There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven. . . . A time for war and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 3:1, 8

Resistance in the colonies was growing, and England wanted to crush it. King George appointed General Thomas Gage as governor of Massachusetts. General Gage was also the commander of all the British soldiers in America, including the troops quartered in Boston. In February 1775, Parliament declared that the colony of Massachusetts was in a state of rebellion.

The Bible teaches that God honors obedience with His blessing. He does not honor disobedience. Did He honor the colonists who sought independence? Did He favor their cause? The answer lies hidden in the battles that were coming.

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“To arms, to arms!” the rider shouted. “The war’s begun! They’re heading for Concord!” Paul Revere slowed his horse as he approached Lexington, Massachusetts. He had galloped from Boston to sound the alarm. He shouted again and then sped off to warn the others.

It was early morning on April 19, 1775. The men in the Lexington militia had rushed from their houses to gather on the green. For many months they had been preparing for this day. Now it was here. It was time to fight.

“Stand your ground!” Captain John Parker called to the militia. “Don’t fire unless fired upon. But if they want war, let it begin here!”

Jonas Parker, the captain’s cousin, rammed a musket ball down the three-foot-long barrel of his musket. Then he put his hat on the ground and filled it with more balls. I won’t run from these Redcoats and their bright jackets, he thought. On his left, Isaac Muzzey stood beside an open keg of gunpowder. Muzzey watched while Jonathan Harrington filled his powder horn. Harrington’s wife was looking at them from the upstairs window of their house on the green.

Gage thinks he’s going to outsmart us, Muzzey thought. He thinks he’s going to capture all the arms and gunpowder stored in Concord. But he’ll have to get by us first!

The morning light shone through the shade trees on the green. The sky was clear. The church bell that had been sounding the alarm during the night had stopped clanging. All was quiet.

“Here they come!” someone cried. The men faced the east corner of the green. They saw the first ranks of a column of British soldiers—several hundred soldiers! Captain Parker quickly realized what he must do.

“Scatter!” he commanded. “There are too many of them! Don’t fire. Scatter into the countryside.” Parker knew that his few men could not stand up to so many. Instead of fighting at Lexington, they would go ahead of the British to Concord and join themselves to that town’s militia.

Parker’s men turned to retreat. The Redcoats broke ranks and charged across the lawn. Confusion engulfed the green.

Major John Pitcairn, the British officer in charge, was losing control of his troops. He yelled out, “Soldiers, don’t fire! Keep your ranks! Form and surround them!” The major turned toward the militia and shouted, “Throw down your arms! We won’t harm you.”

But then a pistol shot rang out, and another (and the only pistols on the green that day were carried by the British). Several other shots were fired, and then a young British officer yelled “Fire!” Many of the Redcoats discharged their muskets at the same time in a volley. None of the Lexington men were hit. As smoke from the British muskets covered the green the Redcoats quickly formed back into lines and loaded their guns for a second volley.

“Throw down your arms!” a British officer on horseback called out. “Why don’t you rebels lay down your arms?”

As if in answer a few of the militiamen fired their muskets. A British officer pointed his sword at the colonists and shouted, “Fire! Fire!” His soldiers fired a well-aimed second volley that tore into the militia. Jonas Parker fell to the ground, badly wounded. He later died. Isaac Muzzey and Jonathan Harrington were killed. In all, the British killed eight of the Lexington militia and wounded ten.

Some of the British chased the Patriots into the woods. The rest marched down the road toward Concord. Their fifes and drums could be heard fading away in the distance. Quiet returned to the green.

The Battle of Lexington had lasted less than fifteen minutes, but it marked the beginning of the War of Independence.

Seven hundred British Redcoats reached Concord late that morning. By the time they got there, the powder, balls, cannons, and muskets had all been hidden. The main body of Redcoats stayed in Concord while search parties went in different directions to look for Patriot militia.

The largest group of soldiers marched out of town and up the road toward the North Bridge that spanned the Concord River. There they sent a squad of one hundred men across the bridge to guard it from the other side and went on. While this was happening, colonial militia from the surrounding towns were rushing toward Concord.

