On the morning of 17th June 1775....

the militia and a few professional soldiers of the American Revolutionary Army were trying to enforce a siege of the Georgian town of Boston in Massachusetts. Boston was the headquarters of British forces and commanded by a number of British generals including William Howe and Thomas Gage.

The previous few days had been seen colonial forces gather in small groups at different points around Boston Harbour and the British had decided that they needed to fortify the hills around the town to provide greater protection - across the water in front of Boston were the Dorchester Heights with three small hills and below them was the small town of Charlestown. During the night of the 16th the colonial forces, under the command of Colonel William Prescott, had crept up onto the largest of these hills, known as Breed's Hill, and began fortifying the top with a hand-dug redoubt. This morning, all those years ago, the alarm was raised and Howe ordered his officers to send a large force across the water in small boats, land and then to clear Charlestown of any rebels and clear Breeds Hill.

Charlestown in flames and British troops advancing up Breed's Hill on the morning of 17th June 1775.

The battle that followed was bloody and courageous on both sides. The hill was eventually cleared but not until 226 British soldiers had been killed with a further 828 wounded - a 40% casulaty rate which included over 100 British officers who had been especially targetted by the Colonial sharpshooters. Over 400 colonial soldiers were killed or wounded - many of them while they were trying to escape across Charlestwon Neck where they were caught and boyenetted by the Britosh soldiers. This battle would end the British strategy of frontal assualts and was the most the most costly fought during the American War of Independence. London was shocked when news arrived a few weeks later. I had the pleasure of visiting the memorial on Breed's Hill in 2016. The Battle of Bunker Hill ought to be known as the Battle of Breed's Hill.

Breed's Hill today - where property values seem to have increased since 1775....