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Learn about the events that took place on April 18, 1775, including Paul Revere's midnight ride, the battles of Lexington and Concord, and the siege of Boston, which sparked the American Revolution.
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The British are Coming! • On the night of April 18, 1775, the British sent troops to Concord to confiscate military supplies of Massachusetts militia • Hoped to surprise the colonists and take the supplies without bloodshed • Colonists got word and sent riders to warn the town • Paul Revere • William Dawes • Samuel Prescott
Midnight Ride • Paul Revere and William Dawes were alerted that the British Army was on the move from Boston to Lexington • Presumably to arrest patriots Sam Adams and John Hancock • Lanterns were hung in the church belfry • “One if by land, two if by sea” • Revere and Dawes went opposite ways to Lexington • Warned colonists on the way • “The Regulars are coming out!” • Dr. Samuel Prescott joined the ride from Lexington to Concord where the militia had its ammunition stores • All 3 were stopped by a British patrol on the road to Concord • Prescott jumped his horse over a stone wall and escaped • Only one to make it to Concord • Dawes escaped and returns home • Revere’s horse is confiscated and he is forced to walk back to Lexington
Lexington and Concord “The Shot Heard ‘round the World” • Morning of April 19, 1775 • 700 British troops met 70 minutemen on the village green in Lexington, Mass. • Unknown shot rang out and battle began • Each side claimed the other fired first • Possibly from outside the battle field • Behind bushes, tavern, etc. • Within minutes, Colonists suffered 8 dead, 10 wounded • 1 British casualty • Colonists scatter • British continued their marched to Concord
Battle of Concord • Militia had been warned and removed majority of supplies • Moved across bridge on outskirts of town • The British easily took the town and began to burn the remaining supplies • Sent out redcoats to surrounding countryside • Held the colonists across the river • When the Colonists saw smoke, they advanced back across the Old North Bridge to drive out the British Old North Bridge
British Retreat back to Boston • Colonists took bridge and forced British retreat back to Boston • British marched to “Yankee Doodle” to taunt the colonists • Minutemen, militia, farmers, locals hid along the road and fired upon Redcoats along their retreat • 73 British Dead, 174 wounded • 50 American Dead, 39 wounded • Huge morale boost for Americans • Yankee Doodle • Yankee Doodle went to town, • A-Riding on a pony; • He stuck a feather in his hat, • And called it macaroni. • Yankee Doodle, keep it up, • Yankee Doodle dandy; • Mind the music and the step, • And with the girls be handy!
Siege of Boston • After driving the British back to Boston, militia surrounded the town, holding the British inside the city
Second Continental Congress • In May 1775, delegates from 12 colonies again met in Philadelphia • Created Continental Army • Named George Washington as Commander Patrick Henry addresses members of the Second Continental Congress
Capture of Fort Ticonderoga • Ticonderoga, New York • May 10, 1775 • Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold • led 83 Vermont militia • “Green Mountain Boys” • Surprise British (2-3am) and take Fort • 1 shot, No casualties • British retreat into Canada • Patriots get valuable Cannon • Later used on Boston
Battle of Bunker Hill • On June 17, 1775, Israel Putnam and William Prescott led colonial forces to the Charleston Peninsula to fortify it • Elevated land just north of Boston • Put pressure on British to leave Boston • Built impressive earthworks in one night (June 16th) • British advanced on them the next morning • Most of the fighting was actually done on the larger Breed’s Hill
Battle of Bunker Hill • British General William Howe thought that the Americans were soft and would not hold their ground in battle • Ordered a direct charge up the hill • Americans were low on powder, ammo • "Don't shoot until you see the whites of their eyes!" – Israel Putnam • Americans held firm and repelled 2 British charges • Finally ran out of ammo and had to retreat Battle of Bunker Hill -Howard Pyle
Battle of Bunker Hill • One of the bloodiest battles of the war • British - 226 dead, 828 wounded • American - 140 dead, 271 wounded • Technically a British victory, but • Americans had shown that they can fight • Huge morale boost • Britain could not take victory for granted • After the battle, British General Henry Clinton remarked in his diary that "A few more such victories would have surely put an end to British dominion in America." • Colonial Col. Nathanael Greene remarked, “I wish we could sell them another hill at the same price.”
Second Continental Congress • Signed “Olive Branch Petition” (7/75) • Cease-fire until issues could be resolved • King George III refused to read it
Battle of Boston • American General Henry Knox transports cannon from Ticonderoga to Boston • 56 day journey (12/75-1/76) • 300 miles • 60 tons of cannon • Used ox-drawn sled over snow, frozen rivers • On the night of March 4, 1776, General George Washington sneaked his troops and cannon on top of Dorchester Heights, overlooking Boston • Within striking distance • British General William Howe evacuated Boston on March 7, 1776 • After nearly a year, the Siege on Boston was over • Americans had drove out the British! Washington at Dorchester Heights – Emanuel Leutze
