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Battles of Lexington and Concord
These marked the start of the Revolutionary War. The British hoped to seize weapons that the colonists had hidden in Concord. Paul Revere had heard this plan and rode ahead to warn the colonists. At Lexington, they wanted to capture Sam Adams and John Hancock. Colonists, were there waiting to fight them, but they lost. The Battle at Lexington had a different outcome, as the colonists won because they unleashed a surprise attack on the British soldiers. The colonists had about 50 casualties. -
Battle of Fort Ticonderoga
This was more of a siege than a battle, and resulted in the British surrendering the fort to the colonists. Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold commanded 168 Green Mountain Boys and American militia, who snuck into the fort to demand its surrender. This was such an easy victory for the colonists that there were no casualties. After the capture, Colonel Knox transported 60 tons military supplies to Boston, along with a cannon. This threat is what forced the British to evacuate Boston. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
This battle resulted in a British victory, but provided colonists with confidence for the rest of the war. They killed about 200 British troops, and they only had about 100 casualties. It took the British 3 charges before the outnumbered Patriots were forced to retreat. 1,000 colonist militia went to this battle under Colonel William Prescott, and the famous patriot Joseph Warren was killed. Even though the Patriots lost, it showed the British that the colonists were a force to be reckoned with. -
Battle of Long Island
This battle was part British's attempt to gain control of New York. They wanted to do this because it would isolate New England from all the other colonies. British forces managed to move against Washington's Continental Army, but Washington was able to escape and continue to fight. If Washington had been defeated, his whole fleet would have had to surrender, which would have completely changed the outcome of the war. This small victory for the British had no major impact on the war's outcome. -
Battle of Trenton
George Washington led the Patriots to victory in this battle. The Patriots set off on December 24th and crossed over the Delaware River two days later before marching to Trenton to initiate a surprise attack on a Hessian and British garrison. The battle resulted in an easy victory for the Americans and boosted the moral of all the colonists. Only 5 Patriots were wounded in comparison to 83 British soldiers. Since the Patriots had won so easily, they didn't fear upcoming challenges as much. -
Battle of Saratoga
This battle was actually two battles fought 18 days apart at Bemis Heights. Benedict Arnold led the American troops while John Burgoyne led British. Burgoyne won a small victory against Arnold, but his troops were weakened. When Burgoyne attacked again the American's forced him to retreat, and he surrendered 10 days later. Because of this victory, French decided to enter the war as America's ally. This was a turning point because America gained foreign allies that would help them win the war. -
Battle of Monmouth
This battle had an indecisive conclusion as both the Americans and British claimed to have been victorious. General Lee was leading American troops at first and was having the troops retreat. General Washington arrived, and re-formed the men, which allowed more units to come join. There was many casualties resulting from this battle, because it was the largest artillery duel of the war. By the end of the day both sides stopped fighting, and General Clinton led the British away to be evacuated. -
Battle of Cowpens
This was a decisive battle for America. America was able to inflict major damage on British troops, was a major turning point for the war's Southern campaign. This victory also boosted the soldier's moral. -
Battle of Yorktown
This was the most important battle because it ended the war. Washington and his army had cornered the British and were being assisted by France, whose navy helped pin the British forces in from the other side. It resulted in the British General Charles O’Hara surrendering to Washington, although the British forces were being led by General Cornwallis. This marked the victory of America, and led to the Treaty of Paris, which formally ended the war.
