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Bunker Hill, Battle of
BUNKER HILL, BATTLE OFBUNKER HILL, BATTLE OF. To force the British from Boston, on the night of 16 June 1775 the American militia besieging the town sent 1,200 men to seize Bunker Hill, on the peninsula of Charlestown. The detachment instead decided to build a small redoubt on Breed's Hill, which was closer to Boston but easily flanked. At day break, the British warships that were anchored in the Boston harbor opened an ineffective fire. To strengthen his left flank, Colonel William Prescott, commanding in the redoubt, built a rail fence stuffed with hay and manned the line with 2,000 men under Major General Israel Putnam. Meanwhile, under the command of Major General Sir William Howe, some 2,000 British infantry, with a few field guns, landed below the redoubt. Early in the afternoon, Howe, along with Brigadier General Robert Pigot, led a simultaneous attack on the redoubt and the rail fence, which was bloodily repulsed by the provincials, chiefly New Hampshire men under Colonel John Stark. After another failed attempt to take these breastworks, Howe's third assault feinted against the fence and for the first time attacked the redoubt with bayonets. Prescott's troops, out of ammunition, were forced to retreat. The defenders of the fence covered the American retreat. After an engagement lasting less than two hours, the British were masters of the peninsula, but this victory came with heavy casualties. The British lost 1,054 men, while the Americans lost, in killed, wounded, and captured, but 441. Although the engagement took place on Breed's Hill, it has come to be known as the Battle of Bunker Hill. At first regarded by the Americans as a defeat, Bunker Hill, because of the way the militia resisted regulars, came to be regarded as a moral victory. BIBLIOGRAPHYHigginbotham, Don. The War of American Independence: Military Attitudes, Policies, and Practice, 1763–1789. New York: Macmillan, 1971. Rev. ed., Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1983. Ketchum, Richard M. The Battle for Bunker Hill. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1962. AllenFrench/a. r. See alsoBoston, Siege of ; "Don't Fire Till You See the White of Their Eyes." |
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"Bunker Hill, Battle of." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Bunker Hill, Battle of." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3401800595.html "Bunker Hill, Battle of." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3401800595.html |
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Bunker Hill, Battle of
Bunker Hill, Battle of (1775).The Battle of Bunker Hill, fought on 17 June 1775, helped to dispel the British view that rebellious American colonists would flee when faced with British army professionals. After the engagements at Lexington and Concord, volunteer forces assembled around Boston, headquarters of the British army. Fearing that the British would fortify strategic locations adjoining the city, Boston's Committee of Safety on 16 June ordered New England troops into the Charlestown peninsula north of Boston, to fortify Bunker Hill. This promontory, overlooking the narrow neck joining the peninsula to the mainland, constituted a protected yet strategic location. Instead of fortifying Bunker Hill, however, the party dug entrenchments on nearby Breed's Hill, farther south and closer to Boston.
When the British command discovered the works, General William Gage insisted on a frontal assault. On the afternoon of the seventeenth, General William Howe led 2,200 Redcoats against a colonial force of equal number. During two consecutive British attacks up Breed's Hill, the Americans held their fire until the last moment. Although the devastating patriot barrages forced the Redcoats to retreat with heavy losses, Howe re‐formed his decimated ranks for a third attack. With their ammunition exhausted, the Americans withdrew. However, this British “victory” so depleted the Redcoat ranks that they could not pursue the fleeing colonials. British casualties reached 1,054, while the Americans lost about 440. Bunker Hill, arguably the bloodiest battle of the Revolutionary War, showed the courage and tenacity of the citizen‐soldier and left a lasting impression on the British command. It also, however, undermined future efforts to build a more professionalized Continental Army based on long‐term commitments. See also Revolution and Constitution, Era of. Bibliography Richard M. Ketchum , Decisive Day: The Battle of Bunker Hill, 1974. Donald R. Lennon |
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Paul S. Boyer. "Bunker Hill, Battle of." The Oxford Companion to United States History. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. Paul S. Boyer. "Bunker Hill, Battle of." The Oxford Companion to United States History. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O119-BunkerHillBattleof.html Paul S. Boyer. "Bunker Hill, Battle of." The Oxford Companion to United States History. 2001. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O119-BunkerHillBattleof.html |
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Bunker Hill, Battle of
Bunker Hill, Battle of (1775).Two months after the Revolutionary War began, on the night of 16–17 June 1775, about 1,200 Massachusetts soldiers set out to fortify Bunker Hill on the Charlestown peninsula, across the Charles River from Boston; by fortifying a position overlooking Boston, they intended to force the British to evacuate the town. In the dark, they mistakenly erected a redoubt on Breed's Hill, closer to Boston than planned. Later in the day, about 2,000 men from New Hampshire and Connecticut reinforced them. Shocked by this display of audacity, Maj. Gen. Thomas Gage, the British commander in Boston, sent Maj. Gen. Sir William Howe with 1,500 men (later reinforced to 2,500) to oust the Rebels. Howe planned to feign an attack on the redoubt while sending a strong force around its northeast flank on the low land along the Mystic River.
