In June 1781, nearly five thousand French soldiers marched through Canterbury, Connecticut. They were going to Yorktown. General Rochambeau led them. This specific dirt track along Manship and Barstow Roads remains almost entirely unchanged since those heavy brass buttons and wool-clad men struggled through the June heat. Stone walls line the path. It feels empty now. But in 1781, the air smelled of horse sweat, wet canvas, and gunpowder. The French infantrymen dragged heavy siege guns over these exact ruts. They hated the rocky Connecticut roads. They complained in their journals about the dust and the steep climbs.
This wasn't just a random stroll. Rochambeau was executing a massive flanking maneuver to meet George Washington's forces outside New York. Then, they both pivoted south to trap Cornwallis at Yorktown. The French army divided into four distinct regiments, marching a day apart to avoid completely choking these narrow, rocky lanes. They set up Camp 5 nearby. Local farmers watched in sheer disbelief as thousands of men in white uniforms piped with bright green and pink marched past their barnyards. The soldiers traded French silver for fresh cider. The Yankees loved the hard currency. It beat worthless continental paper. So, the march became a temporary economic boom for Canterbury's rural households.
Today, the road is a quiet bypass, saved from modern asphalt by deliberate preservation efforts. You can still see the physical scars. Deep ruts cut into the earth by heavy baggage wagons occasionally appear after a heavy rainstorm. Oak trees shade the path. It feels eerie. Mainly because most of Rochambeau's 680-mile route now lies buried under strip malls, asphalt, and suburban lawns. This bypass is different. It preserves the raw, gritty reality of the alliance that won the American Revolution.
What Makes March Route of Rochambeau's Army: Manship Road-Barstow Road Special:
