Battle of Bunker Hill

Coordinates: 42°22′34.9″N 71°3′38.8″W / 42.376361°N 71.060778°W / 42.376361; -71.060778
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For a list of numerous places and things that are named after this battle, see Bunker Hill.

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Battle of Bunker Hill
Part of the American Revolutionary War

The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill by John Trumbull
DateJune 17, 1775
Location
Charlestown, Massachusetts
42°22′34.9″N 71°3′38.8″W / 42.376361°N 71.060778°W / 42.376361; -71.060778
Result Pyrrhic[1] British victory
Territorial
changes		 British capture Charlestown peninsula
Belligerents
United Kingdom Great Britain Militias of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island
Commanders and leaders
British Army:
William Howe
Sir Robert Pigot
James Abercombie +
John Pitcairn †
Henry Clinton
Royal Navy:
Samuel Graves		 Israel Putnam
William Prescott
Joseph Warren †
Seth Pomeroy
John Stark
(Warren and Pomeroy declined command and fought as individuals)
Strength
3,000+[2] about 2,400[3]
Casualties and losses
226 killed,
(including 19 officers)
828 soldiers wounded,
(including 62 officers)
Total: 1,054[4]		 115 killed,
305 wounded,
30 captured (20 POWs Died)
Total: 450[5]

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The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775 on Breed's Hill, during the Siege of Boston early in the American Revolutionary War. Because most of the fighting did not occur on Bunker Hill itself, the conflict is sometimes more accurately (though less frequently) called the Battle of Breed's Hill.

On June 13, the leaders of the besieging colonial forces learned that the British generals in Boston were planning to occupy the unoccupied hills around Boston. In response to this intelligence, 1,200 colonial troops under the command of William Prescott stealthily occupied Bunker Hill and Breed's Hill, constructed an earthen redoubt on Breed's Hill, and built lightly fortified lines across most of the Charlestown Peninsula.

When the British were alerted to the presence of the new position the next day, they mounted an attack against them. After two assaults on the Colonial lines were repulsed with significant British casualties, the British finally captured the positions on the third assault, after the defenders in the redoubt ran out of ammunition. The Colonial forces retreated to Cambridge over Bunker Hill, suffering their most significant losses on Bunker Hill.

While the result was a victory for the British, they suffered their greatest losses of the entire war: over 800 wounded and 226 killed, including a notably large number of officers. Their immediate objective (the capture of Bunker Hill) was achieved, but did not significantly alter the state of siege. It did, however, demonstrate that relatively inexperienced Colonial forces were willing and able to stand up to well-trained troops in a pitched battle.

Geography

Boston, situated on a peninsula,[6] was largely protected from close approach by the expanses of water surrounding it, which were dominated by British warships. In the aftermath of the battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775, the colonial militia, a force of about 15,000 men[7] had surrounded the town, and effectively besieged it. Under the command of Artemas Ward, they controlled the only land access to Boston itself (the Roxbury Neck), but, lacking a navy, were unable to control or even contest British domination of the waters of the harbor. The British troops, a force of about 6,000 under the command of General Thomas Gage, occupied the city, and were able to be resupplied and reinforced by sea.[8]

The Charlestown Peninsula, lying to the north of Boston, started from a short, narrow isthmus (known as the Charlestown Neck) at its northwest, extending about 1 mile (1.6 km) southeastward into Boston Harbor. Bunker Hill, with an elevation of 110 feet (34 m), lay at the northern end of the peninsula. Breed's Hill, at a height of 62 feet (19 m), was more southerly and nearer to Boston.[9] The town of Charlestown occupied flats at the southern end of the peninsula. At its closest approach, less than 1,000 feet (305 m) separated the Charlestown Peninsula from the Boston Peninsula, where Copp's Hill was at about the same height as Breed's Hill. While the British retreat from Concord had ended in Charlestown, General Gage, rather than immediately fortifying the hills on the peninsula, had withdrawn those troops to Boston the day after that battle, turning the entire Charlestown Peninsula into a no man's land.[10]

