Yorktown’s second annual Rochambeau Festival – Saturday, May 18, and Sunday, May 19 — will commemorate the critical role that French Gen. Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, Comte de Rochambeau, and his army played in aiding American independence from Great Britain.
The Rochambeau Festival is an immersive experience that explores Westchester County’s role in the revolution, New York state encampments and the Franco-American alliance. Families can join an encampment setup, drill with model muskets, see working animals like oxen and learn butter- and cheese-making. There will be a tactical weapons demonstration and battle with the Brigade of the American Revolution. On May 19, a short bus tour from Rochambeau Park will take visitors on a guided tour of Yorktown’s historic encampment sites. Guests can also enjoy food and beverages.
The two-day festival will be held at the park, also known as Yorktown Grange Fair Grounds in Yorktown Heights, one of five locations that French forces camped at in 1781 in Yorktown, then called Crompond. The park was dedicated to Rochambeau on Sept. 18, 1954.
The festival runs both days from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the cost is $10 per car for parking.
The event is produced by the Washington Rochambeau Revolutionary Route Association – New York (W3R-NY), in partnership with the Yorktown Heritage Preservation Commission / Yorktown 250 and the Yorktown Grange.
Said Lynn Briggs, chair of W3R-NY: “We are excited to produce a festival where everyone can dive into the history that happened in our backyards and learn about the crucial role Rochambeau played in aiding (Gen. George) Washington and the Continental Army.”
