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Battles of Lexington and Concord facts for kids

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Battles of Lexington and Concord
Part of the American Revolutionary War
The Battle of Lexington.jpg
Depiction of the Battle of Lexington by William Barnes Wollen, 1910
Date April 19, 1775; 249 years ago (1775-04-19)
Location
Result

Strategic American victory

Belligerents
Massachusetts Bay  Great Britain
Commanders and leaders
John Parker
James Barrett
John Buttrick
John Robinson
William Heath
Joseph Warren
Isaac Davis 
Francis Smith
John Pitcairn (WIA)
Hugh Percy
Strength
Lexington: 77
Concord: 400
End of Battle: 3,960
Departing Boston: 700
Lexington: 400
Concord: 100
End of Battle: 1,500
Casualties and losses
49 killed
39 wounded
5 missing
73 killed
174 wounded
53 missing

The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first battles of the American Revolutionary War. The battles were between British soldiers, who wanted to take away the colonists' weapons and arrest John Hancock and Samuel Adams on the way to Concord, and American colonists on April 19, 1775. They were fought in towns outside Boston, Massachusetts. These towns are Lexington, Massachusetts and Concord, Massachusetts. The Patriots found out long before it happened and safely evacuated the place.

The first battle was fought on Lexington Green in Lexington. General Gage, along with 700 British soldiers, marched there to find and destroy hidden weapons. However, they were met by 70 minutemen. The battle lasted only a few minutes, but 8 minutemen died and 9 were hurt. Only 1 British soldier had been injured, then the soldiers went to Concord to seize supplies such as food, guns, and ammunition stored by the militia. On the way back to Boston, they were ambushed by 400 minutemen. This time, Britain lost 250 soldiers, while only 90 Americans died.

The battles marked the outbreak of armed conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and Patriot militias from America's thirteen colonies. Ralph Waldo Emerson describes the first shot fired by the Patriots at the North Bridge in his "Concord Hymn" as the "shot heard round the world".

Interesting facts about the Battles of Lexington and Concord

Paul Revere's ride
Depiction of Revere's ride
  • The Midnight Ride by Paul Revere was to alert the American colonial militia in April 1775 of the approach of British forces before the battles of Lexington and Concord. He didn't shout out “The British are coming!” as some history books say, as he was on a secret mission.
  • Paul Revere wasn't the only one trying to warn the Americans. William Dawes, and Samuel Prescott also road to Concord. Both Revere and Dawes were captured. Only Samuel Prescott made it to Concord with the warning.
  • The "shot heard round the world" is a famous phrase that refers to the opening shot of the battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775, which began the American Revolutionary War.

Images for kids

See also

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