British planning

Throughout May, in response to orders from Gage requesting support, the British received reinforcements, until they reached a strength of about 6,000 men. On May 25, three Generals arrived on HMS Cerberus: William Howe, John Burgoyne, and Henry Clinton. Gage began planning with them to break out of the city,[11] finalizing a plan on June 12.[12] This plan began with the taking of the Dorchester Neck, fortifying the Dorchester Heights, and then marching on the colonial forces stationed in Roxbury. Once the southern flank had been secured, the Charlestown heights would be taken, and the forces in Cambridge driven away. The attack was set for June 18.[13]

On June 13, the Massachusetts Provincial Congress was notified, by express messenger from the Committee of Safety in Exeter, New Hampshire, that a New Hampshire gentleman "of undoubted veracity" had, while visiting Boston, overheard the British commanders making plans to capture Dorchester and Charlestown.[14] On June 15, the Massachusetts Committee of Safety decided that additional defenses needed to be erected.[15] General Ward directed General Israel Putnam to set up defenses on the Charlestown Peninsula, specifically on Bunker Hill.[16]

Prelude to battle

The first British attack on Bunker Hill. Shaded areas are hills.

Fortification of Breed's Hill

On the night of June 16, 1775, colonial Colonel William Prescott led about 1,200 men onto the peninsula in order to set up positions from which artillery fire could be directed into Boston.[17] This force was made up of men from the regiments of Prescott, Putnam (the unit was commanded by Thomas Knowlton), James Frye, and Ebenezer Bridge).[18] At first, Putnam, Prescott, and their engineer, Captain Richard Gridley, disagreed as to where they should locate their defense. Some work was performed on Bunker Hill, but Breed's Hill was closer to Boston and viewed as being more defensible. Arguably against orders, they decided to build their primary redoubt there.[19] Prescott and his men, using Gridley's outline, began digging a square fortification about 130 feet (40 m) on a side with ditches and earthen walls. The walls of the redoubt were about 6 feet (1.8 m) high, with a wooden platform inside on which men could stand and fire over the walls.[20]

The works on Breed's Hill did not go unnoticed by the British. General Clinton, out on reconnaissance that night, was aware of them, and tried to convince Gage and Howe that they needed to prepare to attack the position at daylight. British sentries were also aware of the activity, but most apparently did not think it cause for alarm.[21] Then, in the early predawn, around 4:00 am, a sentry on board HMS Lively spotted the new fortification, and notified her captain. Lively opened fire, temporarily halting the colonists' work. Aboard his flagship HMS Somerset, Admiral Samuel Graves awoke, irritated by the gunfire that he had not ordered.[22] He stopped it, only to have General Gage countermand his decision when he became fully aware of the situation in the morning. He ordered all 128 guns in the harbor, as well as batteries atop Copp's Hill in Boston, to fire on the colonial position, which had relatively little effect.[23] The rising sun also alerted Prescott to a significant problem with the location of the redoubt — it could easily be flanked on either side.[21] He promptly ordered his men to begin constructing a breastwork running down the hill to the east, deciding he did not have the manpower to also build additional defenses to the west of the redoubt.[24]

1775 map of the Boston area (contains some inaccuracies)

British preparations

When the British generals met to discuss their options, General Clinton, who had urged an attack as early as possible, recommended an attack beginning from the Charlestown Neck that would cut off the colonists' retreat, reducing the process of capturing the new redoubt to one of starving out its occupants. However, he was outvoted by the other three generals. Howe, who was the senior officer present and would lead the assault, was of the opinion that the hill was "open and easy of ascent and in short would be easily carried".[25] Orders were then issued to prepare the expedition.[26]

