CLASSIFIED CASE FILE Lexington and Concord On April 19, 1775 ten years of political protest escalated as British soldiers clashed with “minute men” at Lexington and Concord. The events that occurred profoundly impacted the people of Massachusetts and soon grew into an American war for independence and self- government.

Who authored the document? When was the document authored? What type of document? Who was the audience for the document? Why was it created? Who was the aggressor in the incident according to the document? Document A Document B See Handout Detective Log

Document A Vocabulary Intelligence: information about an opponent’s plans Provision: food and other necessary supplies Artillery: cannons and similar large weapons Small arms: hand-held weapons, often handguns, swords, or knives Avowed: specific or stated Grenadier: a type of soldier in the British army Plunder: take personal goods by force from people who have been conquered Draught: a map Trunion: a part of a cannon that helps the barrel be aimed to the correct elevation Chaises: two-wheeled carriages Order Given to Lt. Colonel Francis Smith from Thomas Gage Primary Source Lieut. Colonel Smith, 10 th Regiment Foot

Document B First-Hand Accounts of the Battle Lt. John Barker, British Soldier, 4 th Regiment Diary Account on the beginning of the march to Lexington

Document C Official Statement of John Robbins, Lexington Militia, April 24, 1775, on Lexington Green Vocabulary Instant: a particular point in time, in this case on the nineteenth of April, Front rank: front row Huzzaing: cheering and yelling loudly Volley: one round of firing

Document D Narrative of Ensign Jeremy Lister of His Majesty’s 10 th Regiment of Foot, on the Fighting in Lexington Vocabulary Flank: fleshy section between the last rib and hip Salute: firing of guns

Document E Statement of James Barrett, Colonel of Concord Militia, on the Battle at North Bridge

Document F Alice Stearns Abbott, Citizen of Bedford, Massachusetts, on the Beginning of Fighting

Document G

Questions to Consider  What questions did you ask while evaluating these sources?  On what points do the accounts agree?  On what points do the accounts differ?  Which of these sources aligns most closely with what you already knew about the Battle of Lexington and Concord? How so?  Which of these sources is most reliable in determining what actually happened at the Lexington and Concord? Why do you think so?  Describe the difficulties in developing an accurate account of historical events like the Battle of Lexington and Concord?  If you were asked to write your own historical account of the events that occurred during the Battle of Lexington and Concord, how would you go about doing so?

Cracking the Case Based on your analysis of the documents and citing evidence to support your answer, please write a one-page summary, which answers the following questions: how did the Battle of Lexington and Concord unfold, what was the response from the colonists to British aggression, what was the response from the British? Did the British seem surprised?