Howe underestimated the military capacity of his opponent. Thanks to the leadership of French and Indian War veterans, the Americans blunted his plan. John Stark and his New Hampshire men destroyed the outflanking force on the Mystic River beach, forcing Howe to convert the feint in front of the redoubt into a full attack. Three times he led his troops up the slope, and twice from behind their earthwork William Prescott's soldiers forced the British to retreat. With the Americans running out of ammunition, the third British attack overran the redoubt and forced the Rebels off the peninsula. Victory cost the British over 1000 casualties, 40 percent, a loss, Gage wrote, “greater than we can bear.” The New Englanders suffered over 400 casualties, heaviest among the defenders of the redoubt. Their skill and tenacity reassured colonists everywhere that the Revolution would not be strangled in its cradle. Bibliography Allen French , The First Year of the American Revolution, 1934. Harold E. Selesky |
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John Whiteclay Chambers II. "Bunker Hill, Battle of." The Oxford Companion to American Military History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. John Whiteclay Chambers II. "Bunker Hill, Battle of." The Oxford Companion to American Military History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O126-BunkerHillBattleof.html John Whiteclay Chambers II. "Bunker Hill, Battle of." The Oxford Companion to American Military History. 2000. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O126-BunkerHillBattleof.html |
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battle of Bunker Hill
battle of Bunker Hill in the American Revolution, June 17, 1775. Detachments of colonial militia under Artemas Ward , Nathanael Greene, John Stark , and Israel Putnam laid siege to Boston shortly after the battles of Lexington and Concord. However, Thomas Gage , British commander in the city, made no attempt to break the siege until he was reinforced (in May) by troops led by William Howe , Sir Henry Clinton , and John Burgoyne . The Continental forces learned of the British plan to take the heights of Dorchester and Charlestown, and William Prescott was sent to occupy Bunker Hill outside Charlestown. Prescott instead chose the neighboring Breed's Hill to the southeast, but the engagement that ensued has become known as the battle of Bunker Hill. Howe was ordered to attack the American position, and after two slaughterous failures a third charge dislodged the Americans, who had run out of powder. The British victory failed to break the siege, and the gallant American defense heightened colonial morale and resistance.
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"battle of Bunker Hill." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "battle of Bunker Hill." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-BunkerHi.html "battle of Bunker Hill." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-BunkerHi.html |
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Bunker Hill
Bunker Hill, in Boston, was the approximate site of the first severe engagement of the Revolutionary War (June 17, 1775). The British attacked the newly constructed American fort on Breed's Hill, but were twice routed by the American defenders, who capitulated on the third charge, being out of powder. Although the battle was a British victory, American morale was strengthened by the demonstration of their small force. The battle is a frequent subject in American literature, as in Brackenridge's play The Battle of Bunkers‐Hill, Cooper's novel Lionel Lincoln, and J.W. De Forest's novel A Lover's Revolt. A memorial obelisk has been erected on the site, the cornerstone being laid by Lafayette in 1825 and the monument completed in 1843, a famous speech by Daniel Webster being delivered on each occasion.
