Boston campaign

Boston campaign
Part of the American Revolutionary War
The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill by John Trumbull
Date April 19, 1775–March 17, 1776 Location Province of Massachusetts Bay Result American victory British forces evacuate from Massachusetts Beginning of the American Revolutionary War
Belligerents
New England colonies (before May 1775) Connecticut Massachusetts Bay New Hampshire Rhode Island United Colonies (after May 1775)	Great Britain
Commanders and leaders
George Washington Artemas Ward Israel Putnam William Prescott John Thomas Henry Knox John Stark Joseph Warren †	Thomas Gage Sir William Howe Sir Henry Clinton Samuel Graves Thomas Graves
Strength
7,700–16,000[1]	4,000–11,000[1]
Casualties and losses
593[1]	1,505[1]

The Boston campaign was the opening campaign of the American Revolutionary War, taking place primarily in the Province of Massachusetts Bay. The campaign began with the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775, in which the local colonial militias interdicted a British government attempt to seize military stores and leaders in Concord, Massachusetts. The entire British expedition suffered significant casualties during a running battle back to Charlestown against an ever-growing number of militia.

Subsequently, accumulated militia forces surrounded the city of Boston, beginning the siege of Boston. The main action during the siege, the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775, was one of the bloodiest encounters of the war, and resulted in a Pyrrhic British victory.^[2] There were also numerous skirmishes near Boston and the coastal areas of Boston, resulting in loss of life, military supplies, or both.

In July 1775, George Washington took command of the assembled militia and transformed them into a more coherent army. On March 4, 1776, the colonial army fortified Dorchester Heights with cannon capable of reaching Boston and British ships in the harbor. The siege (and the campaign) ended on March 17, 1776, with the permanent withdrawal of British forces from Boston. To this day, Boston celebrates March 17 as Evacuation Day.