Patriots' Day

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Patriots’ Day is a special Massachusetts state holiday commemorating the battles of Lexington and Concord, which were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. Although the battles began on April 19, 1775, the holiday is observed on the third Monday in April and  is celebrated with parades, reenactments and commemorative ceremonies. (It’s also the reason why your tax returns are due tomorrow instead of today.)

In case you need a little refresher on Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Paul Revere, Benedict Arnold, and the rest of the events surrounding this American War of Independence …

The Battle of Lexington and Concord was made up of two battles that began on April 18th, 1775. British troops were sent to Concord to capture John Hancock  and Samuel Adams, but both men had been warned about the British attack. The night of April 18th, Paul Revere rode through Concord warning everybody about the British attack. So when the British came in to take and attack the Rebels, the Minutemen, Americans who were “ready to fight in a minute,” were waiting to attack at Lexington. The Americans were withdrawing when someone fired a shot, and the British troops started to fire at the Minutemen. The British then charged with bayonets. Nobody knows who shot first.

“Don’t fire unless fired upon. But if they want a war let it begin here” said Captain John Parker, commander of the Minutemen.

The British killed many Minutemen and wounded many more in this Battle at Lexington. The rest of the Minutemen scattered into the woods.

After this fight, the British found out that Hancock and Adams had escaped. So the British marched towards Concord looking for ammunition. As the British went to look at a nearby farm for weapons, they ran into a group of minutemen at Concord’s North Bridge. There was a big fight, and the Minutemen made the British retreat. The Minutemen tried not to let the British retreat, but the retreat was successful.

The Battles of Lexington and Concord were battles that took many lives. By the end of the day, British troops had lost 273 soldiers, while the Colonists lost only 94. 18 of these Colonists had died during the battle at Lexington. The Revolutionary War had begun.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, a famous poet, called the Battle of Lexington “the shot heard ’round the world,” because this battle began the Revolutionary War. His poem is on a monument by Concord’s North Bridge.

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