When General Gage surveyed the works from Boston with his staff, Loyalist Abijah Willard recognized his brother-in-law Colonel Prescott. "Will he fight?" asked Gage. "[A]s to his men, I cannot answer for them;" replied Willard, "but Colonel Prescott will fight you to the gates of hell."[27] Prescott lived up to Willard's word, but his men were not so resolute. When the colonists suffered their first casualty, Asa Pollard of Billerica,[28] a young private killed by cannon fire, Prescott gave orders to bury the man quickly and quietly, but a large group of men gave him a solemn funeral instead, with several deserting shortly thereafter.[27]

It took almost six hours for the British to organize an infantry force and to gather up and inspect the men on parade. General Howe was to lead the major assault, drive around the colonial left flank, and take them from the rear. Brigadier General Robert Pigot on the British left flank would lead the direct assault on the redoubt, and Major John Pitcairn led the flank or reserve force. It took several trips in longboats to transport Howe's initial forces (consisting of about 1,500 men) to the eastern corner of the peninsula, known as Moulton's Point.[29][30] By 2 pm, Howe's chosen force had landed.[29] However, while crossing the river, Howe noted the large number of colonial troops on top of Bunker Hill. Believing these to be reinforcements, he immediately sent a message to Gage, requesting additional troops. He then ordered some of the light infantry to take a forward position along the eastern side of the peninsula, alerting the colonists to his intended course of action. The troops then sat down to eat while they waited for the reinforcements.[30]

Colonists reinforce their positions

The second British attack on Bunker Hill.

Prescott, seeing the British preparations, called for reinforcements. Among the reinforcements were Joseph Warren, the popular young leader of the Massachusetts Committee of Safety, and Seth Pomeroy, an aging Massachusetts militia leader. Both of these men held commissions of rank, but chose to serve as infantry.[29] Prescott ordered the Connecticut men under Captain Knowlton to defend the left flank, where they used a crude dirt wall as a breastwork, and topped it with fence rails and hay. They also constructed three small v-shaped trenches between this dirt wall and Prescott's breastwork. Troops that arrived to reinforce this flank position included about 200 men from the 1st and 3rd New Hampshire regiments, under Colonels John Stark and James Reed. Stark's men, who did not arrive until after Howe landed his forces (and thus filled a gap in the defense that Howe could have taken advantage of, had he pressed his attack sooner),[31] took positions along the breastwork on the northern end of the colonial position. When low tide opened a gap along the Mystic River to the north, they quickly extended the fence with a short stone wall to the water's edge.[31][32] Colonel Stark placed a stake about 100 feet (30 m) in front of the fence and ordered that no one fire until the regulars passed it.[33] Just prior to the action, further reinforcements arrived, including portions of Massachusetts regiments of Colonels Brewer, Nixon, Woodbridge, Little, and Major Moore, as well as Callender's company of artillery.[34]

Behind the colonial lines, confusion reigned. Many units sent toward the action stopped before crossing the Charlestown Neck from Cambridge, which was under constant fire from gun batteries to the south. Others reached Bunker Hill, but then, uncertain about where to go from there, milled around. One commentator wrote of the scene that "it appears to me there never was more confusion and less command".[35] While General Putnam was on the scene attempting to direct affairs, unit commanders often misunderstood or disobeyed orders.[35]

Assault

By 3 pm, the British reinforcements, which included the 47th Foot and the 1st Marines, had arrived, and the British were ready to march.[36] Brigadier General Pigot's force, gathering just south of Charlestown village, were taking casualties from sniper fire, and Howe asked Admiral Graves for assistance in clearing out the snipers. Graves, who had planned for such a possibility, order incendiary shot fired into the village, and then sent a landing party to set fire to the town.[37] The smoke billowing from Charlestown lent an almost surreal backdrop to the fighting, as the winds were such that the smoke was kept from the field of battle.[38]

Pigot, commanding the 5th, 38th, 43rd, 47th, and 52nd regiments, as well as Major Pitcairn's Marines, were to feint an assault on the redoubt. However, they continued to be harried by snipers in Charlestown, and Pigot, when he saw what happened to Howe's advance, ordered a retreat.[39]

