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siege of boston, american revolutionary war, boston, united colonies, connecticut, massachusetts bay, new hampshire, rhode island

Siege Of Boston

“The Siege of Boston Part of the American Revolutionary...”

Contents
  • 1. Overview
  • 2. Etymology
  • 3. Cultural Impact

The Siege of Boston Part of the American Revolutionary War

An illustration depicting the rather ignominious British evacuation of Boston on March 17, 1776, a fitting end to a campaign marked by British hubris and colonial tenacity.

Date: April 19, 1775 – March 17, 1776 (A protracted 10 months, 3 weeks, and 6 days, or roughly 334 days of staring at each other across a narrow strip of land, punctuated by occasional, equally tedious, bloodshed.) Location: Boston and the surrounding area, specifically at coordinates 42°21′48″N 71°3′28″W. Result: A definitive, if somewhat anticlimactic, American victory.

  • British forces were compelled to evacuate Boston , abandoning their initial strategic foothold in the colonies.

Belligerents:

Commanders and leaders:

  • For the nascent American forces:
    • George Washington , the reluctant leader who somehow managed to keep a collection of armed farmers pointed in the same direction.
    • Artemas Ward , a placeholder before true leadership arrived.
    • Henry Knox , the man who moved mountains—or at least, very heavy cannons—in winter.
    • Joseph Warren , a tragic, early loss.
  • For the British Crown, a succession of rather unimpressive commanders:
    • Thomas Gage , whose initial underestimation of the “rabble” proved fatal to his career.
    • Sir William Howe , who inherited a mess and made it slightly messier before leaving.
    • Sir Henry Clinton , a man who would later criticize Howe for doing precisely what he should have done.
    • Francis Smith , notable for his role in the initial skirmishes.

Strength:

  • American: Varied wildly, from 7,000 to a peak of 16,000 1. A rather fluid concept of an army, as one might expect.
  • British: Started at around 5,000, eventually reaching 11,000 2. A more disciplined, yet surprisingly ineffective, force.

Casualties and losses:

  • Battle of Bunker Hill :

    • American: Over 400 killed or wounded, 30 captured 3. A costly, yet morale-boosting, defeat.
    • British: Approximately 1,000 killed or wounded 3. A Pyrrhic victory, if ever there was one, with roughly one-sixth of their engaged forces wiped out.

  • Rest of siege:

    • American: 19 killed or wounded 4. The quiet, grinding attrition of a stalemate.
    • British: 60 killed or wounded, 35 captured 4. More evidence of the quiet suffering within the besieged city.

  • v

  • t

  • e

American Revolutionary War : Boston campaign

Prelude; 1774

1775

1776

The Siege of Boston , unfolding between April 19, 1775, and March 17, 1776, marked the opening, and arguably the most drawn-out, act of the American Revolutionary War 5. It was a rather tedious affair, characterized by a protracted standoff where newly organized American patriot militias, eventually coalescing into the Continental Army under the command of the rather stoic George Washington , effectively trapped the seasoned British Army within the confines of Boston . The British, accustomed to open warfare, found themselves immobilized by land, reduced to a de facto island garrison.

Both sides, in a display of predictable human inefficiency, grappled with considerable challenges concerning resources, supplies, and personnel throughout the siege. For the British, resupply and reinforcement were strictly confined to sea access, a lifeline that was increasingly, and irritatingly, impeded by the growing number of American vessels. The Americans, for their part, struggled with the organizational chaos inherent in transforming disparate militias into a cohesive fighting force. Ultimately, after nearly a year of this rather unproductive stalemate, the British begrudgingly conceded defeat, abandoning Boston and relocating their beleaguered troops and equipment further north to the more hospitable, and less hostile, shores of Nova Scotia .

The siege’s origins trace back to April 19, 1775, immediately following the ignominious British retreat from the Revolutionary War’s initial skirmishes at Lexington and Concord . Massachusetts militias, brimming with a newfound, if untested, resolve, swiftly moved to block all land routes into Boston . Meanwhile, the Continental Congress , convening in Philadelphia , began the arduous task of formalizing these ad-hoc militias into a proper Continental Army , placing George Washington at its head as commander in chief – a decision that, in hindsight, proved rather fortuitous.

June 1775 saw a brief, bloody spasm of activity when the British, in a desperate attempt to break the encirclement, seized Bunker Hill and Breed’s Hill . These two positions offered a commanding, albeit precarious, view over Boston . While a tactical victory for the British, the engagement came at an exorbitant cost, with roughly 1,160 British casualties against 469 American losses. Their gains, achieved at such a staggering price, were ultimately insufficient to dislodge the Continental Army ’s tenacious encirclement. Following this grim affair, the Americans settled into a more passive, yet equally effective, siege. No further major battles marred the landscape; instead, the conflict devolved into a series of tiresome raids, minor skirmishes, and the occasional, irritating crack of sniper fire. British attempts to provision their garrison were perpetually hampered by the smaller, more agile Continental Army and other patriot forces operating with surprising effectiveness both on land and at sea. Consequently, the British forces endured a chronic and debilitating lack of food, fuel, and essential supplies – a rather undignified state for His Majesty’s finest.

