Lexington and Concord

In 1775, there was a great change. General Thomas Gage had been named governor of Massachusetts. So John Hancock together with Samuel Adams and other colonial leaders convened at a Provincial Congress deciding to govern Massachusetts without Gage.

This Provincial Congress also began a stock pile of arms and amunitions.





All this lead to battle.



In April of the same year there was war in Lexington and Concord. Gage provoked this battle by sending troops to arrest Adams and Hancock. After they captured them, they were to go to Concord and seize the stockpile.



Luckily the colonists were tipped off about this by Paul Revere, who was sent to Lexington to warn Adams and Hancock. When he got to the town he excliamed the famous quote: "The British are coming, the British are coming." As soon as this warnig came, the local militia run got ready to run off the British troops.

When the troops marched into town, about 70 militia were gathered at Lexington Green, but the British ordered them to disperse. While the militia was dispersing, someone fired a shot, which provoked even more shots to come. When the shooting stopped eight militia men were dead.



So now the red coats (British troops) continued to Concord. They collected the stockpile and then headed back to Boston. On their way back they found trouble. Hundreds of minutemen (colonial militia) had lined up the road hiding behind trees and rocks. So when the red coats passed by, they were supprised attacked by the militia. Benefited from this attack, at the end they had killed 200 red coats.