General Howe led the light infantry companies and grenadiers in the assault on the American left flank, expecting an easy effort against Stark's recently-arrived troops.[40] His light infantry were set along the narrow beach, on the far right flank of the Colonial position, with the grenadiers in the middle. They lined up four deep and several hundred across, led by officers in scarlet red jackets. As the regulars closed, John Simpson, a New Hampshire man, prematurely fired, drawing a useless volley of return fire from the regulars. When the regulars finally closed within range, both sides opened fire. The colonists inflicted heavy casualties on the regulars, especially targeting the red-clad officers, using the fence to steady and aim their muskets. With the fence, the colonists had a considerable advantage; they could fire, and use the fence as cover while the regulars were exposed in open ground. The colonists also did not fire in volleys. This meant that there was a constant stream of fire coming from their position, while the regulars were under orders to fire in unison. With this devastating barrage of musket fire, the regulars retreated in disarray, and the militia held their ground.[41]

The third and final British attack on Bunker Hill

The regulars reformed on the field and marched out again. This time, Pigot was not to feint; he was to assault the redoubt, possibly without the assistance of Howe's force. Howe, instead of marching against Stark's position along the beach, marched instead against Knowlton's position along the rail fence. The outcome of the second attack was much the same as the first. One British observer wrote, "Most of our Grenadiers and Light-infantry, the moment of presenting themselves lost three-fourths, and many nine-tenths, of their men. Some had only eight or nine men a company left ..."[42] Pigot did not fare any better in his attack on the redoubt, and again ordered a retreat.[43] Meanwhile, in the rear of the colonial forces, confusion continued to reign. General Putnam tried, with only limited success, to send additional troops from Bunker Hill to Breed's Hill to support the men in the redoubt and along the defensive lines.[44]

The British rear was also in some disarray. Wounded soldiers that were mobile had made their way to the landing areas, and were being ferried back to Boston, and the wounded lying on the field of battle were the source of moans and cries of pain.[45] General Howe, deciding that he would try again, sent word to General Clinton in Boston for additional troops. Clinton, who had watched the first two attacks, sent about 400 men from the 2nd Marines and the 63rd Foot, and then followed himself to help rally the troops. In addition to the new reserves, he also convinced about 200 of the wounded to form up for the third attack.[46] During the interval between the second and third assaults, General Putnam continued trying to direct troops toward the action. Some companies, and leaderless groups of men, moved toward the action; others retreated. John Chester, a Connecticut captain, seeing an entire company in retreat, ordered his company to aim muskets at that company to halt its retreat; they turned about and headed back to the battlefield.[47]

The third assault, concentrated on the redoubt (with only a feint on the colonists' flank), was successful, although the colonists again poured musket fire into the British ranks, and it cost the life of Major Pitcairn.[48] The defenders had run out of ammunition, reducing the battle to close combat. The British had the advantage once they entered the redoubt, as their troops were equipped with bayonets on their muskets while most of the colonists were not. Colonel Prescott, one of the last colonists to leave the redoubt, parried bayonet thrusts with his normally ceremonial sabre.[49] It is during the retreat from the redoubt that Joseph Warren was killed.[50]

The retreat of much of the colonial forces from the peninsula was made possible in part by the controlled retreat of the forces along the rail fence, led by John Stark and Thomas Knowlton, which prevented the encirclement of the hill. Their disciplined retreat, described by Burgoyne as "no flight; it was even covered with bravery and military skill", was so effective that most of the wounded were saved;[51] most of the prisoners taken by the British were mortally wounded.[51] General Putnam attempted to reform the troops on Bunker Hill; however the flight of the colonial forces was so rapid that artillery pieces and entrenching tools had to be abandoned. The colonists suffered most of their casualties during the retreat on Bunker Hill. By 5 pm, the colonists had retreated over the Charlestown Neck to fortified positions in Cambridge, and the British were in control of the peninsula.[50]