A pivotal shift in this protracted stalemate occurred in November 1775, when George Washington , displaying a rare flash of strategic foresight, dispatched Henry Knox on a mission of monumental logistical complexity. Knox was tasked with retrieving the heavy artillery recently captured at Fort Ticonderoga . In an operation that defied the brutal realities of a New England winter and primitive transportation, Knox, with a seemingly impossible determination, successfully brought these formidable cannons to Boston by January 1776. This newfound firepower was then strategically deployed to fortify Dorchester Heights , a position that offered an uncomfortably clear, and dangerously close, view of Boston harbor and, crucially, the British supply lifeline from the sea. British commander William Howe , recognizing the sudden and undeniable indefensibility of his position, had little choice but to withdraw his forces from Boston , sailing for Halifax, Nova Scotia on March 17, a day now celebrated by some, and likely forgotten by most.

Background

Main articles: American Revolution and Boston campaign

The Grand Union flag flown by P. Sherman during the siege of Boston 6, a rather symbolic banner for a nascent rebellion. A 1775 map of the Battles of Lexington and Concord and the siege of Boston, illustrating the geographical constraints that would define the conflict.

The seeds of this conflict were sown long before 1775, in the fertile ground of imperial overreach and colonial resentment. The British, in their infinite wisdom, had consistently imposed taxes and import duties upon the American colonies. The Americans, with perhaps a naive expectation of fairness, naturally objected to these levies, citing their fundamental belief that they lacked proper representation in the British Parliament – a rather obvious point that somehow eluded an entire empire. These grievances escalated, culminating in acts of defiance such as the infamous Boston Tea Party and other assorted protests. The Crown’s response was swift and predictably heavy-handed: 4,000 British troops were dispatched to occupy Boston under the command of General Thomas Gage , with the explicit mandate to pacify the increasingly restive Province of Massachusetts Bay 7.

Parliament, seemingly determined to rub salt in the wound, further empowered Gage to dismantle the existing government of Massachusetts Bay, then led by the rather obstinate figures of John Hancock and Samuel Adams , among wielding numerous other punitive powers . However, the Americans, exhibiting a stubborn refusal to be governed against their will, simply formed their own parallel government, the Massachusetts Provincial Congress , and continued to convene with defiant regularity. This Provincial Congress, a testament to grassroots organization, then issued calls for the formation of local militias and diligently coordinated the accumulation of weapons and other critical military supplies 8. Adding insult to injury, or perhaps simply accelerating the inevitable, Gage, under the terms of the Boston Port Act , closed the port of Boston , a move that predictably caused widespread unemployment and further inflamed colonial discontent 9.

The powder keg finally ignited on April 19, 1775, when British forces embarked on an ill-fated mission to seize military supplies from the town of Concord . Their progress was met with armed opposition from militia companies drawn from the surrounding towns, leading to the pivotal Battles of Lexington and Concord 10. At Concord , a portion of the British forces found themselves ignominiously routed in a confrontation at the North Bridge . What followed was a brutal, running battle as the British troops attempted to march back to Boston , suffering heavy casualties along the way 11. The alarm, a literal call to arms, reverberated throughout New England , prompting militias from all colonies in the region to converge on Boston , effectively setting the stage for the protracted siege 12.

Order of battle

British Army

The British Army order of battle in July 1775, a rather extensive list of titles and regiments for an army that found itself rather spectacularly stuck 13:

Royal Navy

The British North American Squadron , a formidable presence, though largely ineffective in breaking a land siege 14 (only those ships based in/around Boston are listed):

  • HMS Boyne (70 guns)
  • HMS Somerset (68 guns)
  • HMS Asia (64 guns)
  • HMS Preston (50 guns)
  • HMS Mercury (20 guns)
  • HMS Glasgow (20 guns)
  • HMS Diana (6 guns)
  • In Marblehead, Massachusetts :
    • HMS Lively (20 guns)

United Colonies Army

The Army of Massachusetts (soon to be the Continental Army ), a collection of disparate units slowly being forged into a fighting force under Commander-in-Chief General George Washington 15:

Siege

The siege of Boston , 1775–1776, a rather unglamorous staring contest that defined the early days of the rebellion. A map showing Boston and its vicinity, including Bunker Hill , Dorchester Heights , and the rather haphazard troop disposition of Gen. Artemas Ward during the early stages of the siege. From Marshall’s Life of Washington (1806).

In the immediate, chaotic aftermath of the April 19 battles, the various Massachusetts militia units, fueled by adrenaline and indignation, spontaneously formed a siege line. This rather makeshift cordon stretched from Chelsea , curving around the peninsulas of Boston and Charlestown , and extending down to Roxbury . The effect, though perhaps not entirely coordinated, was to effectively surround Boston on three sides, cutting off all land access. This initial, rather loose, leadership fell to William Heath , a temporary measure until General Artemas Ward assumed command late on April 20 16. Crucially, they managed to block the Charlestown Neck , which was the sole land route to Charlestown , and the Boston Neck , the only terrestrial connection to Boston itself, which at the time was still very much a peninsula . This left the British in control of little more than the harbor and their tenuous sea access 12.

The colonial forces, a growing testament to widespread discontent, swelled in numbers over the ensuing days as militias poured in from New Hampshire , Rhode Island , and Connecticut 12. General Gage, in a moment of rather belated insight, expressed a degree of surprise at the sheer number of Patriots now encircling his position. “The rebels are not the despicable rabble too many have supposed them to be,” he wrote, with a hint of grudging respect. “In all their wars against the French they never showed such conduct, attention, and perseverance as they do now” 17. A rather profound realization for a man whose initial underestimation had led to this very predicament.

