As part of the America250 celebrations, new content from the commemorative publication, Discover the Battle Road, will appear here each week. To discover the fascinating world of the earliest battles of the American Revolution, and the brave men and women who helped forge our nation, click here. This week's new content features: "Radicalized Resistance: The Cascade of Events that Led to April 19, 1775" and "Militia Companies and the April 19th Alarm."
To order a copy of the full printed edition, click on Discover the Battle Road or 250 Collectibles in the menu above.
At the end of the Seven Years’ War (called the French and Indian War in America), England emerged as the big winner. It had gained control of eastern North America, from the Atlantic to the Mississippi, and from Labrador to Louisiana.
This victory, sealed by the Treaty of Paris in 1763, came at a steep price. England’s national debt had swelled by an additional £59 million, equivalent to nearly £15 billion today. And the drain on the Treasury didn’t stop there. England had to deploy thousands of soldiers to keep the French and Spanish out and to keep the Indigenous population under control.
April 19, 1775, marked the first battle of the American Revolution. On that day, 700 British soldiers marched from Boston to Concord to seize a stockpile of military arms and supplies. The expedition caused Patriot leaders to raise the alarm and muster the militia. The scale of the response is truly staggering and hints at a surprising amount of organization.
