Battle of Lexington

Battle of Lexington

Battle of Lexington Definition: The Battle of Lexington was a military conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and its thirteen colonies in North America during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). The year and date that the Battle of Lexington took place on Wednesday, April 19, 1775. The Battle at Lexington Green in 1775 started the American Revolution and the "shot heard round the world." The battlefield in which the British and American Forces fought during the Battle of Lexington was located in the village of Lexington in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay.

Reason for the Conflict at the Battle of Lexington
General Thomas Gage, the military governor of Massachusetts, was aware that the Colonists in the Province of Massachusetts Bay were preparing for conflict, including the production of arms and munitions and the training of militia, including the Minutemen. On April 14, 1775, General Thomas Gage received instructions from Secretary of State William Legge, the Earl of Dartmouth, to disarm the rebels and to imprison the leaders of the rebellion. General Thomas Gage therefore sent British troops, the hated 'Redcoats', to capture the patriot leaders Samuel Adams and John Hancock who were reportedly staying in the village of Lexington. Other British troops were sent to Concord to seize the arms and ammunition which led to the second conflict in the Revolutionary War - the Battle of Concord.

The Battle of Lexington - The Midnight ride of Paul Revere
Following the 1773 Boston Tea Party and the passing of the punishing '1774 Intolerable Acts' the colonial patriots started to prepare for likely conflicts with the British. A leading patriot, Paul Revere, began serving as courier for the communication network organized by the Massachusetts Committee of Correspondence in 1774. In the early hours of April 19, 1775 Paul Revere, along with two other messengers, were sent to warn John Hancock and Samuel Adams of the movements of the British Army and their intentions to capture them. The patriots managed to escape the British but the presence of the British soldiers resulted in the first shot of the Revolutionary War being fired.

The Battle of Lexington
The British and the American colonists were in a face-off position on the green. There were over 100 spectators. Neither side wanted the situation to escalate and were ordered not to fire. No one knows who fired the first shot of the American Revolution - but many believe that it was an onlooker. Shots were exchanged by both sides resulting in the deaths and wounding of both American and British troops. The Battle of Lexington ended with the retreat of the colonists who were vastly outnumbered by the British. The British marched out of Lexington and made their way to Concord to seize arms and ammunition and capture any rebels that resulted in the Battle of Concord.

The Importance and Significance of the Battle of Lexington
Significance of the Battle of Lexington: The significance of the conflict was that it was that this was the first battle in the American Revolutionary War.

Battle of Concord

Battle of Concord Definition: The Battle of Concord was a military conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and its thirteen colonies in North America during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). The year and date that the Battle of Concord took place on Wednesday, April 19, 1775. The battlefield in which the British and American Forces fought during the Battle of Concord was located in the town of Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts. The town of Concord is twenty miles northwest of Boston. The Battle of Concord ended in victory for the American colonists.

Reason for the Conflict at the Battle of Concord
General Thomas Gage, the military governor of Massachusetts, was aware that the agitators and the Patriot Colonists in the Province of Massachusetts Bay were preparing for conflict following the 1773 Boston Tea Party and the passing of the punishing '1774 Intolerable Acts'. Their preparations included the production of arms and munitions and the training of militia, including the Minutemen. On April 14, 1775, General Gage received instructions from the British Secretary of State William Legge, the Earl of Dartmouth, to disarm the rebels and to imprison the leaders of the rebellion. General Thomas Gage therefore sent and advance force of British troops to capture the patriot leaders Samuel Adams and John Hancock who were reportedly staying in the village of Lexington and sent other British troops to Concord to seize the arms and ammunition. The patriot leaders Adams and Hancock escaped, thanks to the warning of Paul Revere. But shots were exchanged at the Battle of Lexington Green which started the American Revolution. The British troops at Lexington marched on to the town of Concord, their combined force totalled 1800 'Redcoats'.

Overview and Summary of the Battle of Concord
The Battle of Concord took place on Wednesday, April 19, 1775 at the town of Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts. The news of Lexington spread quickly and the militia started to gather in large numbers. When the British reached Concord, the soldiers began searching premises and private houses for firearms and started to set fire to homes. The patriots had received news of the British plans and had already moved their cache of munitions to other towns. There was some fighting and the tired British started on their homeward march back to Boston. Militiamen advanced on the three British companies, and took control of North Bridge, which led to the town of Concord.

The fighting began in earnest. Major Buttrick, in the militia, gave the order for the militia to fire on the British. The colonial forces totalled nearly 4000 men. The militia outnumbered the British 2 to 1. They took advantage of the surrounding countryside - behind every wall, every building, trees and every bit of rising ground were militiamen. The British sustained considerable casualties which would have been worse had they not been out of range of the militiamen's muskets. The British made their way back to Boston through Lexington where the fighting started again. The battle continued until the British survivors reached a place of safety under the guns of the warships anchored off Charlestown, a neighborhood of Boston. The Americans camped for the night at Cambridge and began the siege of Boston and the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga.

The Importance and Significance of the Battle of Concord
Significance of the Battle of Concord: The significance of the conflict was that victory against the British was unexpected and provided the Colonists with the confidence and belief in their ability to win further victories. The Battle of Concord was a great propaganda victory for the colonists.

Battle of Bunker Hill

Battle of Bunker Hill Definition: The Battle of Bunker Hill was a military conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and its thirteen colonies in North America during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). The year and date that the Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775. The battlefield in which the British and American Forces fought during the Battle of Bunker Hill was located in Charlestown, Massachusetts. The Battle of Bunker Hill followed the Battle of Chelsea Creek and was an engagement during the 11 month Siege of Boston (April 19, 1775 to March 17, 1776) and ended in victory for the British.

