jun 17, 1775 - Battle of Bunker Hill

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On June 13th, the leaders of the colonial forces learned that the British were planning to send troops to Charlestown. Colonel Prescott placed 1,200 troops on Bunker Hill and Breed's Hill to defend the peninsula. On June 17th, General Howe marched on the Charlestown peninsula while being supported by the Royal Navy. Colonel Prescott headed the garrison which was low on supplies and ammunition which led him to order his troops to "not fire until you see the whites of their eyes." This strategy successfully repelled the first two British assaults on the position, but the Americans ran out of ammunition during the third assault. The British took control of the garrison, but they suffered more than twice the casualties that the Americans did. Of the 2,200 British regulars involved, 268 soldiers and officers died, and 828 more were wounded. The americans on the other hand only suffered 105 deaths and 305 soldiers being wounded. Although this battle was a tactical victory for the British, it was very much so a moral victory for the americans.

"Battle of Bunker Hill Facts & Summary." American Battlefield Trust. June 16, 2018. Accessed October 15, 2018. https://www.battlefields.org/learn/revolutionary-war/battles/bunker-hill.

"The Battle of Bunker Hill--Reading 2." National Parks Service. Accessed October 15, 2018. https://www.nps.gov/nr/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/42bunker/42facts2.htm.

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