Aftermath

The Bunker Hill Monument

The British had taken the ground but at a great loss; they suffered 1,054 casualties (226 dead and 828 wounded), with a disproportionate number of these officers. The casualty count was the highest suffered by the British in any single encounter during the entire war.[52] General Clinton, echoing Pyrrhus, remarked in his diary that "A few more such victories would have shortly put an end to British dominion in America."[1] The Colonial losses were about 450, of whom 140, including Joseph Warren, were killed. Thirty men were captured, of whom 20 died while they were held prisoner. Most of the colonial losses came during the withdrawal. Major Andrew McClary was the highest ranking Colonial officer to die in the battle. He was later commemorated by the dedication of Fort McClary in Kittery, Maine.[53]

British dead and wounded included 100 commissioned officers, a significant portion of the British officer corps in North America.[54] Much of General Howe's field staff was among the casualties.[55] Major Pitcairn had been killed, and Colonel James Abercrombie fatally wounded. General Gage, in his report after the battle, reported the following officer casualties (listing lieutenants and above by name):[56]

  • 1 lieutenant colonel killed
  • 2 majors killed, 3 wounded
  • 7 captains killed, 27 wounded
  • 9 lieutenants killed, 32 wounded
  • 15 sergeants killed, 42 wounded
  • 1 drummer killed, 12 wounded

Political consequences

When news of the battle spread through the colonies, it was reported as a colonial loss, as the ground had been taken by the enemy, and significant casualties were incurred. George Washington, who was on his way to Boston as the new commander of the Continental Army, received news of the battle while in New York City. The report, which included casualty figures that were somewhat inaccurate, gave Washington hope that his army might prevail in the conflict.[57]

"We have ... learned one melancholy truth, which is, that the Americans, if they were equally well commanded, are full as good soldiers as ours."[58]

A British officer in Boston, after the battle

The Massachusetts Committee of Safety, seeking to repeat the sort of propaganda victory it won following the battles at Lexington and Concord, commissioned a report of the battle to send to England. Their report, however, did not reach England before Gage's official account arrived on July 20. His report unsurprisingly caused friction and argument between the Tories and the Whigs, but the casualty counts alarmed the military establishment, and forced many to rethink their views of colonial military capability.[59] King George's attitude toward the colonies hardened, and the news may have contributed to his rejection of the Continental Congress' Olive Branch Petition, the last substantive political attempt at reconciliation. Sir James Adolphus Oughton, part of the Tory majority, wrote to Lord Dartmouth of the colonies, "the sooner they are made to Taste Distress the sooner will [Crown control over them] be produced, and the Effusion of Blood be put a stop to."[60] This hardening of the British position also led to a hardening of previously weak support for the rebellion, especially in the southern colonies, in favor of independence.[60]

Gage's report had a more direct effect on his own career. His dismissal from office was decided just three days after his report was received, although General Howe did not replace him until October 1775.[61] Gage wrote another report to the British Cabinet, in which he repeated earlier warnings that "a large army must at length be employed to reduce these people", that would require "the hiring of foreign troops."[62]

Analysis

Much has been written in the wake of this battle over how it was conducted. Both sides made strategic and tactical missteps which could have altered the outcome of the battle. While hindsight often gives a biased view, some things seem to be apparent after the battle that might reasonably have been within the reach of the command of the day.

Colonial faults

The colonial forces, while nominally under the overall command of General Ward, with General Putnam leading in the field, often acted quite independently. This was evident in the opening page of the drama, when a tactical decision was made that had strategic implications. Colonel Prescott and his staff, apparently in contravention of orders, decided to fortify Breed's Hill rather than Bunker Hill.[19] The fortification of Breed's Hill was more provocative; it would have put offensive artillery closer to Boston. It also exposed the forces there to the possibility of being trapped, as they probably could not properly defend against attempts by the British to land troops and take control of Charlestown Neck. If the British had taken that step, they might have had a victory with many fewer casualties.[63]

