Lexington+and+Concord

MHS11 **Lexington and Concord**


 * Do your reaction based on the following items**:

Finding Dulcinea: Paul Revere's Ride http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/on-this-day/March-April-08/Paul-Revere-Begins-Midnight-Ride.html

Animated map of the Battles of Lexington and Concord: http://www.revolutionarywaranimated.com/lex

http://www.masshist.org/revolution/lexington.php

Rowe's Revolution "Last night the Grenadiers & Light Companies belonging to the several Regiments in Town were ferry'd over Charles River & landed on Phipps Farm in Cambridge from whence they Proceeded on their way to Concord, where they arrived early this day. On their march they had a Skirmish with some Country People at Lexington.... " Diary of John Rowe, 19 April 1775

Lexington and Concord

Introduction

Irate over colonists' reaction to the Coercive Acts, King George III declares that Parliament must take a tougher stand against this "most daring spirit of resistance and disobedience to the law." Parliament overwhelmingly agrees: Massachusetts is in a state of rebellion, and several other colonies are aiding and abetting her insubordination.

General Thomas Gage, commander of British forces in America and recently appointed governor of Massachusetts, is determined to quell the unrest. He exerts his authority over all aspects of Massachusetts' public life, from meeting hall, to courthouse, to dockside. Regulars are everywhere, an ever-present sign of Boston's humiliation.

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.

Whig leaders try to piece together what happened in Lexington and Concord. They take depositions from all eyewitnesses, including the testimony of the Midnight Rider. Gage begins his own account of how "this unfortunate Affair has happened." In the ensuing battle for public opinion, not only throughout the colonies but also in England, the Bostonians win. Dispatching their report by a fast schooner, they edge out Gage by two weeks. The first account Parliament will receive and the British press will publish announces, the militia pleads innocent.

List of supporting documents:

A. A Powder Alarm

Long vulnerable to attack from Indians and the French, Massachusetts and its towns have stockpiled munitions over the decades. During the summer months of 1774, colonists feel the full force of Parliament's punitive measures and the dismay of being ruled by a governor who is also General of His Majesty's Troops in America. Surreptitiously, colonists begin to withdraw their towns' gunpowder from a central storage facility, the Provincial Powder House at Charlestown. On 1 September, acting on information from loyalist William Brattle, Gage proceeds swiftly and quietly to remove the remaining provincial stores to the safety of Castle William. Throughout the countryside, alarmed colonists swarm toward Charlestown. The next day thousands gather in Cambridge, eager to exact revenge and give further notice that they will not tolerate the Intolerable Acts.

Questions to Consider

1. This event becomes known as the "powder alarm." Do you think this is an appropriate term? Why or why not?

2. Why do you think William Brattle provides information to General Gage concerning the patriots' activities?

3. On 2 September, John Rowe notes that William Brattle has issued a "flimsey Recantation." What is a recantation? Why does Rowe call Brattle's recantation "flimsey"?

Further Exploration

4. Imagine that you are among the crowd gathered on Cambridge Common. Write a letter to your friend in Charleston, South Carolina, describing the gathering. Who is present at the gathering? Is the crowd happy? angry? calm? What are the people around you saying to one another?

B. "Heaven avert the Storm!"

Responding quickly to the colonists' display of force, Gage fortifies Boston Neck with troops and cannon and orders all citizens to relinquish their weapons. If Boston cannot be tamed, at least it can be contained. Although some towns had been reluctant to help shoulder Boston's burden after it destroyed the tea, Parliament's Coercive Acts, with their restructuring of the provincial charter and prohibitions on free and open assembly, are effectively punishing all of Massachusetts. On 21 September, a convention called in Worcester instructs towns to appoint rapid-response minutemen from among their militia and to create a network for sounding alarms into the countryside. In October, the Massachusetts Assembly meets, flouting Gage's ban by renaming itself the First Provincial Congress. In a clear indication of intent, it establishes a Committee of Safety and a Committee of Supplies. Hannah Winthrop can see no happy outcome to these preparations.

Questions to Consider

1. Do you think that Hannah Winthrop is a loyalist or a patriot? Support your argument with words or phrases from her letter.

2. Winthrop comments that the British merchants are "pouring in loads of English goods." Why are they doing so?

3. Winthrop expresses the hope that Col. Warren will soon meet with the General Assembly and that the "Constitutional Council" will resume meeting. Who is Colonel Warren? To what government body is Winthrop referring, and why does she hope they will "resume their seats?"

Further Exploration

4. Winthrop explains that the recent events in Cambridge give her a "painful Idea of the Horrors of civil war." Why would she use the term 'civil war' to describe the building conflict? England has experienced civil war in the past--when? What were the causes of the English civil war?

