Assault on Redoubt 10 at Yorktown: In order to complete the second siege parallel in front of the British fortifications surrounding Yorktown, VA, General George Washington ordered the seizure of two British redoubts near the York River. The French were assigned the first, Redoubt 9, and the American Light Infantry under Lt. Col. Alexander Hamilton the second, Redoubt 10. On the evening of October 14, 1781, as covering fire of shot and shell arched overhead, the Americans and French moved forward. The Americans, with unloaded muskets and fixed bayonets, did not wait for sappers to clear away the abatis, as the French did, but climbed over and through the obstructions. Within ten minutes the garrison of Redoubt 10 was overwhelmed. The French also met with success but suffered heavier losses. (U.S. Army Center of Military History ).