A historic map of Bunker Hill featuring military notes

While the front lines of the Colonial forces were generally well managed, the scene behind them, especially once the action began, was significantly disorganized, due at least in part to a poor chain of command. Only some of the militias operated directly under Ward's and Putnam's authority,[64] and some commanders also disobeyed orders, staying at Bunker Hill rather than joining in the defense on the third British assault. Several officers were subjected to court martial and cashiered.[65] Colonel Prescott was of the opinion that the third assault would have been repulsed, had his forces in the redoubt been reinforced with either more men, or more supplies of ammunition and powder.[66]

British faults

The British leadership, for its part, was slow to act once the works on Breed's Hill were spotted. It was 2 pm when the troops were ready for the assault, roughly ten hours after the Lively first opened fire. This leisurely pace gave the colonial forces time to reinforce the flanking positions that had been poorly defended.[67] Gage and Howe decided that a frontal assault on the works would be a simple matter, when an encircling move (gaining control of Charlestown Neck), would have given them a more resounding victory.[63] (This move would not have been without risks of its own, as the colonists could have made holding the Neck expensive with fire from the high ground in Cambridge.) But the British leadership was excessively optimistic, believing that "two regiments were sufficient to beat the strength of the province".[68]

"View of the Attack on Bunker's Hill with the Burning of Charlestown" by Lodge

Once in the field, Howe, rather than focusing on the redoubt, opted (twice) to dilute the force attacking the redoubt with a flanking maneuver against the Colonial left. It was only with the third attack, when the flank attack was merely a feint,[69] and the main force (now also reinforced with additional reserves) was squarely targeted at the redoubt, that the attack succeeded.[70]

Following the taking of the peninsula, the British arguably had a tactical advantage that they could have used to press into Cambridge. General Clinton proposed this to Howe; having just led three assaults with grievous casualties, he declined the idea.[71] Howe was eventually recognized by the colonial military leaders to be a tentative decision-maker, to his detriment; in the aftermath of the Battle of Long Island, he again had tactical advantages that might have delivered Washington's army into his hands; he again refused to act.[72]

"The whites of their eyes"

The famous order "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes" was popularized in stories about the battle of Bunker Hill. However, it is uncertain as to who said it, since various histories attribute it to Putnam, Stark, Prescott or Gridley, and it may have been said first by one, and repeated by the others. It was also not an original statement. The earliest similar quote came from the Battle of Dettingen on 27 June 1743, where Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Andrew Agnew of Lochnaw warned his Regiment, the Royal Scots Fusiliers, not to fire until they could "see the white's of their e'en."[73] The phrase was also used by Prince Charles of Prussia in 1745, and repeated in 1755 by Frederick the Great, and may have been mentioned in histories the Colonial military leaders were familiar with.[74] Whether or not it was actually said in this battle, it was clear that the Colonial military leadership were regularly reminding their troops to hold their fire until the moment when it would have the greatest effect, especially in situations where their ammunition would be limited.[75]

Notable participants

A significant number of notable people fought in this battle. Henry Dearborn and William Eustis, for example, went on to distinguished military and political careers; both served in Congress, the Cabinet, and in diplomatic posts. Others, like John Brooks, Henry Burbeck, Christian Febiger, Thomas Knowlton, and John Stark, became well-known for later actions in the war.[76][77] Stark became known as the "Hero of Bennington" for his role in the 1777 Battle of Bennington. Free African-Americans also fought in the battle (the leadership would not allow slaves to fight, as this was, to them, anathema to the very idea of freedom that they were fighting for), with Barzillai Lew, Salem Poor, and Peter Salem as notable examples.[78][79]

Other notable participants included Daniel Shays, who later became famous for his army of protest in Shays' Rebellion, and William Stacy, an important leader in the efforts to settle the Ohio Country after independence was achieved.[80][81] Israel Potter was immortalized in Israel Potter: His Fifty Years of Exile, a novel by Herman Melville.[82][83]

Commemorations

The Bunker Hill Monument is an obelisk that stands 220 feet (67 m) high on Bunker Hill. On June 17, 1825, the fiftieth anniversary of the battle, the cornerstone of the monument was laid by the Marquis de Lafayette and an address delivered by Daniel Webster.[84] (When Lafayette died, he was buried next to his wife at the Cimetière de Picpus under soil from Bunker Hill, which his son Georges sprinkled upon him.)[85] The Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge was specifically designed to evoke this monument.[86] There is also a statue of William Prescott posed to show him calming his men down.

