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18 Battles of the American Revolutionary War

1. Battle of Lexington - Concord (April, 1775)

2. Capture by Colonists of Fort Ticonderoga (May, 1775)

3. Battle of Bunker hill (June, 1775)

4. Battle of Long Island (August, 1776)

5. Battle of Harlem Heights (September, 1776)

6. Battle of White Plains (October, 1776)

7. Battles of Trenton and Princeton (December 25, 1776 - Jan 3, 1777)

8. Battle of Saratoga (Sept - Oct, 1777)

9. Battle of Brandywine (Sept, 1777)

10. Battle of Germantown (Oct, 1777)

11. Battle of Monmouth (June, 1778)

12. John Paul Jones captures British ship Serapis (September, 1779)

13. Savannah taken by British (December, 1778)

14. Gates defeated by Cornwallis - Camden, South Carolina (August, 1780)

15. King’s Mountain (Oct, 1780)

16. Guilford Court House (March, 1781)

17. Greene clears interior of South Carolina and Georgia of the British (1781)

18. Cornwallis trapped in Yorktown (Oct , 1781)

Clearly, these are not all of the battles in the Revolutionary War, you may pickand choose.

• Make sure the you maintain a balance between battles won by the Colonists andthose won by the British.

• Try keep the battles in chronological order.

• Students will want to investigate a particular person. This should be encouragedand can be placed in the context of a battle (for example, see the sample reportregarding the capture of the British ship Serapis began as a report about JohnPaul Jones)

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The Battle of Lexington - Concord

On April 19, 1775 British General Thomas Gage led his troops from Boston. The650-900 men were to destroy the rebel’s military stores at Concord. The rebel spiesquickly found out and Paul Revere spread the news to the Minutemen. About 70minutemen confronted the Birtish on the green at Lexington. They were orderedto lay down their arms and disperse. Minutemen Captain John Walker told hismen to disperse, but they did not lay down their arms. Someone fired a shot andthe Revolutionary War had begun. 10 Minutemen died and more were wounded atLexington.

The British continued on toward Concord. This time the Americans were moreprepared. The Minutemen met the British at the Concord North Bridge where theBritish were routed and began to retreat. Many British were killed during the retreatbecause the Minutemen hid begind trees and walls instead of forming a line as theBritish did. By the end of the day, the British lost 273 men and the Minutemen lost95. The American Revolutionary War had begun.

Helpful web sites:

• http://www.sar.ord/dessar/Lexing96.html

• http://www.wpi.edu/Academics/Depts/MilSci/BTSI/lexcon/lexcon.html

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John Paul Jones and the capture of the British ship Serapis

John Paul Jones was born in Scotland on July 6, 1747. By the age of 21, he wascaptain of a ship. When the Revolutionary War began, he cast his lot with the rebels.As First Lieutenant on the Continental Navy ship Alfred he was the first to hoist theGrand Union flag on a Continental Warship.

In 1779, the French gave Jones an old ship, which he repaired and renamed theBon Homme Richard. In August 1779, commanding six other ships, he sailed to raidEnglish shipping. On September 23, 1779 he engaged the HMS Serapis. The Richardwas blasted in the initial exchange and the captain of the Serapis asked if Jones wouldsurrender. Jones replied, “I have not yet begun to fight!”

The fight continued and eventually, John Paul Jones and his crew won and theSerapis surrendered.

Helpful web site:

• http://www.cj=hinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/traditions/html/jpjones.html