Download Lexington and Concord

LEXINGTON AND CONCORD:
THE SHOT HEARD ROUND THE
WORLD
Boston, 1775
 Winter, 1775: Boston is on edge from the
Intolerable Acts
 British commander General Thomas Gage hears
a report of munitions stockpiles in Concord,
Massachusetts
 Gage sends 800 troops to seize Concord
 Concord is defended by the MINUTEMEN: local
militia ready to fight 60 seconds after a call to
arms
The Regulars are Coming!
 An elaborate spy network catches wind of the
British attack
 2 Lanterns placed in Boston’s Old North Church
Steeple warn of the attack
 Paul Revere, Samuel Prescott, and William
Dawes ride through the night of April 18
warning the countryside
 Paul Revere was NOT the only rider
 Paul Revere actually got caught by the British
A Shot Heard Round the World
 At Lexington, the British defeat the Colonials
in three minutes…
 …But the Colonials are ready at Concord and
defeat the British
 British are chased 16 miles back to Boston
 The Battle of Lexington and Concord is the
first battle of the American Revolution
Liberty or Death
 Word of Lexington and
Concord spreads like
wildfire
 “I know not what
course others may
take, as for me, give
me liberty or give me
death!” –Patrick Henry
Fort Ticonderoga
 While Congress
debates what to do
next…
 Ethan Allen and
Benedict Arnold
capture Fort
Ticonderoga in New
York’s Hudson Valley
Commander-in-Chief
 While Allen and Arnold
raid Fort Ticonderoga…
 John Adams nominates
42 year old Colonel
George Washington as
the commander-inchief of the new
Continental Army
The Siege of Boston
 June, 1775: Boston is under siege by the
British Navy, and Washington is en route to
Massachusetts to assume command
 Colonials scramble to retake Boston before
the navy arrives and the British look for a
quick end to the war
 General Sir William Howe launches an attack on
Breed’s Hill to break the back of the resistance
The Battle of Bunker Hill
 Howe sends two waves up the hill to attack
the colonials
 The first two waves are soundly beaten back with
massive casualties
 Howe risks everything on a last throw, and
sends a third and final wave up the hill
 Colonials fight until they run out of ammo
 British win…but suffer over 1000 casualties (twice
as many as the colonials)
The Continental Army
 July 3, 1775: George Washington assumes
command
 The battle stalemates for the next 8 months
until a young Boston bookseller launches a
daring plan to save Boston...
The Guns of Fort Ticonderoga
 Henry Knox goes on a
daring covert mission:
 drag the cannons from
Fort Ticonderoga…
 Three hundred miles…
 Back to Boston!
 He arrives with cannon
and weapons intact on
January 24, 1776
Dorchester Heights
 Washington and Knox
fortify Dorchester
Heights
 General Howe is
stunned to see the
guns from Fort
Ticonderoga pointed at
him and his navy
Fallout
 Every American is now forced to choose
sides: Loyalist or Patriot, Continental or Tory.
 Washington gets his first victory of the
Revolution when the British Army is forced to
evacuate Boston
 But the British set their sights on a new
target, and a bigger prize…
New York City
Summarize
 In your interactive notebook, at the bottom
of your notes page, write a short paragraph
about today’s lesson. Write about:
 What the main idea of the lesson was
 AND what you learned today.
 Your summary should be able to explain
today’s lesson to someone who was not in
class today.