The National Park Service operates a museum dedicated to the battle near the monument, which is part of the Boston National Historical Park.[87] A cyclorama of the battle was added in 2007 when the museum was renovated.[88]

Bunker Hill Day, observed every June 17, is a legal holiday in Suffolk County, Massachusetts (which includes the city of Boston), as well as Somerville in Middlesex County (where Prospect Hill, site of colonial fortifications overlooking the Charlestown neck, is now located).[89][90] State institutions in Massachusetts (such as public institutions of higher education) located in Boston also celebrate the holiday.[91][92]

On June 16 and 17, 1875, the centennial of the battle was celebrated with a military parade and a reception featuring notable speakers, among them General William Tecumseh Sherman and Vice President Henry Wilson. It was attended by dignitaries from across the country.[93] Celebratory events also marked the sesquicentennial (150th anniversary) and bicentennial in 1925 and 1975.[94][95]

Statue of William Prescott in Charlestown, Massachusetts

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b Clinton, p. 19. General Clinton's remark is an echoing of Pyrrhus' original sentiment after the Battle of Heraclea, "one more such victory and the cause is lost".
  2. ^ Chidsey p. 90 says the initial force requested was 1,550, but Howe requested and received reinforcements before the battle began. Frothingham p. 137 puts the total British contingent likely to be over 3,000. Furthermore, according to Frothingham p. 148, additional reinforcements arrived from Boston after the second attack was repulsed. Frothingham, p. 191 notes the difficulty in attaining an accurate count of British troops involved.
  3. ^ Chidsey p. 122 counts 1,400 in the night-time fortification work. Frothingham is unclear on the number of reinforcements arriving just before the battle breaks out. In a footnote on p. 136, as well as on p. 190, he elaborates the difficulty in getting an accurate count.
  4. ^ Frothingham pp. 191, 194.
  5. ^ Chidsey, p. 104
  6. ^ 18th century Boston was a peninsula. Primarily in the 19th century, much land around the peninsula was filled, giving the modern city its present geography. See the history of Boston for details.
  7. ^ Chidsey, p. 72 New Hampshire 1,200, Rhode Island 1,000, Connecticut 2,300, Massachusetts 11,500
  8. ^ Alden, p. 178
  9. ^ Chidsey p. 91 has an historic map showing elevations.
  10. ^ French, p. 220
  11. ^ French, p. 249
  12. ^ Brooks, p. 119
  13. ^ Ketchum, pp. 45–46
  14. ^ Ketchum, p. 47
  15. ^ Ketchum, pp. 74–75
  16. ^ French, p. 255
  17. ^ Frothingham, pp. 122–123
  18. ^ Ketchum, pp. 102, 245
  19. ^ a b Frothingham, pp. 123–124
  20. ^ Frothingham, p. 135
  21. ^ a b Ketchum, p. 115
  22. ^ Frothingham, p. 125
  23. ^ Brooks, p. 127
  24. ^ Ketchum, p. 117
  25. ^ Ketchum, pp. 120–121
  26. ^ Ketchum, p. 122
  27. ^ a b Graydon, p. 424
  28. ^ Chidsey, p. 84
  29. ^ a b c Frothingham, p. 133
  30. ^ a b Ketchum, p. 139
  31. ^ a b Ketchum, p 143
  32. ^ Chidsey p. 93
  33. ^ Chidsey p. 96
  34. ^ Frothingham, p. 136
  35. ^ a b Ketchum, p. 147
