1. The War for Independence:

2. Battle of Lexington
-governor of Massachusetts ordered to arrest two leaders of Sons
of Liberty and destroy any weapons the minutemen had hidden
-April 18, 1775: 700 British soldiers marched toward Lexington
-Sons of Liberty found out about the British plan and sent 3
messengers to warn the people in Concord
-Paul Revere, William Dawes, Samuel Prescott
-Minutemen were waiting in Lexington when British arrived
-shots were fired, first shot unknown
-15 minute battle
-18 dead, 10 wounded (Americans)

3. Battle of Concord
-same night as Lexington
-British marched from Lexington to Concord
-3 British soldiers killed at the North Bridge
-British found few weapons
-British marched back to Boston
-73 killed, 174 injured

4. Second Continental Congress
-June 14, 1775: voted to create the
Continental Army
-George Washington selected to lead

5. Battle of Bunker Hill
-June 17, 1775: north of Boston
-misnamed, actually took place on Breed’s Hill
-Americans attempted to gain control of
Charlestown Peninsula
-British used cannons and charged the hill
-Americans ran out of gunpowder and were
forced to retreat
-over 200 British dead, about 140 Americans
dead

6. Battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge
-first battle in NC
-Feb. 27, 1776
-Loyalists and British planned a meeting in Wilmington
to take control of Southern colonies
-Patriots planned to prevent meeting
-removed planks from the bridge over
Moore’s Creek and greased them with
soap and animal fat
-Loyalists attempted to cross the bridge and
were surprised by the Patriots
-50 Loyalists killed or wounded, 1 Patriot lost

7. British Departure
-50 cannons brought to Boston from New
York
-March 17, 1776: British ships sailed out of
Boston Harbor

8. Halifax Resolves
-April 12, 1776
-committee of Patriots met at Halifax
-adopted a formal statement that called for
independence from Britain
-recommended that NC declare independence
from Britain, and that other colonies do the
same
-read and discussed at the Continental
Congress in Philadelphia

9. The Declaration of Independence
-written by Thomas Jefferson
-formal declaration of American
independence from Britain
-listed the wrongs of King George
-approved July 4, 1776
-NC signers were:
-Joseph Hewes, William Hooper, and John Penn
-declared independence, but did not end the
war

10. End of War
Battle of Yorktown
• October, 1781
• 3 week siege on Chesapeake Bay (Va)
• Cornwallis surrenders to Washington
• Ends war in colonies
• Would continue on seas
Treaty of Paris
• formal end to war
• negotiations begin in 1782
• signed in Paris, Sept. 1783