Faced with this unexpected and rather embarrassing encirclement, General Gage pragmatically shifted his focus to fortifying the most easily defensible positions within his grasp. He promptly ordered the construction of defensive lines in Roxbury , bristling with ten 24-pound guns 18. Within Boston proper, four key hills were hastily fortified. These positions were intended to form the primary defense of the city, and over time, each of these strategic high points was further strengthened 19. In a decision that would prove strategically questionable, Gage also opted to abandon Charlestown , withdrawing the beleaguered forces that had retreated there from Concord . This left the town of Charlestown completely vacant, and, perhaps more critically, Bunker Hill and Breed’s Hill utterly undefended, as were the strategically vital heights of Dorchester , which offered a commanding, and therefore dangerous, view of both the harbor and the city 20.

Initially, the British imposed severe restrictions on movement in and out of the city, driven by a very rational fear of weapon infiltration. However, the besieged and besiegers eventually settled into an informal, if cynical, agreement. Traffic was permitted on the Boston Neck , provided no firearms were carried – a rather quaint truce in the grand scheme of things. As a result, residents of Boston surrendered nearly 2,000 muskets, and the vast majority of Patriot residents, weary of the privations, abandoned the city 21. Conversely, many Loyalists who resided outside Boston sought refuge within its walls, convinced that the Patriot-controlled countryside was no longer safe 22. Some of these men, eager to prove their allegiance, even joined Loyalist regiments attached to the British army 23.

Despite the land blockade, the siege did not entirely seal off Boston Harbor . The city remained accessible for the Royal Navy to ferry in supplies from Nova Scotia and other loyal territories under the command of Vice Admiral Samuel Graves . The colonial forces, lacking any significant naval power, could do little to effectively halt these shipments, a frustrating reality given the overwhelming superiority of the British fleet. Nevertheless, American privateers, proving to be a persistent and irritating nuisance, managed to harass a number of supply ships, contributing to a rapid escalation of food prices within the besieged city. Soon, chronic shortages meant that the British forces found themselves on increasingly short rations – a rather undignified state for an imperial army. The American forces, meanwhile, benefited from a steady stream of intelligence gleaned from individuals escaping the growing hardship in Boston . General Gage, however, remained largely blind, possessing no effective intelligence network to monitor American activities 24.

Early skirmishes

On May 3, the Massachusetts Provincial Congress , ever opportunistic, authorized Benedict Arnold to raise forces for the capture of Fort Ticonderoga . This strategically important fort, located near the southern end of Lake Champlain in the Province of New York , was known to house heavy weaponry and, crucially, was only lightly defended. Arnold, demonstrating his characteristic initiative, arrived in the village of Castleton in the New Hampshire Grants (modern-day Vermont) on the 9th. There, he serendipitously joined forces with Ethan Allen and a militia company from Connecticut , all of whom had independently conceived the same audacious idea of seizing Ticonderoga . This combined force, under the joint, if sometimes fractious, leadership of Arnold and Allen, successfully captured Fort Ticonderoga and, shortly thereafter, Fort Crown Point 25. They also managed to seize the only significant military vessel on Lake Champlain during a daring raid on Fort Saint-Jean . The spoils of these early victories were considerable, yielding over 180 cannons and a trove of other weaponry and supplies, which the nascent Continental Army would later use to tighten its suffocating grip on Boston 26.

An engraving depicting Ethan Allen demanding the surrender of Fort Ticonderoga , a moment of early American bravado.

Boston continued to suffer from a lack of fresh meat, and the numerous horses within the city were in dire need of hay. On May 21, Gage, in a rather desperate measure, dispatched a party to Grape Island in the outer harbor with orders to procure hay for the British garrison 27. The Continentals on the mainland, ever vigilant, quickly noticed this activity and rallied the local militia. As the British party arrived, they found themselves under unexpected fire from the determined militia. The colonial forces then, with a rather effective display of scorched-earth tactics, set fire to a barn on the island, successfully destroying 80 tons of hay and preventing the British from obtaining more than a paltry three tons 27.

The Continental forces, demonstrating a growing strategic awareness, systematically worked to clear the numerous harbor islands of any livestock and supplies that might prove useful to the British. The Royal Marines , in an attempt to thwart these efforts, tried to prevent the removal of livestock from some of these islands on May 27, leading to the Battle of Chelsea Creek . The Americans, surprisingly resilient, put up a stiff resistance, resulting in the British schooner Diana running aground and subsequently being destroyed 28. General Gage, seemingly oblivious to the escalating sentiment, issued a proclamation on June 12, rather optimistically offering pardons to all who would lay down their arms, with the notable and rather provocative exceptions of John Hancock and Samuel Adams 29 30. This gesture, far from pacifying the situation, merely ignited further anger among the Patriots , prompting even more individuals to take up arms in defiance 29.

Breed’s Hill

Main article: Battle of Bunker Hill

The Battle of Bunker Hill , as depicted by Howard Pyle in 1897, a scene of brutal, close-quarters combat.

Throughout May, the British garrison had been receiving a steady stream of reinforcements, eventually reaching a strength of approximately 6,000 men. On May 25, the arrival of generals William Howe , John Burgoyne , and Henry Clinton aboard HMS Cerberus injected a renewed sense of purpose, and Gage promptly began formulating plans to break out of the stifling encirclement of the city 28.

The British strategy, conceived with a rather predictable focus on high ground, involved fortifying both Bunker Hill and Dorchester Heights . The date for seizing Dorchester Heights was set for June 18. However, the colonists’ ever-vigilant committee of safety , demonstrating a commendable, if inconvenient, intelligence network, became aware of the British plans on June 15. In a swift counter-move, they dispatched urgent instructions to General Ward, ordering him to fortify Bunker Hill and the other strategic heights of Charlestown . Ward, in turn, entrusted Colonel William Prescott with this critical task. On the night of June 16, Prescott led a force of 1,200 men across the Charlestown Neck and, under the cover of darkness, began constructing fortifications on both Bunker Hill and, more prominently, Breed’s Hill 31.

