base in the world; we felt safe and secure cruising its harbor past Virginia Beach.

USS Wisconsin on Norfolk Waterfront

From Norfolk we headed north into the southern Chesapeake Bay and up the York River to Yorktown, Virginia, site of the decisive battle that effectively ended the Revolutionary War in 1781. Approaching Yorktown from the water gave us a new appreciation for the role of the French in helping the 13 colonies win their independence from Great Britain. Without a navy, the colonies were no match for Britain's mighty sea powers. Indeed, if not for the 36 ships deployed by the French Navy to support Washington's ground siege on Yorktown, we might still be part of England. We toured the battlefield and surrounding areas by bicycle on a beautiful spring day, finding it hard to imagine the desperate fighting that took place there but grateful for the sacrifices made on our behalf.

British Defense Fortification (Redoubt 10) at Yorktown,

Captured by Alexander Hamilton's Light Infantry

Supply and Staging Area for Washington's Troops, Wormley Pond, Yorktown

British General Cornwallis' Surrender Letter

(He claimed illness and did not attend the surrender ceremony)

Surrender Field, Yorktown

Victory Monument, Yorktown