The Battle of Lexington and Concord

1. The American Revolution The Battle of Lexington and Concord Home Back Previous Next

2. Table of Contents • Leading up to the Battle • “One if by land, Two if by sea” • Paul Revere’s midnight ride • “The shot heard round the world” • On to Concord • The British Retreat • Results of the Battle • Concord Hymn • Self Test • Reference Page Home Back Previous Next

3. Leading up to the Battle • 1765 – Colonists violently protest the Stamp Act • 1766 – Parliament repeals the Stamp Act, passes Declaratory Act • 1768 – British troops arrive in Boston to enforce laws • 1770 – Four Americans killed by British troops in “Boston Massacre” • 1773 – Boston patriots protest British Tea Act by throwing tea into the Boston Harbor • 1774 – First Continental Congress meets in Philadelphia • April 19, 1775 – Fist battle occurs in Lexington and Concord Home Back Previous Next

4. “One if by land, Two if by Sea” One if by land, two if by sea;And I on the opposite shore will be,Ready to ride and spread the alarmThrough every Middlesex, village and farm,For the country folk to be up and to arm. -Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Home Back Previous Next

5. Paul Revere’s Midnight ride Home Back Previous Paul Revere and Samuel Prescott rode from Boston to Lexington on the night of April 18, 1775 to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock that the British were coming to arrest them for treason. Next

6. The Shot heard ‘round the world Home On the morning of April 19th, 1775, at the break of dawn, British troops moved into the city of Lexington, where the minutemen stood awaiting. As the minutemen began to disperse to let the British pass, a shot was fired which lead to the British returning shots. And thus the American Revolution had begun. Seven minutemen lay dead after the gunfire as the British marched on to Concord. Back Previous Next

7. On to Concord Home Back The British marched into Concord to search for munitions. They found cannons and began to burn them. The militia fearing the British were burning the town marched towards the British. Shots were exchanged and the British retreated to Boston. Previous Next

8. The British Retreat As the British retreated to Boston, they encountered hundreds of local patriots who had heard about the incident in Lexington and had come to offer their services. 250 British soldiers were killed during the retreat. Home Back Previous Next

9. Results of the Battle • The British failed to capture Adams or Hancock • The local militia had the British controlled city of Boston surrounded • Word of the battle had spread throughout the Colonies and lead to the eventual organization of the first American Army. Home Back Previous Next

10. Concord Hymn by Ralph Waldo Emerson By the rude bridge that arched the flood,Their flag to April's breeze unfurled,Here once the embattled farmers stood,And fired the shot heard round the world. The foe long since in silence slept;Alike the conqueror silent sleeps;And Time the ruined bridge has sweptDown the dark stream which seaward creeps. On this green bank, by this soft stream,We set to-day a votive stone;That memory may their deed redeem,When, like our sires, our sons are gone. Spirit, that made those heroes dareTo die, or leave their children free,Bid Time and Nature gently spareThe shaft we raise to them and thee. Home Back Previous Next

11. What day did the Battle of Lexington and Concord occur? Home • April 18, 1775 • April 19, 1775 • April 18, 1776 • April 19, 1776 Back Previous Next

12. What crime were Samuel Adams and John Hancock being charged with? Home • Piracy • Tax Evasion • Treason • Murder Back Previous Next

13. The British troops entered Concord searching for what? Home • Munitions • The person responsible for the shot fired at Lexington • Minutemen who retreated from Lexington • George Washington and the American Army Back Previous Next

14. References America at War: Battle of Lexington and Concord The Battle of Lexington Fischer, David Hackett. Paul Revere's ride. New York: Oxford University Press, 1994. Paul Revere’s Ride Ralph Waldo Emerson Central Tourtellot, A. B. William Diamond's drum; the beginning of the War of the American Revolution. London: Hutchinson, 1960. Home Back Previous Next