Lexington and Concord

Introduction

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Sensing the town's rising temperature, Gage decides to defuse New England's military arsenal. On 1 September, he sends 260 soldiers to seize 250 barrels of gunpowder from the powder house at Charlestown. Colonists, convinced they are under attack, raise a powder alarm, which mobilizes thousands of local militia, some as far away as Connecticut. Gage fortifies Boston against possible attack, while the Provincial Congress establishes a network of alarm riders and rapid-response militia units. Many fear that civil war is imminent and pray, "Heaven will avert the storm!"

An astute general, Gage needs to understand the lay of the land. In January, he issues orders for Captain John Brown and Ensign Henry de Berniere. The spies are to travel west through Suffolk and Worcester Counties and take sketches of the countryside, noting tactical opportunities and obstacles. Surveying Middlesex County in March, Brown and Berniere discover a store of weapons and supplies in Concord. Just twenty miles from Boston, and a meeting place of the suspended—and thereby illegal—Provincial Congress, Concord is the site of Gage's next strike. Reinforcing his decision is a secret letter from Lord Dartmouth, the Secretary of State for the American Colonies, who encourages Gage to arrest Whig leaders, confiscate the rebels' weapons, and invoke martial law.

On the night of 18 April, British grenadier and light infantry companies gather in Boston's Back Bay. They are ferried across the Charles River basin to Cambridge, and from there they begin their march into Concord. Paul Revere and others sneak out of Boston and ride through the countryside sounding the alarm. When the Regulars arrive in Lexington, minutemen are waiting. A bloody confrontation erupts. After the British push on, eight colonists lie dead on the green; ten more are wounded. In Concord, the Regulars are met by an even greater force, which repels them at North Bridge. The Regulars, in retreat, are pursued by a growing militia force, drawn by widely rippling alarms. In time, both sides accuse each other of bloody butchery.

To prevent Gage's troops from making any more forays into the countryside, 20,000 provincials lay siege to Boston. From the safety of its meeting place in Watertown, Dr. Joseph Warren, president of the Provincial Congress in John Hancock's absence, says what is on the minds of many. To "defend Our Wives and our Children", he declares, each Massachusetts town should enlist men to form an army. But Gage soon strikes a deal: he issues permits to pass in and out of Boston so long as Bostonians first surrender their weapons. It seems further bloodshed is averted, at least for the time being.

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