Overview and Summary of the Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775 at Charlestown, Massachusetts and was the first important battle of the American War of Independence. Although it was called the Battle of Bunker Hill, it took place mostly on Breed's Hill on the Charlestown hills. Following the first conflicts of the Revolutionary War at the Battle of Lexington and the Battle of Concord the Colonial Militia had surrounded Boston. Intelligence reports alerted the Americans that the British, under General Thomas Gage, were planning to control the hills around Boston, including the areas of Dorchester Heights and Charlestown, to keep Boston harbor open to British ships bringing in supplies and troops.

The colonial militia of over 1000 men, led by William Prescott, quickly constructed ramparts and earthen fortifications on top of Breed's Hill and Bunker Hill and along the Charlestown peninsula. British men-of-war opened fire but in spite of the canon balls Colonel William Prescott walked on the top of the ramparts and his men carried on digging. General Thomas Gage sent three thousand men across the Charles River to Charlestown to attack the Americans. The British troops attacked and the first two assaults were repelled by the colonial militia, resulting in considerable losses to the British force - over 1000 men were either killed or wounded. More British soldiers came from Boston. On the third assault, the colonial militia ran out of powder and ammunition and had to retreat back to Cambridge. Although the British won the battle, they suffered such heavy casualties that the relatively inexperienced colonial forces were filled with confidence in their ability to fight the British.

The Importance and Significance of the Battle of Bunker Hill
Significance of the Battle of Bunker Hill: The significance of the conflict was that it was the first important battle of the American War of Independence.

Battle of Trenton

Battle of Trenton Definition: The Battle of Trenton was a military conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and its thirteen colonies in North America during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). The year and date that the Battle of Trenton took place on Thursday, December 26, 1776. The battlefield in which the British and American Forces fought during the Battle of Trenton was located in Trenton, New Jersey. The Battle of Trenton ended in victory for the American colonists.

Overview and Summary of the Battle of Trenton
The Fall of Fort Washington on the end of Manhattan Island was a crushing blow for the Americans and destroyed all hope of holding anything near New York. General George Washington sent one part of his army to secure the Highlands of the Hudson. With the other part of the army he moved across New Jersey to the southern side of the Delaware River. The Battle of Trenton took place on Christmas night, Thursday, December 26, 1776 in New Jersey. General George Washington crossed the Delaware with a division of his army. It was a treacherous crossing, a violent snowstorm was raging and the Delaware river was full of ice. But George Washington and the determined soldiers crossed the river. The weather changed and the storm turned to freezing sleet and rain but on the soldiers marched on to their destination which was the Hessian garrison at Trenton. The American forces under George Washington and Nathanael Greene surprised the German Hessians holding the roads leading inland from the town of Trenton.

John Stark and a few American soldiers, including James Monroe, held the bridge leading over the Assanpink* to the next British post. A few horsemen escaped before John Stark could prevent them, but all of the fleeing German Hessian foot soldiers were killed or captured. Nearly 1000 Hessian prisoners were marched through Philadelphia. It was a significant victory for the Americans and a crushing defeat for the Hessian army. Washington was about to lead another American victory at the Battle of Princeton.

The Importance and Significance of the Battle of Trenton
Significance of the Battle of Trenton: The significance of the conflict was that the Hessian army was crushed in Washington's raid across the Delaware River and the Americans were invigorated by the easy defeat of the British Hessian forces.

The Battles of Saratoga
Battle of Saratoga Definition: The Battles of Saratoga were a series of military conflicts fought during September and October 1777 between the Kingdom of Great Britain and its thirteen colonies in North America during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). The battlefield in which the British and American Forces fought during the Battles of Saratoga were located near Albany in Saratoga County, New York. The Battles of Saratoga ended in victory for the American colonists.The earlier Siege of Fort Stanwix and the Battle of Oriskany together with the Battle of Bennington were also part of the Saratoga campaign. The names of the conflicts detailed in this article on the Battles of Saratoga include the Battle of Freeman's Farm that took place on September 19, 1777 and the Battle of Bemis Heights that took place on October 7, 1777.

The Battles of Saratoga - The Plan of General John Burgoyne
Following the Battle of Princeton on January 03, 1777 the British army under General Howe and Lord Cornwallis abandoned nearly all their posts in New Jersey and positioned themselves in New York state. General Burgoyne was given command of the British forces charged with gaining control of Lake Champlain and the Hudson River valley. General John Burgoyne planned to cross Lake Champlain from Quebec and capture Ticonderoga before advancing on Albany, New York where he would rendezvous with the British forces under General Howe coming north from New York City and a smaller force advancing from the Mohawk River valley under Lieutenant Colonel Barry St. Leger thus dividing the colonies of New England from the southern colonies. The plan faltered when:

§  St. Leger was forced to withdraw to Canada following the Siege of Fort Stanwix and the Battle of Oriskany

§  The British defeat at the Battle of Bennington and their failure to gain new supplies and horses

§  The Continental Army, led by George Washington, prevented General Howe from joining forces with General Burgoyne

§  General George Washington realized that a major battle was imminent and called for any Militia to join the Continental Army in New York that resulted in a large contingent of regular troops and militia gathered in the Saratoga area

The Battles of Saratoga - Overview and Summary of the Battle of Freeman's Farm
The first crucial battle of Saratoga, the Battle of Freeman's Farm, took place on September 19, 1777. General John Burgoyne had begun his advance south, but was stopped about 10 miles below Saratoga fighting occurred in a clearing known as Freeman’s Farm. A militia of sharpshooters from Virginia, under Daniel Morgan, harassed the British. Burgoyne lost two men for every one on the American side but were saved by the arrival of German Hessian forces under Riedesel. The German Hessians were therefore instrumental in the British victory at the Battle of Freeman's Farm.