Expédition Particulière

The Special Expedition (French: Expédition Particulière) was an expeditionary force deployed by France to North America to support the United States against Great Britain during the American Revolutionary War. Arriving at Newport, Rhode Island on 11 July 1780 under the leadership of the Comte de Rochambeau, it numbered up to 5,500 troops and played a decisive role in the final battles of the war. Another 2,500 troops were intended to join the force but could not escape the British blockade of Brest, France.

After remaining inactive for almost a year, Rochambeau marched his troops south to rendezvous with George Washington's Continental Army for a planned attack on New York City. At Rochambeau's urging, Washington abandoned the operation and both forces were marched to Virginia to join the French fleet of Admiral François de Grasse in trapping British Lieutenant-General Charles Cornwallis's army at Yorktown; the subsequent Franco-American siege ended in Cornwallis surrendering in October 1781, which hastened negotiations towards a peace treaty ending the war.