The Revolution Begins

Delegates to the First Continental Congress were worried about the relationship between Great Britain and the American colonies. The delegates debated whether violence was avoidable. They encouraged the peaceful boycott of British goods. However, they also began preparing for war. They drafted the Declaration of Rights to present to King George III. Colonists who chose to fight for independence were known as patriots.

In April 1775 the Redcoats set out for Concord to destroy a stockpile of weapons they thought was there. Three colonists rode out by horseback to warn that the British were coming. Seventy armed minutemen waited for them in Lexington. To do this day, nobody knows who fired the first shot. The British killed 8 minutemen, then went on to Concord where they destroyed a few buildings. In reaction, the minutemen fired on the Redcoats . The British suffered many casualties and were forced to retreat.

https://youtu.be/6IGB-1ijfdc

At the Second Continental Congress, some delegates called for war while others wanted peace. The Congress named the Massachusetts militia the Continental Army. The army's commander was George Washington. Delegates signed the Olive Branch Petition asking King George to make peace. He would not consider it.

On June 17, 1775, the British in Boston found colonial forces dug in on Breed's Hill. When the British crossed the harbor in boats, the colonists opened fire. In the battle, now known as the Battle of Bunker Hill, the British won. But the Battle of Bunker Hill proved the colonists could fight. Soon after, George Washington set up cannons from Fort Ticonderoga to fire on the British. On March 7, 1776, the British retreated from Boston.

https://youtu.be/ke68wq37fgw