Bunker+Hill

**The Battle of Bunker Hill:** Katie Morris

The Battle of Bunker Hill was the first battle of the American Revolution. It took place of J une 17, 1775 in Charlestown, Massachusetts on Breeds Hill under commander, I srael Putnam and Col. William Prescott. Roughly 2,000 men fought to save their country from England. The American casualties were ~415-440 and the British casualties were ~1,000+.

Under British leader, Howe, they planned to conquer the Colonists. On June 15, 1775, the British planned to overtake the Charlestown Peninsula between the Charles and Mystic rivers ; Bunker's and Breed's Hill overlooked Boston and its harbor. The <span style="color: rgb(206, 13, 13);">goal was to overtake the <span style="color: rgb(226, 8, 8);">hills because they were the key vantage points. In order <span style="color: rgb(248, 13, 13);">to beat the British to the high ground, Prescott took 1,200 of his soldiers to dig into Bunker Hill at night. By the next morning, the <span style="color: rgb(221, 8, 8);">British were awakened by the site of a 160-by-30-foot earthen structure. British general, Gage, took 2,300 men under the command of general Howe to conquer the hill. <span style="color: rgb(203, 11, 11);">Prescott captured Breeds Hill. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(220, 9, 9);">**Possibilities to why it was Breeds Hill and not Bunker Hill:**
 * <span style="color: rgb(244, 6, 6);">Because it was at night, they might have chosen the wrong hill
 * <span style="color: rgb(244, 6, 6);">Map was incorrect
 * <span style="color: rgb(244, 6, 6);">Breeds Hill was closer to where the British ships were located, allowing the colonists a better attacking position (most practical)

The Battle took place as soon as the day started. At <span style="color: rgb(245, 15, 15);">3 p.m., British commander, Thomas Gage ordered his men to try and take control of Breeds Hill. It took this long for Gage to issue the command because of the shortage of boats and unfavorable tide. <span style="color: rgb(250, 10, 10);">The British expected that once they made it to the base of the hill, they would walk up the hill and scare the colonists away. The British proceeded up the hill with their swords ready but muskets not loaded.

<span style="color: rgb(236, 4, 4);">Prescott said his most famous order, <span style="color: rgb(248, 13, 13);">"Don't shoot until you see the whites of their eyes." This quote is important because the American's probably waited so long to fire so they could save their ammunition and also to help keep their men from shooting out of their capable ranges.

Once we were in decent range, the British started to rapidly fall. The <span style="color: rgb(244, 21, 21);">British were driven back twice but on the 3rd try, they broke through the Colonists line. We immediately used our only escape route, the Peninsula, and fled back to safer ground.

Three hours later, the Battle of Bunker hill was over, making it <span style="color: rgb(249, 26, 26);">one of the most deadliest battles of the American Revolution.

Technically, the <span style="color: rgb(239, 6, 6);">British won because they had captured the hill. However, they lost too many men to fully benefit from it. <span style="color: rgb(249, 16, 16);">The Colonist's suffered ~400-600 casualties from ~2500-4000. They also believed that they won the battle as well.

<span style="color: rgb(250, 15, 15);">Effects: <span style="color: rgb(250, 15, 15);"> > <span style="color: rgb(250, 15, 15);"> <span style="color: rgb(250, 15, 15);">Importance of Battle: <span style="color: rgb(250, 15, 15);"> > > >
 * <span style="color: rgb(250, 15, 15);">American's proved to the world that they could stand up to the British in traditional warfare and hold their own in combat.
 * <span style="color: rgb(250, 15, 15);">1st battle of the Revolutionary War
 * <span style="color: rgb(250, 15, 15);">showed that it was going to be a long, close war
 * <span style="color: rgb(250, 15, 15);">Colonist's realized the the British weren't perfect and that they could overtake them in traditional warfare.