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James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Bunker Hill." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Bunker Hill." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O123-BunkerHill.html James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Bunker Hill." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O123-BunkerHill.html |
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Bunker Hill, battle of
Bunker Hill, battle of, 1775. After the encounter at Lexington in April 1775, General Gage found himself trapped in Boston by the American rebels. The town was dominated by Dorchester heights to the south and the Charlestown peninsula to the north. On 16 June the Americans dug in on Bunker Hill, near Charlestown, and the following day Gage sent 2,000 troops to dislodge them. This they accomplished but at the cost of more than 1,000 killed and wounded. The British paid tribute to the courage and tenacity which the rebels had shown.
J. A. Cannon |
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JOHN CANNON. "Bunker Hill, battle of." The Oxford Companion to British History. 2002. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN CANNON. "Bunker Hill, battle of." The Oxford Companion to British History. 2002. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O110-BunkerHillbattleof.html JOHN CANNON. "Bunker Hill, battle of." The Oxford Companion to British History. 2002. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O110-BunkerHillbattleof.html |
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Bunker Hill, Battle of
Bunker Hill, Battle of (June 17, 1775) the first major battle of the Revolutionary War, and a defeat of militiamen who had fortified Breed's and Bunker Hills on the Charlestown Peninsula north of Boston. Though many of the colonial forces fought bravely, and British regulars required three costly assaults to achieve the ground, only later did general colonial sentiment regard the decision to fight here as more than a misguided adventure.
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"Bunker Hill, Battle of." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Bunker Hill, Battle of." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-BunkerHillBattleof.html "Bunker Hill, Battle of." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-BunkerHillBattleof.html |
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Bunker Hill, battle of
Bunker Hill, battle of, 1775. After the encounter at Lexington in April 1775, General Gage found himself trapped in Boston by the American rebels. The town was dominated by the Charlestown peninsula to the north. On 16 June the Americans dug in on Bunker Hill, near Charlestown, and the following day Gage sent 2,000 troops to dislodge them. This they accomplished but at the cost of more than 1,000 killed and wounded.
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Cite this article
JOHN CANNON. "Bunker Hill, battle of." A Dictionary of British History. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN CANNON. "Bunker Hill, battle of." A Dictionary of British History. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O43-BunkerHillbattleof.html JOHN CANNON. "Bunker Hill, battle of." A Dictionary of British History. 2004. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O43-BunkerHillbattleof.html |
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Bunker Hill, Battle of
Bunker Hill, Battle of (17 June 1775) A battle in the American War of INDEPENDENCE ending in a British victory. Thomas GAGE, the British commander besieged in Boston, sent 2400 troops (redcoats) to take the heights occupied by 1600 Americans under William Prescott. Only after three bloody uphill assaults, costing 1000 British against 400 American casualties, were they successful.
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"Bunker Hill, Battle of." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Bunker Hill, Battle of." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O48-BunkerHillBattleof.html "Bunker Hill, Battle of." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O48-BunkerHillBattleof.html |
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Bunker Hill, battle of
Bunker Hill, battle of (June 17, 1775) Battle in the American Revolution fought on Boston's Charlestown peninsula. The first large-scale battle of the war, it was actually fought s of Bunker Hill on Breed's Hill. Although the Americans were driven from their position, they inflicted heavy losses on the British.
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"Bunker Hill, battle of." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Bunker Hill, battle of." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-BunkerHillbattleof.html "Bunker Hill, battle of." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-BunkerHillbattleof.html |
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Bunker Hill
Bunker Hill the first pitched battle (1775) of the War of American Independence (actually fought on Breed's Hill near Boston, Massachusetts). Although the British won, the good performance of the untrained Americans gave considerable impetus to the Revolution.
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Bunker Hill." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Bunker Hill." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-BunkerHill.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Bunker Hill." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-BunkerHill.html |
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