British forces, under the rather direct command of General Howe, launched their assault on the Charlestown peninsula on June 17, an engagement that would forever be known as the Battle of Bunker Hill 32. The British, after several bloody attempts, did indeed achieve their tactical objective, seizing the high ground on the peninsula. However, this came at an absolutely staggering cost. They suffered truly significant losses, with approximately 1,000 men killed or wounded, a horrifying tally that included 92 officers 33. The British casualties were so heavy, so psychologically devastating, that it effectively curtailed any further direct attacks on American forces for the remainder of the siege. The Americans, despite ultimately losing the battle and being forced to retreat, had once again demonstrated their capacity to stand their ground against British regulars, successfully repelling two separate assaults on Breed’s Hill during the brutal engagement 34. A tactical defeat, perhaps, but a profound moral victory.

Stalemate

General George Washington , arriving at Cambridge on July 2, assumed command of the newly formed Continental Army the following day. He initially established his headquarters at the rather modest Benjamin Wadsworth House at Harvard College 35. By this time, a trickle of both forces and supplies had begun to arrive, including four independent companies of riflemen, not formally part of any state line, from Maryland and Virginia 36 37. Washington, facing the unenviable task of transforming a disparate collection of armed civilians into a disciplined fighting force, immediately set about the arduous work of molding these militias into a proper army. This involved the crucial, and often contentious, appointment of senior officers (a stark contrast to the militias’ typical practice of electing their leaders) and the introduction of more rigorous organizational and disciplinary measures 38.

Washington, with an eye for military order and hierarchy, mandated that officers of differing ranks wear distinct apparel, a practical measure to ensure they could be easily distinguished from both their subordinates and superiors 39. On July 16, he relocated his headquarters to the more substantial John Vassall House in Cambridge , a location that would later gain fame as the home of the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow . By the end of July, approximately 2,000 additional riflemen arrived, organized into units raised in Pennsylvania , Maryland , and Virginia under Congressional mandate 40. The exceptional accuracy of the rifle, previously an unknown quantity in New England , proved to be a persistent and rather irritating tool for harassing the besieged British forces 41.

George Washington taking command of the Army in 1775, a moment of grim determination.

Washington also prioritized the improvement of the American defenses, ordering the digging of extensive trenches on Boston Neck and extending them towards Boston itself. However, these laborious efforts, while necessary, had little immediate impact on the entrenched British occupation 42. Working parties engaged in these fortifications were subjected to sporadic fire, as were the sentries guarding the new works. On July 30, the British launched a minor pushback, dislodging an American advanced guard and burning a few houses in Roxbury 43. A particularly gruesome incident occurred on August 2, when an American rifleman was killed, and the British, in a crude act of intimidation, hung his body by the neck. In swift retaliation, American riflemen marched to the lines and launched a sustained attack on the British troops, engaging in sharpshooting throughout the entire day. They inflicted numerous casualties, killing and wounding many British soldiers, while suffering the loss of only one Patriot 44.

On August 30, the British attempted a surprise breakout from Boston Neck , setting fire to a tavern before retreating back to the safety of their defenses 44. The very same night, 300 Americans launched a daring attack on Lighthouse Island , successfully burning the lighthouse, killing several British soldiers, and capturing 23, all at the minimal cost of only one American life 44. On yet another August night, Washington dispatched 1,200 men to dig entrenchments on a hill near the Charlestown Neck . Despite a sustained British bombardment, the Americans, with grim determination, managed to successfully complete their trenches 45.

In early September, Washington, ever the strategist, began to develop plans for two significant maneuvers: dispatching 1,000 men from Boston to invade Quebec , and a direct assault on Boston itself 46. He felt confident enough to commit troops to the Quebec expedition, having received intelligence from both British deserters and American spies indicating that the British had no immediate intention of launching an attack from Boston until they received substantial reinforcements 47. On September 11, approximately 1,100 troops, under the command of the ambitious Benedict Arnold , departed for Quebec 48. Washington then convened a council of war, advocating for an amphibious assault on Boston by transporting troops across Back Bay in flat-bottomed boats, each capable of carrying 50 men 49. His rationale was born of a very real fear that his army would simply disintegrate once winter set in. However, his war council, in a rare display of unanimous caution, rejected the audacious plan, deciding against an attack “for the present at least” 49.

The British defenses in Boston , 1775, a rather formidable, yet ultimately useless, barrier against starvation.

Also in early September, Washington authorized the appropriation and outfitting of local fishing vessels. These humble ships were pressed into service for intelligence-gathering and, more importantly, for the interdiction of British supply ships. This nascent naval activity served as a critical precursor to the formal establishment of the Continental Navy , which gained momentum in the aftermath of the British Burning of Falmouth in Portland, Maine . Inspired by these actions, the provincial assemblies of Connecticut and Rhode Island also began to arm their own ships and formally authorized privateering, adding another layer of harassment to the British supply lines 50.

In early November, a force of 400 British soldiers ventured out to Lechmere’s Point on a raiding expedition, their objective being the acquisition of much-needed livestock. They managed to make off with 10 head of cattle, a small victory, but not without cost, as they lost two lives in a skirmish with colonial troops dispatched to defend the point 51 52. A more significant blow to the British occurred on November 29, when colonial Captain John Manley , commanding the schooner Lee, captured one of the most valuable prizes of the entire siege: the British brigantine Nancy. This capture, just outside Boston Harbor , yielded a substantial supply of ordnance and military stores specifically intended for the British troops trapped in Boston 53.

