History Brief: Lexington and Concord

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Everything students need to know about Lexington and Concord.

Transcript:

One mid-April morning in 1775, Thomas Gage, commander of British troops in Boston, learned of a stash of weapons and ammunition the colonial militia had stored 18 miles away in the village of Concord. Gage, determined to meet the threat head on, issued orders to seize the supplies and destroy them.

Paul Revere, a silversmith involved with the Sons of Liberty, supervised a network of spies around the city. Once alerted of the British movements, Revere arranged for a friend to watch from a window of the Old North Church. If the troops left Boston on foot, he was to hang one lantern in the window, if they left by boat, two lanterns were to be placed in the window.

As 800 of King George III’s best troops began climbing into boats, Revere took note of the lanterns and set out on a nighttime ride, alarming fellow colonists that, “The Regulars are out! The Regulars are out!” Heeding Revere’s and fellow rider William Dawes’ warnings, militia began gathering on the Village Green near Lexington, intending to block the road to Concord.

On the morning of April 19, 1775, a group of around 70 militiamen watched as the British Army swung into battle formation in front of them. British officers ordered the militia to lay down their weapons and disperse, but the Colonists didn’t move. The defiance ignited a tense standoff. Then a nervous trigger finger fired one of the most important shots in the history of the world.

A stray bullet buzzed across the Lexington Green, and the British responded with deadly accuracy. Several colonists returned fire before running away. Eight militia men lay dead, and ten more were wounded. No one knows who fired the bullet, but it became known as the “Shot Heard Round the World.”

The British marched on, determined to carry out their mission, as colonial militia began assembling for Concord’s defense. To get there, the militia had to cross the North Bridge which was guarded by three British companies. The British ordered the Americans to stop, and a warning shot was fired into the air. An instant later, the King’s Army fired a full volley into the Americans. Major Butrick, the American officer shouted, “Fire, for God’s sake men, fire!”

The colonists responded, and the British, facing a full scale battle, fell back, beginning a 17-mile retreat back to Boston. As news of the fight spread, colonists from all directions took up positions behind trees, rocks, and even houses, firing at British soldiers as they passed.

Many British soldiers began falling out and surrendering, and the army was perhaps minutes away from disintegrating. Suddenly, British soldiers near the front of the advance let out an echoing cheer at the site of a column of reinforcements marching to rescue them. With a large number of fresh and organized British troops in front of them, the militia abandoned the chase. The Battle of Concord resulted in 99 British soldiers being killed and 174 wounded.

The days of boycotts, protest rallies, and letters to Parliament were over. The war for American Independence had begun.