C. Sketches of the Countryside

Throughout New England--in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Newport and Providence, Rhode Island, and New London, Connecticut, as well as in Massachusetts--colonists carry off and hide provincial munitions. Given the explosive mood in the countryside and recent events in Worcester, on 22 February Gage orders two of his officers, Captain John Brown and Ensign Henry De Berniere, to travel the roads west from Boston and to gather and record information along the way. By 20 March, Gage shifts his attention to Concord, where the Provincial Congress has been meeting and a large supply of arms are stored. Once again, Gage sends Brown and Berniere on a mission. Closer to Boston, Concord seems a more accessible goal for recapturing provincial munitions and demonstrating British authority.

Questions to Consider

1. Rewrite Gage's instructions (on pages 3-4) in your own words. What is he asking Brown and Berniere to do?

2. Brown and Berniere stop at a tavern at the sign of the golden ball where they learn that the innkeeper is a "friend to government." What does this mean? Identify other friends of government mentioned in the narrative.

3. How do Brown and Berniere disguise themselves for the trip? Does the disguise work? Include examples from the narrative to support your answer.

4. Why are Brown and Berniere sent to Concord in March? What do they find there?

D. Sounding the Alarm

At 10:00 P.M. on the night of 18 April, approximately 800 British grenadiers and light infantry begin making their way to the Back Bay. Once gathered there, they are ferried across the Charles River basin to Cambridge. Again they muster, and at two o'clock in the morning they set out in the direction of Concord. As they march, they hear shots in the distance, a signal for minutemen to pick up their arms, for the Regulars are on the move. At 4:30 A.M., when they reach Lexington Green, the Regulars encounter resistance. Eight militiamen are killed and ten wounded, but the Regulars push on and reach Concord by 7 A.M. Along the way they hear more gunshots, church bells, and drum beats sounding the alarm throughout the countryside. In far-flung towns such as Andover, 17 miles northeast of Concord, militiamen like Thomas Boynton rally to assist their brethren.

Questions to Consider

1. Create a timeline of Boynton's journey with the minutemen. Which towns do they pass through, and at what time? For each town, make a note of what Boynton saw or heard there.

2. According to Boynton, how many British regulars were marching? How does this figure compare to that mentioned in other documents or in your textbook? Why might Boynton's number be different?

Further Exploration

3. Imagine that you are a young minuteman like Thomas Boynton. Write a letter to you friend in Charleston, South Carolina, describing your activities on 19 April. Be sure to describe your emotions during that day and your reactions to the news you were hearing as you passed through different towns.

4. Compare Boynton's account with another account of the events at Lexington and Concord. What is the same in each narrative? What is different?

E. Bloody Butchery

Around noon, the Regulars retreat under fierce fire from the opposition. Several hundred colonists, Concord's militia augmented by alarmed militia from surrounding towns, dog the withdrawing soldiers. A mile later, at Meriam's Corner, British troops pile into a narrow pass; from behind trees, fences, and buildings, colonial snipers take aim and shoot. A few hours later, at Menotomy, the provincials are reinforced by fresh militia and converge on the retreating Regulars. Frustrated English soldiers burn and pillage the countryside and attack civilians. In brutal hand-to-hand combat, colonials match hatchets and clubs against British bayonets. It is nearly sundown by the time the Regulars reach safety in Charlestown. Of their number, 65 will be reported dead, 180 wounded, and 27 missing; 50 colonists will have lost their lives, with 39 wounded and 5 missing.

Questions to Consider

1. According to this broadside, how many colonists were killed on 19 April?

2. Which towns are represented on the broadside's list of killed and wounded? Locate them on a 1775 map of Massachusetts.

3. Who requested that this broadside be published? For what purpose?

Further Exploration

4. Using the description provided in this broadside, make a timeline of the events of 19 April.

5. Imagine that one of your friends has been killed at the skirmish at the North Bridge in Concord. Write an elegy to your friend (see the bottom of the broadside for an example of an elegy).

6. Imagine that you witness the skirmish on Lexington Green from your bedroom window. Draw a picture of the scene.

7. The scene in Menotomy is chaotic. Your friend, a minuteman, has not returned home, and you are afraid. There is a knock on your door. A severely wounded British infantryman asks for your help. What will you do?

F. "Defend Our Wives and Our Children"

Not until around 10 P.M. on the night of 19 April, twenty-four hours after they had first mustered for their march to Concord, are all the Regulars back in Boston, having been ferried from Charlestown on the last leg of their mission. Over the next few days, a force of approximately 20,000 provincials, intent on preventing Gage's troops from making any more forays into the countryside, lays siege to the town. In the ensuing weeks, as colonists drift back toward their homes, Joseph Warren, president pro tempore of the Provincial Congress then meeting at Watertown, urges his colleagues to act boldly and to do so immediately.

Questions to Consider

1. What does the Congress propose to do?

2. Describe the tone of this broadside. Support your description with words and phrases from the document.

Further Exploration

3. Imagine that you are a young person living in Massachusetts on 30 April. Write a brief essay describing your reaction to this announcement. Do you think it is a good idea? Are you excited? Nervous? Scared?