As winter’s icy grip tightened, the American forces found themselves facing a critical shortage of gunpowder, a rather fundamental requirement for an army. The scarcity was so severe that some soldiers were issued spears instead of firearms, a rather grim indication of their predicament 54. Compounding these logistical nightmares, many American troops remained unpaid, and a significant number of enlistments were set to expire at the close of the year, threatening a mass desertion.

Howe, who had replaced Gage as commander of the British forces in October, inherited a different, yet equally intractable, set of problems. Firewood, a basic necessity for survival in a New England winter, became incredibly scarce. British soldiers, in a desperate attempt to stay warm, resorted to cutting down trees and even dismantling wooden buildings within the city, including the historically significant Old North Meeting House 55. The situation within Boston grew increasingly dire due not only to the brutal winter storms but also to the relentless rise of American privateers. An improvised American war fleet, consisting of approximately 12 converted merchant ships, managed to capture a staggering 55 British ships over the course of the winter. Many of these captured vessels, with a cruel irony, were laden with food and vital supplies destined for the besieged British troops 56. The British soldiers, suffering from acute hunger, became increasingly demoralized, with many ready to desert at the first opportunity. Adding to their woes, outbreaks of scurvy and smallpox began to sweep through the city, further debilitating the garrison 57. Washington’s army faced similar challenges with smallpox , as soldiers from more isolated rural communities were particularly vulnerable to the disease. He responded by segregating infected troops into a separate hospital, the only viable option given the prevailing public stigma against inoculation at the time 58.

Washington, ever restless, again proposed a direct assault on Boston in October, but his officers, perhaps wiser or simply more cautious, advised waiting until the harbor had completely frozen over 59. In February, the waters between Roxbury and Boston Common did indeed freeze solid, prompting Washington to reconsider an assault across the ice, even in the face of his continued powder shortage. Yet again, his officers wisely counseled against such a risky endeavor 60. Washington’s persistent desire to launch an attack stemmed from a profound fear that his army, already stretched thin and poorly supplied, would simply desert en masse during the harsh winter months. He also knew, with a grim certainty, that Howe’s forces could, if properly led, easily break through his army’s lines in its current vulnerable condition. With considerable reluctance, he abandoned the ice assault, opting instead for a more cautious, yet ultimately decisive, plan: the fortification of Dorchester Heights using the formidable cannons that had recently arrived from Fort Ticonderoga 61.

Meanwhile, British Major General Henry Clinton , along with a small fleet carrying 1,500 men, set sail for the Carolinas in mid-January. Their objective was to rendezvous with additional troops arriving from Europe and to establish a vital port in the southern colonies, intended as a base for future military operations 62. In early February, a British raiding party, taking advantage of the frozen waterways, crossed the ice and burned several farmhouses in Dorchester , a petty act of destruction that did little to alter the strategic landscape 63.

End of the siege

Main article: Noble train of artillery

Henry Knox bringing his “noble train” of artillery to Cambridge , a feat of logistical genius that turned the tide.

Between November 1775 and February 1776, Colonel Henry Knox , a man of truly remarkable determination, spearheaded a team of engineers in an extraordinary operation. They used sledges to transport 60 tons of heavy artillery, guns that had been so fortuitously captured at Fort Ticonderoga , across the frozen expanses of the Hudson and Connecticut rivers. This was a technically complex and physically demanding undertaking, defying the brutal realities of a New England winter. Against all odds, they successfully arrived back at Cambridge on January 24, 1776 64. A rather inconvenient arrival for the British, one might say.

Fortification of Dorchester Heights

Main article: Fortification of Dorchester Heights

Some of the Ticonderoga cannons were of a size and range previously unavailable to the American forces, a significant upgrade in their firepower. These formidable weapons were strategically placed in newly constructed fortifications around the city. The Americans, with a newfound confidence, began to bombard the city on the night of March 2, 1776. The British, naturally, responded with cannonades of their own, creating a rather noisy, if largely ineffectual, exchange 65. The American guns, operating under the precise direction of Colonel Knox, continued this exchange of fire with the British until March 4. This artillery duel, while dramatic, inflicted little significant damage on either side, though it did manage to damage some houses and unfortunately killed a few British soldiers within Boston 66.

The decisive move came on March 5. Washington, under the cloak of darkness, moved more of the heavy Ticonderoga cannon and several thousand men overnight to occupy Dorchester Heights , a commanding position directly overlooking Boston . The ground, still stubbornly frozen, made traditional trench digging impossible. However, Rufus Putnam , displaying a flash of engineering brilliance, devised an ingenious plan to fortify the heights using defenses constructed from heavy timbers and fascines 67. These prefabricated structures were assembled out of sight of the British and then stealthily transported and erected overnight 67 68 69 70. General Howe, upon witnessing this astonishing feat of engineering, is famously, and rather desperately, said to have exclaimed, “My God, these fellows have done more work in one night than I could make my army do in three months” 71 67. The new American guns on Dorchester Heights now placed the entire British fleet within range, imperiling both the ships and the troops trapped in the city 72.

The Dorchester Heights Monument stands on the very spot where Putnam’s ingenious fortifications were erected, a permanent reminder of a rather clever maneuver. The Americans, for what it’s worth, held Boston for the remainder of the war, a rather inconvenient truth for the Crown.

