The Road to Lexington and
Concord
Chapter 6
Section 3
The Intolerable Acts
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Key ? - What rights were threatened by the
Intolerable Acts?
“We must master them or totally leave them to
themselves and treat them as aliens.”
Intolerable Acts (Coercive Acts.); closed the port
of Boston; banned town meetings; replaced
elected counsel; increased the governor’s power;
British officials accused of crimes could not be
tried by the colonists; British officers house troops
in private dwellings.
The First Continental Congress
1774 – delegates from all colonies(except
Georgia) met in Philadelphia.
 Voted to ban all trade with Britain until the
Intolerable Acts were repealed; each colony
would begin training troops.
 Not ready to call for independence, but
upheld the colonial rights.
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The Revolution Begins
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Key ? – Why did the fighting begin at Lexington?
Both British and colonists had informants to watch
over each other’s activities.
General Thomas Gage orders that Sam Adams and
John Hancock be arrested in Lexington.
The Midnight Ride – Sons of Liberty sent Paul
Revere and William Dawes to spread the news
about the British movement.
Revere arranged for signals in the Old North
Church – one if by land and two if by sea.
Lexington and Concord
April 19, 1775 – No one knows who fired
first at Lexington – 8 militia men dead.
 British marched to Concord and destroyed
military supplies.
 A battle broke out and British retreated.
 4,000 Minutemen arrived and peppered the
retreating British with musket fire.
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Revolutionary War
Lexington and Concord were the first
battles.
 “shot heard ‘round the world” – Ralph
Waldo Emerson.
 Americans would now have to choose sides.
 Loyalists – those who supported the British.
 Patriots – those who supported the rebels.
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