  36. ^ Ketchum, pp. 152–153
  37. ^ Ketchum, pp. 151–152
  38. ^ Frothingham, pp. 144–145
  39. ^ Ketchum, p. 160
  40. ^ Ketchum, p. 152
  41. ^ Frothingham, pp. 141–142
  42. ^ Ketchum, p. 161
  43. ^ Ketchum, p. 162
  44. ^ Frothingham, p. 146
  45. ^ Ketchum, p. 163
  46. ^ Ketchum, p. 164
  47. ^ Ketchum, pp. 165–166
  48. ^ Chidsey p. 99
  49. ^ Frothingham, p. 150
  50. ^ a b Frothingham, p. 151 Cite error: The named reference "Frothingham151" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  51. ^ a b Ketchum, p. 181
  52. ^ Brooks, p. 237
  53. ^ Bardwell, p. 76
  54. ^ Brooks, pp. 183–184
  55. ^ Frothingham, pp. 145, 196
  56. ^ Frothingham, pp. 387–389 lists the officer casualties by name, as well as this summary
  57. ^ Ketchum, pp. 207–208
  58. ^ Ketchum, p. 209
  59. ^ Ketchum, pp. 208–209
  60. ^ a b Ketchum, p. 211
  61. ^ Ketchum, p. 213
  62. ^ Scheer, p. 64
  63. ^ a b Frothingham, p. 155
  64. ^ Frothingham, pp. 158–159
  65. ^ French, pp. 274–276
  66. ^ Frothingham, p. 153
  67. ^ French, pp. 263–265
  68. ^ Frothingham, p. 156
  69. ^ French, p. 277
  70. ^ Frothingham, p. 148
  71. ^ Frothingham pp. 152–153
  72. ^ Jackson, p. 20
  73. ^ Anderson, p. 679
  74. ^ Winsor, p. 85
  75. ^ French, pp. 269–270
  76. ^ Abbatt, p. 252
  77. ^ Ketchum, pp. 132,165
  78. ^ Woodson, p. 204
  79. ^ Ketchum, p. 260
  80. ^ Richards, p. 95
  81. ^ Frothingham, p. 183
  82. ^ Ketchum, p. 257
  83. ^ Melville
  84. ^ Hayward, p. 322
  85. ^ Clary
  86. ^ MTA Bridges
  87. ^ Bunker Hill Museum
  88. ^ McKenna
  89. ^ MA List of legal holidays
  90. ^ Somerville Environmental Services Guide
  91. ^ University of Massachusetts, Boston, observed holidays
  92. ^ Bunker Hill Day closings
  93. ^ See the Centennial Book for a complete description of the events.
  94. ^ Sesquicentennial celebration
  95. ^ New York Times, June 15, 1975

References

Major sources

These are the sources used to provide most of the information about the battle itself in this article.

  • Brooks, Victor (1999). The Boston Campaign. Conshohocken, PA: Combined Publishing. ISBN 1-58097-007-9. OCLC 42581510.
  • Chidsey, Donald Barr (1966). The Siege of Boston. Boston, MA: Crown. OCLC 890813.
  • Frothingham, Jr, Richard (1851). History of the Siege of Boston and of the Battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill, Second Edition. Boston, MA: Charles C. Little and James Brown. OCLC 2138693.
  • French, Allen (1911). The Siege of Boston. New York: McMillan. OCLC 3927532.
  • Ketchum, Richard (1999). Decisive Day: The Battle of Bunker Hill. New York: Owl Books. ISBN 0-385-41897-3. OCLC 24147566. (Paperback: ISBN 0-8050-6099-5)

Minor sources

These sources were used to cite specific facts not necessarily covered by the major sources.

Commemmorations

These references contain information about the various commemmorations of the battle.

Further reading

External links

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article "Bunker Hill".

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Pages about the battle

Pages about people in the battle

Other external pages

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