sign in sign up
<<
Home , Paul Revere, William Dawes, William Prescott

CK_4_TH_HG_P087_242.QXD 10/6/05 9:02 AM Page 179

The First Continental Congress, as it was called, adopted the , which had been passed earlier in Suffolk County, . The resolves declared the Intolerable Acts unlawful and called for • a boycott of British goods, • the formation of a government in Massachusetts to replace the one disband-

Paul Revere’s Ride General , the commander of the British army and the governor- general of Massachusetts since the colony’s charter was revoked, was determined to seize the arsenal that his spies told him was stored at nearby Concord. On the night of , 1775, some 700 British infantry marched out of en route to Concord, about 17 miles away. They had expected to use their night departure to surprise the colonists, but the redcoats were constantly watched. Any unusual activity was noticed by the colonists. The colonists had discovered that General Gage had requested that the Cross-curricular British fleet anchored in Boston Harbor be prepared to use its longboats to ferry Teaching Idea his soldiers across the Charles River so they would be closer to Concord. But the You may wish to teach two poems colonial soldiers were not sure if this was Gage’s real plan or a ruse to trick them. from Language Arts, “’s The British might also march overland out of Boston. Ride” (pp. 38–39) and “Concord One of the observers was Paul Revere, a silversmith by trade and a Patriot. Hymn” (p. 35), in conjunction with On the night of April 18, he was prepared to spread the alarm. He wanted to make this section. Have students memorize sure that when the British left Boston, the Patriots would know which route they stanzas from each poem and practice were taking. Then the colonists could estimate how long it would take the red- reciting them to the class. Encourage coats to arrive at Concord. students to use vocal expression to Revere himself would ride out spreading the word that “the British are com- make the words vivid and the poems ing,” but if he could not get past the sentries, there would still be a signal in the sound exciting. steeple of the North Church. He had arranged for a friend to hang one lantern if the

History and Geography: American 179 CK_4_TH_HG_P087_242.QXD 10/6/05 9:02 AM Page 180

I. The

British were taking the land route and two lanterns if the soldiers were traveling by boat. Two lanterns appeared; the soldiers were going to be ferried across the river on their march to Concord. Revere himself took the sea route. Two friends rowed him to a waiting horse. , another Patriot, rode overland with the same news. The two met in Lexington and were joined by a third man, Dr. William Prescott. About two miles from Concord, they were stopped by a British patrol. Dawes and Prescott got away to continue alerting people of the impending British arrival, but Revere was captured. He was turned loose after the British major in command of the patrol heard gunshots in the distance and thought that the colonists were on the march. Revere had told him that there were 500 armed colonists between Concord and Boston. The patrol let Revere go and retreated. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow immortalized these events in his famous poem “Paul Revere’s Ride.” The long poem begins Listen, my children, and you shall hear Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere, . . . He said to his friend—“If the British march Teaching Idea By land or sea from the town to-night, Make an overhead of Instructional Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry-arch Master 29, The Fighting Around Boston. Of the North-Church-tower, as a signal-light,— Have students identify the route Paul One if by land, and two if by sea . . .” Revere took from Boston and the routes Concord and Lexington that the British took out of and back to Boston. You may also want to show The were Patriot militias who were supposed to be able to fight on photographs of the monuments at a minute’s notice. They were not regular soldiers but farmers, artisans, and shop- Bunker Hill and in Lexington/Concord keepers. They trained on village greens and elected their commanding officers. to give students a picture of what they By 1:00 AM on April 19, 1775, the minutemen of Lexington, having been would see if they went there today. awakened by Revere, were waiting for the British on Lexington green, the wide grassy center of the village. By the light of dawn, some 70 men had formed a line between the British and Concord to the west. The advance party of the British saw the minutemen waiting for them and raced toward them, forming a battle line. Captain John Parker, the commanding officer of the minutemen, told his men to disperse. In the confusion, someone fired a shot. When the British officers were finally able to stop their soldiers’ shooting, eight Americans lay dead and 10 were wounded. No one knows to this day if it was a minuteman or a redcoat who fired that morning. But that shot, “the shot heard ’round the world,” began the Revolutionary War. 40 The British re-formed into companies and continued the march to Concord. In Concord, they searched the village for weapons and gunpowder, but found only a small amount. Much of it was hidden on a farm outside the village. The minutemen retreated to the North Bridge, but were fired on by the British. The minutemen returned the fire and held the bridge. In five minutes the battle was over, and the British were retreating to Boston with minutemen firing at them from behind trees and fences all along the route. Among those who participated in the fighting that day as Patriots were African Americans Pomp Blackman, Lemuel Haynes, Peter Salem, Cuffe

