Essential Question

Essential Question • What series of events led to the official beginning of the American Revolution?

The Revolution Begins Ch 6 Sec 3 Pt II

Colonists Prepare to Fight • By 1774, colonists were preparing for potential armed conflict w/ the British • Most colonial leaders, though, believed war w/ Britain would be a disaster • The colonies had no standing army or navy • Britain, on the other hand, had: • A highly-trained & experienced army • The World’s largest & most powerful navy

The British “Attack” • General Thomas Gage was the British Governor of MA in 1775. • Gage received information that the MA militia was storing arms & ammunition in Concord (about 20 miles NW of Boston) • It was also known that Sam Adams & John Hancock were staying in nearby Lexington • On the night of April 18, 1775, Gage ordered his troops to march out of Boston: • 1. Arrest Adams & Hancock • 2. Destroy the militia’s supplies in Concord

Summary/Test Question • Why did British troops march from Boston into the countryside in April 1775? • To break up the First Continental Congress • To capture Paul Revere • To recover cannons that rebel colonists had captured • To arrest Patriot leaders and destroy militia supplies

The Midnight Ride • The Sons of Liberty were prepared for this British advance • Messengers were stationed around Boston in order to alert the militia if the British moved out of Boston • Paul Revere and William Dawes were charged with riding out from Boston to sound an alarm • Revere had arranged a system of signals to alert colonists across the harbor of British troop movement

New Arrives in Concord • The signal was placed in the steeple of the Old North Church: • 1 lantern burning meant British troops were taking the land route • 2 lanterns burning meant they were leaving Boston by water • When the British moved, so did Revere & Dawes • They rode through the night spreading the news • In Lexington, they were joined by Dr. Samuel Prescott • When Revere & Dawes were stopped by a British patrol, Prescott broke away and took the news to Concord

Lexington & Concord • At dawn on Apr.19, 1775, more than 700 British troops had reached Lexington • 70 colonial militiamen met them on the town green • Colonists were told to drop their muskets, but refused • Suddenly a shot rang out, & within minutes 8 militiamen were dead • The British then marched on to Concord where a major engagement broke out

Minutemen • Over 4,000 minutemen arrived in the area within hours of the first shot at Lexington • These militiamen were trained to fight “at a minute’s notice” • At Concord, they forced the British to retreat • Then, using the stone walls that lined the road for cover, they harassed the British all the way back to Boston • Soon after the battles at Lexington & Concord ended, both sides realized that a revolution in the colonies had officially begun

Essential Question