The immediate British response was a furious, two-hour cannon barrage directed at the newly fortified heights. This display of impotent rage, however, proved entirely ineffective, as the British guns simply could not reach the American positions 73. Following the dismal failure of their barrage, Howe and his officers, in a rare moment of consensus, conceded that the colonists absolutely had to be dislodged from the heights if they had any hope of retaining Boston . They hastily planned an assault on the heights, but, in a twist of fate that might be attributed to divine intervention or simply bad luck, the attack never materialized due to a sudden and violent storm. Given this unexpected reprieve, the British, faced with an increasingly untenable position, elected instead to withdraw 74.

On March 8, a group of prominent Bostonians, perhaps sensing the inevitable, dispatched a letter to Washington, asserting that the British would refrain from destroying the town if they were permitted to depart unmolested. Washington, ever a stickler for protocol, formally rejected the letter, citing its lack of proper address to him by either name or title 75. However, the letter, despite its formal rejection, achieved its intended effect. When the evacuation finally commenced, there was no American fire to hinder the British departure, a rather civil, if cynical, agreement. On March 9, the British observed activity on Nook’s Hill in Dorchester and unleashed a massive artillery barrage that lasted all night. This furious cannonade managed to kill four men with a single cannonball, but that was the extent of the damage inflicted 76. The following day, the colonists, with a sense of grim satisfaction, ventured out and collected the 700 cannonballs that had been so generously provided by the British 76.

Evacuation

On March 10, 1776, General Howe, ever concerned with what might be useful to his enemies, issued a proclamation ordering the inhabitants of Boston to surrender all linen and woolen goods that could potentially be utilized by the colonists to continue the war. Loyalist Crean Brush was appointed to receive these goods, in return for which he issued certificates that were, rather predictably, effectively worthless 77. Over the next week, the British fleet remained anchored in Boston Harbor , impatiently awaiting favorable winds, while Loyalists and British soldiers were systematically loaded onto the ships. During this period of tense waiting, American naval vessels operating outside the harbor, ever opportunistic, successfully captured several British supply ships, further highlighting the precariousness of the British position 78.

On March 15, the winds finally shifted, appearing favorable for the British departure, but then, with a characteristic cosmic irony, they turned against them before they could fully set sail. On March 17, however, the wind once again became favorable, providing the long-awaited opportunity. The British troops were issued orders to burn the town if any disturbances arose during their march to the ships 77. They began their movement at 4:00 a.m., a rather early and undignified start. By 9:00 a.m., the entire fleet was underway 79. The armada departing from Boston comprised a staggering 120 ships, carrying more than 11,000 souls. Of this considerable number, 9,906 were British troops, 667 were women (presumably accompanying the soldiers), and 553 were children, a rather telling demographic for an army in retreat 80.

Aftermath

Washington was awarded the first Congressional Gold Medal in 1790 for his first victory of the war in Boston , a rather belated recognition of a decisive moment.

Once the British fleet had finally sailed away, disappearing over the horizon, the Americans moved swiftly to reclaim Boston and Charlestown . Initially, there was some apprehension, as they believed the British might still be occupying Bunker Hill . However, it turned out the British had merely left behind strategically placed dummies, a rather pathetic final gesture of defiance 80. To mitigate the risk of disease, Artemas Ward initially led a troop of men into Boston who had already been exposed to smallpox , ensuring that those without resistance to the disease would not be needlessly exposed. The main body of the colonial army entered on March 20, 1776, once the risk of contagion was deemed acceptably low 81. Washington, while not directly hindering the British land departure from the city, certainly did not make their escape from the outer harbor an easy affair. He specifically directed Captain Manley to harass the departing British fleet, a task in which Manley had considerable success, notably capturing the ship carrying Crean Brush and his ill-gotten plunder, among other valuable prizes 82.

General Howe, in a final act of strategic, if somewhat futile, planning, left behind a small contingent of vessels. Their primary purpose was to intercept any unsuspecting British ships still en route to Boston and redirect them to Halifax . This measure proved effective, as numerous ships carrying British troops originally destined for Boston were successfully diverted. However, some British troop ships, entirely unaware of the dramatic shift in circumstances, regrettably landed directly in Boston , only to fall into eager American hands 83.

The British departure from Boston definitively marked the end of major military activities in the New England colonies. Washington, ever anticipating the next move of his elusive adversary, rightly feared that the British would next attack New York City . Consequently, he departed on April 4 with his army for Manhattan , thus commencing the arduous New York and New Jersey campaign 84.

A testament to continuity, six units of the Army National Guard today trace their lineage directly from American units that participated in the Siege of Boston : the 101st Eng Bn 85, the 125th MP Co 86, the 181st Inf 87, the 182nd Inf 88, the 197th FA 89, and the 201st FA 90. In total, there are 30 units within the U.S. Army that boast lineages stretching back to the colonial era, a rather enduring legacy.

The Surrender of General Burgoyne at Saratoga, by John Trumbull , a later, and even more humiliating, British defeat.

“Had Sir William Howe fortified the hills round Boston , he could not have been disgracefully driven from it,” wrote his replacement, Sir Henry Clinton 91. A rather pointed critique, and one that, in hindsight, seems entirely accurate. General Howe, despite the rather clear evidence of his strategic failures in the Boston campaign , faced severe criticism in both the British press and Parliament. Yet, with the peculiar resilience of high command, he astonishingly remained in command for another two years, overseeing the subsequent, and equally challenging, New York and New Jersey campaign and the Philadelphia campaign . General Gage, however, was not so fortunate, never receiving another combat command, his career effectively ended by his initial miscalculations. General Burgoyne, who had played a role in the Boston siege, later saw action in the disastrous Saratoga campaign , a debacle that culminated in the capture of Burgoyne himself and 7,500 troops under his command – a rather comprehensive failure. General Clinton, the critic, eventually commanded the British forces in America for four years (1778–1782) 92.