180 Grade 4 Handbook CK_4_TH_HG_P087_242.QXD 10/6/05 9:02 AM Page 181

Whitemore, Cato Woods, and Prince Estabrook. Some were free men and some were enslaved. Teaching Idea Have students work in cooperative Bunker Hill groups to create storyboards illustrat- The actually took place at nearby Breed’s Hill. In colo- ing the major events on the night of nial times, the entire town of Boston was situated on a peninsula with hills to the April 19–20, 1775. Students should fill north and south. Governor-General Gage decided to fortify these hills before the in their outline pictures with crayons, Patriots could. On the night of June 17, 1775, the Patriots, hearing of his plans, markers, or paint. They could include seized both Bunker Hill and Breed’s Hill and began to dig in on Breed’s Hill. The speech bubbles for dialogue. next morning, when Gage learned of the Patriots’ actions, he decided to attack and dispatched 2,500 troops under Major General William Howe. On Breed’s Hill, William Prescott commanded some 1,700 Americans—some of them only boys. Because they had little gunpowder, Prescott Teaching Idea allegedly ordered his troops, “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes.” You may wish to introduce Patrick The American forces included men from various ethnic groups and professions. Henry’s speech, “Give me liberty or Among those waiting on the hill were African Americans Peter Salem, , give me death!” (see “Speeches,” on and Cuffe Whitemore. pp. 66–72) at the proper point in the The British came charging up the hill, and the Americans fired. The British historical narrative. Henry delivered fell back, regrouped, and attacked again, only to be pushed back by heavy gun- the speech in March 1775, just before fire. By the third charge, the Americans had run out of ammunition and were fir- the skirmishes at Lexington and ing nails and metal scraps. The Americans finally had to retreat, and the British Concord. claimed victory. However, it was a costly victory; there were 1,000 British casual- ties, and 400 on the American side. The victory also cost the British their sense of superiority in battle and boosted American confidence. The British withdrew from Boston in March 1776. Forces under General Teaching Idea ’s command had dragged 60 cannons some 300 miles Using Instructional Master 29, The (483 km) from Fort Ticonderoga, in what is now State, to Boston and Fighting Around Boston, have stu- pointed them at the British in Boston Harbor. With no possibility of taking the dents identify the location of Bunker guns, Gage and his troops set sail for Nova Scotia. Hill/Breed’s Hill. Point out that it overlooks the city of Boston and the Second Continental Congress harbor. Ask why students think the In May 1775, about a month before the Battle of Bunker Hill, the colonies had British were concerned that the area convened the Second Continental Congress. One of its early acts was to author- not fall into Patriot hands. (The loca- ize the creation of an army and to appoint George Washington as commander-in- tion had strategic value because chief. Washington may have been trying to influence others to choose him by whoever held it could control the wearing his uniform from the during each congressional city.) Use the term strategic in session. The colonial troops that had gathered around Boston were the beginnings describing the importance of the hill of the . Washington traveled from to Boston and and the Charlestown area where it is assumed command of those forces on July 3, 1775. located. As with the First Continental Congress, not all members of the Second Continental Congress wanted independence from Great Britain. During the sum- mer of 1775, delegates tried to find a way out of the situation. There had been fighting in New England and in New York ( and the Green Mountain Boys had taken Forts Ticonderoga and Crown Point), and all but three colonies had set up their own governments separate from the royal governors. The Second Continental Congress issued the Olive Branch Petition restating the colonists’ loyalty to the king and asking for peace. King George III rejected it and issued the Proclamation of Rebellion instead, declaring the colonies in rebellion.

History and Geography: American 181