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Boston Massacre
Boston, Massachusetts
The Boston Massacre, called the Boston Riot by the British, was an incident on March 5, 1770, in which British Army soldiers killed five civilian men. British troops had been stationed in Boston, capital of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, since 1768 in order to protect and support crown-appointed colonial officials attempting to enforce unpopular Parliamentary legislation. Amid ongoing tense relations between the population and the soldiers, a mob formed around a Britis -
Battle At Lexington and Concord
Lexington,Massacusetts Concord,Massachusetts
The Battles of Lexington and Concord were actually the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. They were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concord, Lincoln, Menotomy (present-day Arlington), and Cambridge, near Boston. The battles marked the outbreak of open armed conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and its thirteen colonies in the mainland. -
The Battle of Chelsea Creek
Suffolk County, Massachusetts The Battle of Chelsea Creek was the second military engagement of the Boston campaign of the American Revolutionary War. It is also known as the Battle of Noddle's Island, Battle of Hog Island and the Battle of the Chelsea Estuary. This battle was fought on May 27 and 28, 1775, on Chelsea Creek and on salt marshes, mudflats, and islands of Boston Harbor, northeast of the Boston peninsula. Most of these areas have since been united with the mainland by land recla -
Battle Of Bunker Hill
Charlestown, Massachusetts On June 17, 1775 the Battle of Bunker Hill took place. It is one of the most important colonial victories in the U.S. War for Independence. Fought during the Siege of Boston, it lent considerable encouragement to the revolutionary cause. This battle made both sides realize that this was not going to be a matter decided on by one quick and decisive battle. When the British planned to occupy Dorchester Heights on the Boston Peninsula, the colonists became alarmed at the -
Battle Of Quebec
Quebec City, Province of Quebec The Battle of Quebec was an attempt on December 31, 1775, by American colonial forces to capture the city of Quebec, drive the British military from the Province of Quebec, and enlist French Canadian support for the American Revolutionary War. The British governor of Quebec, General Guy Carleton, could not get significant outside help because the St. Lawrence River was frozen, so he had to rely on a relatively small number of regulars along with local militia tha -
Battle Of Brooklyn Heights
Long Island, New York The British recognized the strategic importance of New York as the focal point for communications between the northern and southern colonies. Washington also recognized this, and in April of 1776 he marched his troops from Boston to New York. He positioned his troops on the western end of Long Island in anticipation of the British arrival. The American outpost of Colonel Edward Hand's sent word that the British were preparing to cross Long Island from Staten Island on Augu -
The Battle of White Plains
White Plains, New York General George Washington had, early in his chieftaincy, urged upon the Congress the necessity of the establishment of a permanent army, and with prophetic words had predicted the very evils arising from short enlistments and loose methods of creating officers, which now prevailed. While there was a brief lull in active military operations after the battle on Harlem Heights, he again set forth, in graphic pictures, the sad condition of his army, and the importance of a t -
Battle Of Fort Washington
Washington Heights, Manhattan, New York With some 2,000 of his troops, Washington moved down the west side of the Hudson and reached Fort Lee on November 13. Meanwhile, Greene had reinforced Magaw's original garrison of about 2,000 men (Lee's figure was low) with an additional 900. Greene continued to favor a defense of the fort, and Washington finally relied upon his subordinate's judgment. -
Battle Of Trenton
Trenton, New Jersey As soon as Fort Lee was abandoned, Washington began to withdraw his army across New Jersey toward Philadelphia. About 5,000 Americans left Hackensack on November 21, 1776, and retired without casualties 100 miles to safety behind the Delaware River on December 7. But the troops suffered a want of clothing and a sense of defeat which quickly translated into high sickness and desertion rates. a demoralized army that unraveled in retreat. -
The Battle of Princeton
Princeton, New Jersey Many Americans do not realize that George Washington crossed and re-crossed the Delaware River a total of four times in the waning days of 1776. The first time was in early December when he left New Jersey in retreat from the British. The 2nd was when he crossed to attack Trenton(Dec.25-26). After Trenton was taken, he deemed it best to put the river between his army and the more powerful British army, and went back to Pennsylvania -
Siege At Fort Ticonderoga
Fort Ticonderoga, New York, United States The 1777 Siege of Fort Ticonderoga occurred between 2 and 6 July 1777 at Fort Ticonderoga, near the southern end of Lake Champlain in the state of New York. Lieutenant General John Burgoyne's 8,000-man army occupied high ground above the fort, and nearly surrounded the defences. These movements precipitated the occupying Continental Army, an under-strength force of 3,000 under the command of General Arthur St. Clair, to withdraw from Ticonderoga and -
Battle of Oriskany
Oriskany, New York
The fight was for the continent. The strategy embraced the lines from Boston to the mouth of the Chesapeake, from Montreal even to Charleston. Montgomery's invasion of Canada, although St. John's and Montreal were taken, failed before Quebec, and the retreat of the American forces gave Burgoyne the base for his comprehensive campaign. Howe had been compelled to give up New England, which contained nearly one-third of the population and strength of the colonies. -
Battle Of Bennington
More InfoNear Bennington, New York
The Battle of Bennington was a battle of the American Revolutionary War that took place on August 16, 1777, in Walloomsac, New York, about 10 miles from its namesake Bennington, Vermont. An American force of 2,000 men, primarily composed of New Hampshire and Massachusetts militiamen, led by General John Stark, and reinforced by men led by Colonel Seth Warner and members of the Green Mountain Boys, decisively defeated a detachment of General John Burgoyne's army. -
Battle of Brandywine
Near Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania Many of the 15,000 British troops spent the night in Kennett Square -- population 2,000 -- unwinding and carousing, while a battle loomed. General Howe's flanking strategy was devised two days earlier. While General Knyphausen attacked at Chadd's Ford, as Washington expected, Cornwallis would stealthily move north, cross the Brandywine, and flank Washington's right. -
Battle Of Freeman's Farm
Saratoga County, New York
About 4 miles from Saratoga, on the afternoon of the 19th September, a sharp encounter took place between part of the English right wing, under Burgoyne himself, and a strong body of the enemy, under Gates and Arnold.
