20. The Battle of the Virginia Capes was the decisive battle of the war
Admiral Graves was carrying equipment and supplies for Cornwallis’s army, but the presence of the French Fleet prevented him from landing them until after giving battle. The resultant maneuvering and de Grasse’s tactics drew the British fleet further from the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay – marked by Capes Henry and Charles, and further out to sea as they exchanged fire for more than two hours. The British ships of the fleet’s van – its forward most ships – suffered heavily from the French fire. Following the battle, the fleets continued in the same direction, away from the bay.
After a week of sailing within view of each other de Grasse put about and returned to the Chesapeake, to find de Barras already there. Graves followed until he became aware that both French fleets were in the bay, after which he had no choice but to return to New York, with some of his ships heavily damaged. Graves tried to organize a relief expedition of sufficient strength to engage the combined French fleets, but by the time it was ready to sail Cornwallis had surrendered, and the world had turned upside down. The Battle of the Virginia Capes was the worst debacle suffered by the Royal Navy during the war, at least as far as it meant for the British Empire.