G. Permits to Pass

Gage is in an unenviable position, pressed from without, and also from within. His troops are garrisoned among the enemy, and his only supply route and means of escape are by sea. Given his tactical disadvantage, the general decides to bargain with the town's selectmen. Ratifying the deal, the Provincial Congress will also allow civilians to pass without harm. Not surprisingly, fewer choose to enter Boston than to exit it; all told, between twelve and thirteen thousand men, women, and children will flee the besieged city.

Click here to view an example of a pass issued to a Boston family.

Questions to Consider

1. Rewrite the agreement in your own words.

2. What must civilians surrender before they pass out of or into Boston?

Further Exploration

3. What fears would have motivated individuals to leave Boston? Why might anyone want to enter Boston?

4. Do you hear of people fleeing before wars today? Give some examples from the news.

5. Pretend you are one of the young people trapped in Boston. Write a brief essay on your family's preparations to leave the city.

H. Testimony of the Midnight Ride

Paul Revere probably prepared this deposition, containing an account of his ride to Lexington, in 1775, at the request of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress. To prove that the British had fired the first shot at Lexington Green, the Congress solicited depositions from eyewitnesses in 1775. In his deposition, Revere explains how he received instructions from Dr. Joseph Warren to ride to Lexington to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock that English troops were marching west and how he secured a horse in Charlestown, avoided Britsh officers near Charlestown Common, and reached Lexington. He set out for Concord with William Dawes and Samuel Prescott, but halfway there, he was captured by British soldiers. Reverewas released, and he returned to Lexington where he helped move a trunk of papers belonging to John Hancock from the tavern and then saw the militia that had gathered on the town green. He heard the first shots exchanged between the British soldiers and the minutemen, but a house blocked his view of the skirmish.

This is a neat and corrected copy (a "fair copy") of a draft copy (see: Paul Revere's deposition, draft copy, circa 1775).

Revere's deposition (fair copy and/or draft) can also be compared to a letter he wrote, Letter from Paul Revere to Jeremy Belknap, circa 1798, containing another account of his famous ride.

Questions to Consider

1. Who sends Revere on his ride to Concord? What is Revere's task?

2. What happens to Revere during his ride to Concord (after he's visited Lexington)? Write a brief description of his activities.

3. According to Revere, who fires the first shot on Lexington Green?

Further Exploration

4. Although Paul Revere is most famous for his midnight ride, he is actually a man of many talents. Research Revere's life and write a brief description of some of his other accomplishments.

I. "Thus this unfortunate Affair has happened"

As accounts issued by Whig printers address public curiosity, General Gage appeals for support from senior officials throughout the colonies. When his personal letters fail to have an effect on either public opinion or policy, Gage decides to write his own version of the events at Lexington and Concord. Loyalist newspapers are unable or unwilling to publish Gage's account so he recruits a sympathetic Boston printer to publish his narrative as a broadside. Gage's primary goal, like that of the Provincial Congress, is to consider testimony and prove who fired the first shot on Lexington Green. Everyone who reads his broadside will also hear that the bloody butchery on 19 April was not one-sided.

Questions to Consider

1. According to Gage, what are Lieutenant Colonel Smith's orders to his officers?

Further Exploration

2. Compare Gage's narrative with another account of the events at Lexington and Concord. What is the same in each narrative? What is different?

3.Imagine that you are a young person living in London. Write a brief essay describing your reaction to Gage's broadside. Do you find it persuasive?

J. The Militia Pleads Innocent

On 25 April, the Provincial Congress learns that General Gage plans to send his report on the clash at Lexington and Concord to Parliament. He has hired the Sukey, a vessel owned by Boston merchant John Rowe, to carry the correspondence. Fearful that Gage might win the battle for public and official opinion, the Congress rushes to print nearly 100 copies of its own collected depositions, prefaced by a letter from Joseph Warren. Hiring the Quero, a fast schooner out of Salem, the Congress instructs its owner and captain to make haste and secretly deliver the depositions to the Lord Mayor of London. The Quero arrives two weeks ahead of the Sukey. Before Gage's account is known to exist, the American narrative is already spread across the London papers.

Questions to Consider

1. Describe the tone of the narrative. Support your description with words and phrases from the document.

2. Who is the captain of the Lexington militia? According to his deposition, who fired the first shot at Lexington Green?

3. According to Zechariah Brown and Thomas Davis Jr., what is rumored to have happened to the bodies of the regulars killed at Concord? Who do you think would have started this rumor and why? 4. Describe the testimony of Hannah Adams--what happens to her and her home? How is her testimony different from most of the other depositions? Why do you think the Provincial Congress includes this deposition in the pamphlet?

Further Exploration

5. Compare the Narrative with another account of the events at Lexington and Concord. What is the same in each narrative? What is different?