As soon as the larger group of Redcoats left, the Patriot militia that had been following the British from across the river filed down toward the bridge and the Redcoats.

“Pull back across the bridge!” a British officer commanded. “Pull back!”

After they ran across the bridge, a few of the British turned and fired. And then a Redcoat officer ordered a volley, which cut down several militia.

“Fire!” an American officer yelled. The militia fired back.

The British soldiers were shocked. This was not like Lexington! These colonial militia were not running away. They were standing their ground and firing back. And they could shoot!

The first British squad knelt to reload. The second took aim behind them.

“George,” said one British soldier looking behind him, “where’s the third squad?”

George looked back over his shoulder. There was nobody there! The third squad of British soldiers had run away from the bridge.

“Scatter!” he yelled.

Immediately, the rest of them panicked and ran back to Concord. When the rest of the British arrived there they decided they had better return to Charlestown quickly the way they’d come.

But their nightmare was just beginning.

The militiamen were ready and waiting for them. All along the way, they set up ambushes for the marching British column, firing from behind trees and stone walls.

“Over here, Thomas!” Ben pointed to a thick hedge. “We can fire from behind here.”

“James, you and John take cover by that stone wall up the road,” the captain ordered. “Shoot from there!”

The march was horrible for the British. Patriot militia seemed to be behind every tree and stone wall. The Redcoats could not properly fight a battle when they could not even see their enemy! They were worn out from all the marching and fighting. And by the time they reached Lexington, they were almost out of ammunition. Men were being cut down every few yards. They could not take much more.

Just then the soldiers heard the sound of bagpipes.

“Captain, it’s General Percy!” a British lieutenant yelled. “He’s come with help!”

Sure enough, Percy had arrived with a thousand fresh men and two cannons. The cannons kept the militia from getting too close to the retreating column. The British sent the fresh troops out along both sides of the road, so the Patriots weren’t able to set up as many ambushes, but the British kept losing men.

The worst fighting of the retreat happened at Menotomy, near Charlestown. There several thousand Patriot militiamen gathered. They were waiting for the British, firing at them from the windows of houses on both sides of the road. The British soldiers went into every house, and the fighting inside was fierce.

The hero of the day was Sam Whittemore, who was 80 years old. Armed with a musket, two pistols, and an old cavalry sword, he hid behind a stone wall and waited. When the Redcoats came near he began shooting. A large group of British came looking for him. He stayed hidden until they were close, and then jumped up and shot one Redcoat with his musket. Firing both pistols he killed two more. He was drawing his saber when a musket ball hit him in the face, knocking him down.

The Redcoats stabbed him over and over with their bayonets until they were sure they had killed him.

Only they hadn’t.

Miraculously, even with part of his face shot away and thirteen bayonet wounds in his body, Sam recovered. He lived until he was 98 years old. He said that if he ever had the chance, he would do it all over again.

The British finally made it back to Charlestown.

But the Americans celebrated a victory. They had done it! They had stood up to the greatest military power on earth and beaten them badly.

Ministers everywhere reminded the Patriots whom they should thank. “As long as we keep our hearts right, God will shower His blessings on us,” they preached. “But we cannot take pride in our own strength. It is the Lord of heaven and earth whom we must thank.”

The Reverend Samuel Langdon proclaimed, “If God is for us, who can be against us? Let the Lord be our refuge and our strength.”

———

In New Haven, Connecticut, a young captain named Benedict Arnold marched his men to Massachusetts.

“I think I can take Fort Ticonderoga from the British,” he told the Massachusetts Provincial Congress. “It’s located on the southern end of Lake Champlain. If we take it, we’ll command the waterway from New York City to Montreal. And we’ll stop the British from coming down from Montreal.”

The Massachusetts men listened. Arnold continued. “We can use the fort’s cannons to fight in Boston. Canada might join us in our fight against the British.”

The Massachusetts Provincial Congress agreed with Arnold and made him a colonel. He departed for Canada immediately. Colonel Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys from Vermont joined forces with Arnold on May 9, 1775.

The next day the men crept forward through the gray fog of early morning. They spotted the fort just ahead.