Many Massachusetts Loyalists , facing an uncertain and potentially hostile future, chose to leave with the British during the evacuation of Boston . Some sought to rebuild their lives in England, a rather dramatic relocation, while others eventually returned to America after the war, perhaps hoping for forgiveness or simply forgetting. A significant number, however, found new homes in Saint John, New Brunswick , contributing to the burgeoning loyalist communities there 93.

Following the siege, Boston , having served its purpose as a military flashpoint, largely ceased to be a direct military target. Nevertheless, it continued to be a crucial center for revolutionary activities, its port transforming into an important hub for fitting out ships of war and privateers, perpetuating the maritime harassment of the British. Its leading citizens, having proven their mettle, went on to play instrumental roles in the development of the nascent United States 94. Today, Boston and other communities in the area commemorate March 17 as Evacuation Day , a yearly reminder of the day the British finally, and rather unceremoniously, packed up and left.

See also

Footnotes

Bibliography

  • Allison, Robert J. “George Washington and the Siege of Boston.” In A Companion to George Washington (2012): 137–152.
  • Barbier, Brooke. Boston in the American Revolution: A Town Versus an Empire (Arcadia Publishing, 2017).
  • Boatner, Mark (1966). The Encyclopedia of the American Revolution . McKay. ISBN 0-8117-0578-1 .
  • Chidsey, Donald Barr (1966). The Siege of Boston . New York: Crown Publishers.
  • Fisher, Sydney George (1908). The Struggle for American Independence . J.B. Lippincott Company.
  • Ford, Worthington C. , ed. (1905). Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 , v. 2. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. OCLC 261514.
  • French, Allen (1911). The Siege of Boston . Macmillan.
  • Frothingham Jr, Richard (1851). History of the Siege of Boston and of the Battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill . Little and Brown. Archived from the original on September 28, 2023. Retrieved November 26, 2015.
  • Harvey, Robert (2002). A Few Bloody Noses: The Realities and Mythologies of the American Revolution . Overlook Press. p. 160. ISBN 1-58567-273-4 .
  • Hazelgrove, William. Henry Knox’s Noble Train: The Story of a Boston Bookseller’s Heroic Expedition that Saved the American Revolution (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020).
  • Hentz, Tucker F. (2006). “Unit history of the Maryland and Virginia Rifle Regiment (1776–1781): Insights from the service record of Capt. Adamson Tannehill.” Military Collector & Historian 58(3). ISSN 0026-3966.
  • McCullough, David (2005). 1776 . Simon and Schuster Paperback. ISBN 0-7432-2672-0 .
  • Philbrick, Nathaniel. Bunker Hill: A City, a Siege, a Revolution (Random House, 2013).
  • Sawicki, James A. (1981). Infantry Regiments of the US Army . Dumfries, VA : Wyvern Publications. ISBN 978-0-9602404-3-2 .
  • Smith, Justin H (1903). Arnold’s March from Cambridge to Quebec . New York: G. P. Putnams Sons.

Primary sources

  • Timothy Newell (1852). “A journal kept during the time yt Boston was shut up in 1775–6”. Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society . 1 .

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  1. McCullough, p. 25 ↩︎

  2. Frothingham, p. 311 puts the military strength that evacuated Boston at 11,000. Chidsey, p. 5 puts the initial strength at 4,000. ↩︎

  3. ^ a b See Battle of Bunker Hill infobox for casualty details. ↩︎ ↩︎

  4. ^ a b Boatner, p. 10 ↩︎ ↩︎

  5. “Siege of Boston – American Revolution – history.com”. history.com . Archived from the original on December 22, 2016. Retrieved December 20, 2016. ↩︎

  6. Ryan P. Randolph, Betsy Ross: The American Flag, and Life in a Young America , p. 38 ↩︎

  7. Chidsey, p. 5 ↩︎

  8. Frothingham, pp. 35, 54 ↩︎

  9. Frothingham, p. 7 ↩︎

  10. McCullough, p. 7 ↩︎

  11. See Battles of Lexington and Concord for the full story. ↩︎

  12. ^ a b c Frothingham, pp. 100–101 ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

  13. George Nafziger , British Forces under Howe 16 July 1775 Archived March 7, 2021, at the Wayback Machine , United States Army Combined Arms Center. ↩︎

  14. George Nafziger, British North American Squadron 1 January 1775 Archived March 7, 2021, at the Wayback Machine , United States Army Combined Arms Center. ↩︎

  15. George Nafziger, American Army of the United Colonies August 1775 Archived March 7, 2021, at the Wayback Machine , United States Army Combined Arms Center. ↩︎

  16. McCullough, p. 35 ↩︎

  17. Harvey, p. 1 ↩︎

  18. French, p. 236 ↩︎

  19. French, p. 237 ↩︎

  20. French, pp. 126–128, 220 ↩︎

  21. Chidsey, p. 53 ↩︎

  22. French, p. 228 ↩︎

  23. French, p. 234 ↩︎

  24. McCullough, p. 118 ↩︎

  25. Fisher, pp. 318–321 ↩︎

  26. Chidsey, p. 60 ↩︎

  27. ^ a b French, p. 248 ↩︎ ↩︎

  28. ^ a b French, p. 249 ↩︎ ↩︎

  29. ^ a b French, p. 251 ↩︎ ↩︎

    • Gage, Thomas ; Flucker, Thomas, Secr’y (June 12, 1775). A proclamation whereas the infatuated multitudes, who have long suffered themselves to be conducted by certain well known incendiaries and traitors, in a fatal progression of crimes, against the constitutional authority of the state, have at length proceeded to avowed rebellion . Boston, Massachusetts: Printer not identified. p. 1. Archived from the original on June 30, 2022. Retrieved December 9, 2020. {{cite book }} : CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link )
     ↩︎

