Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis
The British general whose surrender at Yorktown secured American independence, yet who later shaped imperial policy in India and Ireland.
1738–1805 (age 67)·British Army officer·Birthday: December 31
Biography
Charles Cornwallis is a complex figure etched into the history of three continents. To Americans, he is the defeated general at Yorktown, the man whose capitulation in 1781 effectively ended the Revolutionary War. Yet this portrait is incomplete. A capable and often compassionate soldier, he had previously served with distinction in the Seven Years' War and was initially reluctant to fight the colonists. After Yorktown, his career was rehabilitated. As Governor-General of India, he enacted the Permanent Settlement, a land revenue system that reshaped Bengal's agrarian society for generations. Later, as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in the wake of the 1798 Rebellion, he oversaw the dissolution of the Irish Parliament and the Act of Union with Great Britain. Cornwallis was a pragmatic imperial administrator, a man whose legacy is a blend of military setback and significant, if controversial, bureaucratic reform across the British Empire.
#1 When Charles Was Born
The biggest hits of 1738
Charles's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1738Born
1743Started school
1751Became a teenager
1754Could drive
1756Could vote
1759Turned 21
1768Turned 30
1778Turned 40
1788Turned 50
1798Turned 60
1805Died at 67
Key Achievements
- His surrender at the Siege of Yorktown in 1781 was the decisive military conclusion of the American Revolutionary War.
- As Governor-General of India, he established the Cornwallis Code, a major reform of administrative and judicial systems.
- Implemented the Permanent Settlement of Bengal in 1793, a landmark land revenue agreement.
- As Viceroy of Ireland, he helped secure the passage of the Act of Union in 1800, creating the United Kingdom.
Did You Know?
He was the first British governor-general to die in India and is buried there, in Ghazipur.
Despite his surrender, he maintained a respected military reputation and was later appointed Master of the Ordnance.
Cornwallis famously granted honorable terms to the surrendering American and French forces at Yorktown.
He served as a personal aide-de-camp to King George III early in his career.
“I trust that the justness of our cause will prevail against any enemy.”
