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The Revolution Begins.
The first meeting of the Continental Congress happened on this day. And all the colonies except Georgia sent representatives to the meeting. -
“Shot Heard ‘round the World”
British military leaders in the colonies grew
uneasy when local militias seemed to be preparing for action. The governor of Massachusetts, Thomas Gage, learned that a stockpile of weapons was stored in Concord, about 20 miles from Boston. In April 1775 he decided to seize the supplies. -
Battles at Lexington and Concord.
At dawn, the British troops arrived at the town of Lexington, where 70 armed minutemen waited. A patriot captain yelled to his troops, “Don’t fire unless fired upon.” Suddenly a shot rang out, No one knows who fired this “shot heard ‘round the world.” The battle at Lexington ended in minutes with only a few volleys fired. When the smoke cleared, 8 of the badly outnumbered minutemen lay dead, and 10 were wounded. The British, with only one soldier wounded,
marched on to Concord. -
Battle of Yorktown.
In early 1781 the war was going badly for the Patriots. They were low on money to pay soldiers and buy supplies. The help of their foreign allies had not brought the war to a quick end as they had hoped. The British held most of the South, plus Philadelphia and New York City. The Patriots’ morale took another blow when Benedict Arnold, one of America’s most gifted officers, turned traitor. -
The Treaty of Paris.
After Yorktown, only a few small battles took place. Lacking the money to pay for a new army, Great Britain entered into peace talks with America. Benjamin Franklin had a key role in the negotiations. Delegates took more than two years to come to a peace agreement. In the Treaty of Paris of 1783, Great Britain recognized the independence of the United States. The treaty also set America’s borders.