“Look there.” Allen whispered. “The gate is open. Let’s take it!”

The men rushed in. A sentry raised his musket and aimed at Allen, but the gun did not fire. A few Redcoats appeared, but the Americans quickly took them prisoner. Allen stormed up the stairs to the quarters of the fort’s commander, Captain Delaplace. He banged on the door.

When Delaplace opened it, Allen roared at him: “Deliver this fort instantly!”

“By what authority?” Delaplace replied.

“In the name of the great Jehovah and the Continental Congress!” Allen thundered.

Delaplace ordered his forty men to lay down their arms. God had given the Americans the gateway to New York.

———

On June 15, Colonel William Prescott and his men learned that Gage planned to occupy the Charlestown Neck and Dorchester peninsulas. These were two peninsulas located to the north and south of Boston. The British already held Boston and its harbor. If the Redcoats could take these two peninsulas they could cement their hold on Boston. The Americans knew they had to move fast.

“O Lord, we seek Your divine protection this day,” Reverend Langdon prayed as the men bowed their heads. “We place ourselves in Your hands as we do what must be done. Have mercy on us and protect us.”

Prescott and his troops moved onto Charlestown Neck. They began to fortify Breed’s Hill, one of the two hills located on the peninsula. It was slightly closer to Boston than the other hill, known as Bunker Hill. The Patriots worked through the night of June 16. They dug a redoubt, which was a fortification on the hill.

By morning, General Gage had learned the colonial forces were there. He ordered an attack.

“Open fire!” he commanded his ships in the harbor. “We’re going to settle some old scores today. We’re going to watch these Yankee Doodles run!”

Gage committed one-third of his entire force to the operation. This would be an important victory. The winner would gain a big advantage. Gage appointed General William Howe as field commander.

Howe loaded his forces into small boats to cross over to Charlestown Neck. On reaching shore, the Redcoats formed two lines. Howe himself led the charge.

“I don’t expect any one of you to go any farther than I’m willing to go myself!” With that, Howe pulled out his sword and started up the long hill.

The climb was not easy. Drums beat out the call to advance. Behind Howe marched two lines of Redcoats. Their ranks were straight and even. Their eyes looked straight ahead. But something was wrong. Where was the enemy? What were they waiting for?

They were waiting for the command to fire. “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes!” Prescott ordered. At last he yelled. “Fire!” The Americans blasted the enemy’s lines at close range with musket fire. The British fell back with heavy losses.

Howe quickly got his men back into position. The British began to advance up the hill again. This time, Prescott let them come even closer than before. When they were less than ninety feet away, he ordered his men to fire again. The entire British front rank was destroyed. The Redcoats broke their formation and ran down the hill to the boats.

Howe was not going to give up. He changed his tactics. This time, he directed his men to charge the redoubt with bayonets. Once again, Prescott waited to give the order until the British were at close range. But this time the Americans did not have enough ammunition. Redcoats poured over the wall.

“If you have a bayonet, meet them!” Prescott ordered. “The rest of you retreat to the rear of the redoubt. Then take aim!”

The Americans stayed in position as long as they could. Some used their muskets as clubs, but they could not hold the British back. Colonel Prescott finally ordered a retreat.

Strangely, Howe did not pursue Prescott and his men. He easily could have taken Cambridge, which was only two miles away. And he could have taken thousands of Patriot prisoners. But he chose to stay where he was. This was just the first of many golden opportunities the British would miss during the war.

The British had won the battle of Bunker Hill, as it came to be called. But the victory cost them dearly. Nearly half of their 2,200 soldiers had been killed or wounded. The Americans lost only 441 men out of the 3,000 who fought.

Amos Farnsworth, a corporal in the Massachusetts militia, wrote about that day in his diary:

Oh, the goodness of God in preserving my life, although they fell on my right hand and on my left! O may this act of deliverance of thine, O God, lead me never to distrust thee . . .

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The Americans had resorted to arms, and God seemed to be blessing their cause. But their militia was not yet strong enough. The colonists needed an intelligent, skillful military leader. As always, God had just the man in mind. His name was George Washington.