Good day, welcome to Boston National Historical Park.
I'm Ranger Patrick, one of the National Park Rangers here.
Currently, we're inside the Bunker Hill Museum
Across from us is the Bunker Hill Monument
the place where the battle was fought on 17 June, 1775
the battle which became known as the Battle of Bunker Hill
one of the most important battles in American military history.
We'll discuss, in these next few videos
why this battle was so important
how it changed what was at stake in this conflict
the American Revolutionary War
but also why it was fought here on the penninsula north of Boston
and how the unique geography of colonial Boston played a role in the outcome of this battle.
Boston had become a city under military occupation
beginning in May of 1774.
This was the second military occupation of Boston.
This occupation was due to the Boston Tea Party
which occured in December of 1773.
British troops had now come into Boston
to enforce a series of laws known collectively as the Coercive or Intolerable Acts
meant to punish both Boston and Massachusetts
economically and politically.
The last royal governor
was Lieutenant General Thomas Gage.
He would seek a military solution to a political problem
but he understood the challenges he faced.
He began to send troops into the countryside
looking to confiscate colonial stockpiles of munitions.
The first such foray was on the 1st of September, 1774
an event known as the Powder Alarm.
British troops confiscated colonial stocks of gunpowder
in what's now Somerville, Massachusetts.
The lack of gunpowder
would play a major role
in the Battle of Bunker Hill
fought the next year.
Other military expeditions however
were not successful
mostly due to intelligence failures.
The last and perhaps most ambitious began on the 18th of April, 1775.
British troops crossed from Boston
crossing the Charles River
heading towards Concord, Massachusetts
about 20 miles to the west of Boston.
However, before they could reach their destination
two riders exited Boston, including Paul Revere, under the direction of Joseph Warren
one of the key leaders of the Sons of Liberty
and the Provincial Congress.
British troops would open fire on dispersing colonists
on the Lexington Green on the 19th of April, 1775 [musket shots].
A few more miles away at Concord again, without order, they would fire upon armed colonists.
But this time colonists returned fire [musket shots].
This return of fire became known as the "Shot heard 'round the world."
Now under fire, British troops would leave Concord
heading back towards the safety of Boston
fighting whole way.
Because bridges had been cut
to prevent them from crossing from the north side of the Charles River to the south side, back to Boston
they came through here, the Charlestown penninsula
on the heights overlooking Boston.
They understood what a good defensive position this was and began to establish defenses
which they abandoned to bring all troops back into Boston.
Boston was now a town under siege.
British troops trapped on the inside
colonists on the outside.
At the time of the battle the British garrison was about 6,000 men.
Colonists outnumbered them, almost three to one.
Geographically, Boston was one of the worst places in the world to bring an amy of occupation
due to its isolation.
Surrounded by water on three sides
connected to the mainland by a very tiny strip of land.
Now, Britain's military strength was traditionally in its navy.
But the water around Boston was very shallow
and subject to tidal flucuation
for which the British did not have very accurate maps.
That then meant that their major warships
would have great difficulty navigating around Boston.
Boston was also dominated by three major hilltops around the town.
The Heights of Charlestown, where we are now,
the Heights of Roxbury, south of Boston
and the Heights of Dorchester, also south of Boston.
At the begining of the siege, colonists had fortified the Heights of Roxbury.
Imagine that was the cork that was keeping British troops bottlenecked on the inside.
They would have to break this bottleneck.
Over the next two months
from April to June of 1775
both sides had to figure out what was at stake? What were they fighting for?
For the colonists, independence was not yet their goal.
The Declaration of Indepence was still a full year away.
They were hoping to maintain their political autonomy
but not seeking separation from the Empire of Great Britain.
Perhaps naively they thought that King George III would be sympathetic to their cause
and that their probelm was truly with Parliament.
For the British troops in Boston, their problems were more immediate
how to break this siege.
They decided the best way to do so was an amphibious attack
on the undefended Heights of Dorchester.
By doing so they could then drive away, with infantry
the colonists from Roxbury.
If could control two of these three hilltops encircling Boston
they could control the town itself.
The British plan was for the 18th of June, 1775.
However, again, they were subject to intelligence failures.
And the colonists realized the British were making a plan to break out of Boston to the south.
They decided to disrupt those plans by fortifying the Heights of Charlestown to the north.
Under the direction of Artemis Ward
and Joseph Warren, colonists will prepare
on the evening of the 16th of June, 1775, to march from Cambridge to Charlestown
and seize the undefended hilltops north of the town
thus threatening the British from the north and disrupting their plans
setting the stage for a major battle, the first major battle of this war
the next day, the Battle of Bunker Hill, fought on 17 June, 1775.