  31. French, pp. 255–258 ↩︎

  32. French, p. 288 ↩︎

  33. French, p. 284 ↩︎

  34. French, pp. 272–273 ↩︎

  35. Benjamin Wadsworth House Archived April 16, 2014, at the Wayback Machine from Historic Buildings of Massachusetts. ↩︎

  36. Chidsey, p. 117 ↩︎

  37. Hentz, pp. 129–130 Daniel Morgan’s company left the siege in mid-September to join Colonel Benedict Arnold’s task force of the Canadian campaign . ↩︎

  38. Chidsey, p. 113 ↩︎

  39. Chidsey, p. 112 ↩︎

  40. Ford (1905), pp. 89–90 ↩︎

  41. Frothingham, pp. 227–228 ↩︎

  42. McCullough, p. 10 ↩︎

  43. French, p. 337 ↩︎

  44. ^ a b c McCullough, p. 39 ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

  45. French, p. 311 ↩︎

  46. McCullough, p. 50 ↩︎

  47. McCullough, p. 51 ↩︎

  48. Smith, pp. 57–58 ↩︎

  49. ^ a b McCullough, p. 53 ↩︎ ↩︎

  50. French, pp. 319–320 ↩︎

  51. French, p. 338 ↩︎

  52. Frothingham, p. 267 ↩︎

  53. Chidsey, p. 133 ↩︎

  54. ^ a b McCullough, p. 60 ↩︎

  55. p. 78 ↩︎

    • Atkinson, Rick (2019). “The Ways of Heaven are Dark and Intricate”. The British Are Coming . New York: Henry Holt and Company. ISBN 978-1250231321 .
     ↩︎

  57. McCullough, p. 61 ↩︎

  58. Ann M. Becker, “Smallpox in Washington’s Army: Strategic Implications of the Disease During the American Revolutionary War, The Journal of Military History, Vol. 68 No. 2 (April 2004) 388 ↩︎

  59. French, p. 330 ↩︎

  60. Fisher, p. 1 ↩︎

  61. Frothingham, pp. 295–296 ↩︎

  62. McCullough, p. 78 ↩︎

  63. McCullough, p. 86 ↩︎

  64. McCullough, p. 84 ↩︎

  65. McCullough, p. 91 ↩︎

  66. McCullough, p. 92 ↩︎

  67. ^ a b c Hubbard, Robert Ernest. General Rufus Putnam: George Washington’s Chief Military Engineer and the “Father of Ohio,” pp. 45–48, McFarland & Company, Inc., Jefferson, North Carolina. ISBN 978-1-4766-7862-7 . ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

  68. Hubbard, Robert Ernest. Major General Israel Putnam: Hero of the American Revolution, pp. 158, McFarland & Company, Inc., Jefferson, North Carolina, 2017. ISBN 978-1-4766-6453-8 . ↩︎

  69. Philbrick, Nathaniel. Bunker Hill: A City, a Siege, a Revolution, pp. 274–277, Viking Penguin, New York, 2013 (ISBN 978-0-670-02544-2 ). ↩︎

  70. Livingston, William Farrand. Israel Putnam: Pioneer, Ranger and Major General, 1718–1790, pp. 269–270, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, New York and London, 1901. ↩︎

  71. McCullough, p. 93 ↩︎

  72. Frothingham, pp. 298–299 ↩︎

  73. McCullough, p. 94 ↩︎

  74. McCullough, p. 95 ↩︎

  75. Frothingham, pp. 303–304 ↩︎

  76. ^ a b McCullough, p. 99 ↩︎ ↩︎

  77. ^ a b McCullough, p. 104 ↩︎ ↩︎

  78. Frothingham, p. 308 ↩︎

  79. Frothingham, p. 309 ↩︎

  80. ^ a b McCullough, p. 105 ↩︎ ↩︎

  81. Frothingham, pp. 310–311 ↩︎

  82. French, p. 429 ↩︎

  83. French, p. 436 ↩︎

  84. McCullough, p. 112 ↩︎

  85. Department of the Army, Lineage and Honors, 101st Engineer Battalion ↩︎

    • “Department of the Army, Lineage and Honors, 125th Quartermaster Company”. Massachusetts National Guard . Archived from the original on December 18, 2014.
     ↩︎

  87. Department of the Army, Lineage and Honors, 181st Infantry. Reproduced in Sawicki 1981, pp. 354–355. ↩︎

  88. Department of the Army, Lineage and Honors, 182nd Infantry. Reproduced in Sawicki 1981, pp. 355–357. ↩︎

  89. Department of the Army, Lineage and Honors, 172nd Field Artillery and 197th Field Artillery. See also “Unit Histories: From Portsmouth Harbor to the Persian Gulf,” New Hampshire Army National Guard Pamphlet 600-82-3. ↩︎

  90. Department of the Army, Lineage and Honors, 201st Field Artillery. ↩︎

  91. Thomas Fleming , The Enigma of General Howe (2017) p. 1 ↩︎

  92. French, pp. 437–438 ↩︎

  93. French, pp. 438–439 ↩︎

  94. French, pp. 441–443 ↩︎