Road To Independence

1. Road To Independence A Call To Arms p.141

2. The First Battles • Towns formed militia’s to fight against the British. • Minutemen boasted they would be ready to fight in a minute.

3. Britain Sends Troops • King George announced to Parliament that New England colonies were “in a state of rebellion” and “blows must decide” who would control America. • Sir Thomas Gage had instructions to take away the weapons of the MA militia and arrest the leaders. • Gage learned that the militia was storing arms and ammunition at Concord, near Boston. • He sent 700 troops under Francis Smith to Concord.

4. Alerting the troops • Paul Revere and William Dawes were alerted by 2 lights in the steeple of the North Chapel in Boston that troops were forming rank and beginning to march in Boston Common. • They rode to Lexington to warn Sam Adams alerting minutemen along the way.

5. Fighting at Lexington and Concord • After marching all night, the redcoats reach Lexington at dawn. • At the center of town they found 70 minutemen ready to fight. • A shot was fired, and then both sides let loose with an exchange of bullets. • In the end, 8 minutemen died.

6. Fighting at Lexington and Concord • The British troops continued marching to Concord. • When they arrived, they discovered most ammo and gunpowder had already been removed, but they destroyed the remainder. • The minutemen were waiting at the North Bridge. • In the end, at least 174 redcoats were wounded and 73 died.

7. Building Forces • After the battles of Lexington and Concord, calls for volunteers to join the militia were sent out. • Both the American and British troops waited nervously for several weeks for the other to make the next move.

8. Choosing Sides • With the battle, people needed to make a decision on which side to take. • Loyalist – Colonists who remained loyal to England. • Patriot – Colonists who fought against Britain for independence.