The conflict lasted till sunset. The British remained masters of the field. But the loss on each side was nearly equal (from 500 to 600 men) and the spirits of the Americans were greatly raised by having withstood the best regular troops. -
Battle of Germantown
Germantown, Pennsylvania
A thick fog clouded the battlefield throughout the day. The vanguard of Sullivan's column, on Germantown Road, launched the battle when they opened fire on the British pickets of light infantry at Mount Airy just as the sun was rising at around 5:00 am. The British pickets resisted American advance and fired their guns in alarm. Howe rode forward, thinking that they were being attacked by foraging or skirmishing parties. It took a substantial part of Sullivan's divisio -
Battle of Saratoga (Bemis Heights)
More InfoSaratoga County, New York junction would soon have been made of the two victorious armies, and the great objects of the campaign might yet have been accomplished. All depended on the fortune of the column with which Burgoyne on the eventful 7th October 1777, advanced against the American position. There were brave men, both English and German, in its ranks. And in particular it comprised one of the best bodies of grenadiers in the British service. -
Battle of Monmouth
Mnmouth, New Jersey
Washington begins to order the troops into a strong defensive line, using some of the exhausted advance corp, and some fresh troops. Riding all over the field, sometimes under fire, by his presence he is able to reverse the flow of events. He orders units into action and they move with precision, shifting like the trained troops Von Steuben has made them. The best of the British attack repeatedly as the Americans shuffle into line, and the Americans hold. -
Brtitish Capture Of Savannah
Savannah,Georgia
Campbell gained control of the city at the cost to his forces of seven killed and seventeen wounded. He took 453 prisoners, and there were at least 83 dead and 11 wounded from Howe's forces. When Howe's retreat ended at Purrysburg, South Carolina he had 342 men left, less than half his original army. Howe would receive much of the blame for the disaster, with William Moultrie arguing that he should have either disputed the landing site in force or retreated without battle. -
Siege of Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
In 1778, the British Commander-in-Chief in America Lt. General Henry Clinton turned his attention to the South, where partisan fighting between Patriot militia and Tories had been heavy. Clinton had been there once before on June 28, 1776 when Colonel William Moultrie had defeated Clinton and Commodore Sir Peter Parker at the Battle of Fort Sullivan. The British had tried to approach Charleston by water and had failed to reach the city proper. -
Battle of Camden
Camden, South Carolina
Both armies advanced at each other just after dawn. The British troops opened the battle, when the right flank fired a volley into the militia regiments, causing a significant number of casualties and then launched a bayonet charge. The militia, lacking bayonets, fled before the British regiments even reached them. Only one company of militia managed to fire a volley before fleeing. The panic quickly spread to the North Carolina militia, and they fled, 3 deaths. -
Battle of King's Mountain
Near Blackburn, SC and King's Mountain, NC
Upon arriving at Kings Mountain, the Patriot soldiers dismounted. After tying up the horses, the soldiers formed in a horseshoe around the base of the mountain behind their leaders, who remained on horseback. Ferguson was right in believing that his would be attackers would expose themselves to musket fire if they attempted to scale the summit. But Ferguson did not realize his men could only fire if they went out into the open, exposing themselves. -
Battle Of cowpens
Cowpens,SC
Morgan's strategy worked perfectly. The British drove in successive lines, anticipating victory only to encounter another, stronger line after exerting themselves and suffering casualties. The depth of the American lines gradually soaked up the shock of the British advance. At approximately 6:45 a.m., which was a few minutes before sunrise, Tarleton's van emerged from the woods in front of the American position. Tarleton ordered his dragoons to attack the first line of skirmishers, -
Battle of Guilford Courthouse
Guilford Courthouse, North Carolina
The battle began about noon and progressed unevenly. The first line of the North Carolina militia, its center deployed behind a rail fence facing cleared farm fields and its flanks extending into the forest, collapsed rapidly after the center of the line gave way. Before they retreated, however, the militia inflicted heavy casualties on the redcoats. One British officer later recalled that when his men of the 71st Highland Regiment were hit by a volleyl. -
Battle of Eutaw Springs
Near present-day Eutawville, South Carolina
The 8th dawned fair and intensely hot, but the Americans, on short rations and with little rest, advanced in early morning light toward the springs. At their approach the surprised British left their uneaten breakfast and quickly threw lines of battle across the road in a heavily wooded area. Behind them in cleared fields stood a large brick home with a high-walled garden. The woods and waters of Eutaw Creek were on the north. -
Battle of Yorktown
Yorktown, Virginia
The Siege of Yorktown or Battle of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by General Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by General Lord Cornwallis. It proved to be the last major land battle of the American Revolutionary War, as the surrender of Cornwallis's army prompted the British government eventually to negotiate an end to the conflict.
