109 HRES 1004 IH: Recognizing the historical significance of U.S. House of Representatives 2006-09-13 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV 109th CONGRESS 2d Session H. RES. 1004 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES September 13, 2006 Mr. Ferguson (for himself, Mr. Garrett of New Jersey, Mr. Payne, Mr. LoBiondo, Mr. Andrews, and Mr. Saxton) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Government Reform RESOLUTION Recognizing the historical significance of the Washington-Rochambeau march through New Jersey in 1781 as part of the march of American and French forces from Rhode Island to Virginia that culminated in the American victory at Yorktown, Virginia, in October 1781.

Whereas 2006 is the 225th anniversary of the Washington-Rochambeau march through New Jersey on the way from Providence, Rhode Island, to Yorktown, Virginia, for what became the climatic battle of the Revolutionary War; Whereas the American forces were led by General George Washington and the French forces were led by Comte de Rochambeau; Whereas the plan of the two generals was to combine the American troops and the French allies to defeat British forces under the command of Lord Cornwallis in Yorktown, Virginia; Whereas it was agreed by the two generals to keep up the appearance of an imminent attack on British General Clinton in New York City. The feint worked, and the forces joined up to continue the march to Yorktown; Whereas the Washington-Rochambeau March to Yorktown, in conjunction with the arrival of the French fleet off of Cape Henry, Virginia, from the Caribbean, has long been recognized as a military masterstroke, resulting in victory at Yorktown and bringing an end to the Revolutionary War; Whereas the march through New Jersey was part of a larger march occurring in August and September of 1781 through nine States: Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Massachusetts, and the present District of Columbia; Whereas the route of Rochambeau’s march to Yorktown across New Jersey required food for an army of 5,000, plus as many as 1,000 servants and civilian workers, and forage for no less than 1,500 horses and 600 oxen had to be provided at each campsite throughout the State along the way; Whereas the French march through New Jersey included parts of the Ramapo Valley, Whippany, Morristown, Millstone, and Princeton; Whereas the American march, although less well documented, included parts of Bergen County, Paramus, Belleville, Mahwah, and Springfield (from what historians are able to determine); Whereas as a result of the march, British forces under Lord Cornwallis were cut off from escape or reinforcement by both land and sea; Whereas the American and French forces laid siege to the British-fortified town of Yorktown, and with the land routes blocked and the Chesapeake Bay blocked by the French fleet commanded by de Grasse, Lord Cornwallis was compelled to surrender to the allies three weeks after the siege began; and Whereas in honor of the 225th anniversary of the Washington-Rochambeau march, the Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route in New Jersey Association (W3R-NJ), a non-profit corporation formed to promote, preserve, and commemorate the march of the French and allied expeditionary forces through New Jersey, chose as its main commemoration a two-day re-enactment of the French encampment at Liberty Corner, formerly known as Bullion's Tavern, on the actual site of the encampment of August 26, 1781: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives recognizes the historical significance of the Washington-Rochambeau march through New Jersey in 1781 as part of the march of American and French forces from Rhode Island to Virginia that culminated in the American victory at Yorktown, Virginia, in October 1781.