The siege of Boston was the opening phase of the American Revolutionary War. In the siege, American patriot militia led by newly-installed Continental Army commander George Washington prevented the British Army, which was garrisoned in Boston, from moving by land. Both sides faced resource, supply, and personnel challenges during the siege. British resupply and reinforcement was limited to sea access, which was impeded by American vessels. The British ultimately abandoned Boston after eleven months, moving their troops and equipment north, to Nova Scotia.
Illustration depicting the British evacuation of Boston
An engraving depicting Ethan Allen demanding the surrender of Fort Ticonderoga
The Battle of Bunker Hill, Howard Pyle, 1897
George Washington taking command of the Army, 1775
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War, also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a military conflict that was part of the broader American Revolution, where American Patriot forces organized as the Continental Army and commanded by George Washington defeated the British Army.
Clockwise from top left: Surrender of Lord Cornwallis after the Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Trenton, The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill, Battle of Long Island, and the Battle of Guilford Court House
The Committee of Five, who were charged with drafting the Declaration of Independence, including (from left to right): John Adams (chair), Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston, Thomas Jefferson (the Declaration's principal author), and Benjamin Franklin
The British repulse a Continental Army attack at the Battle of Quebec in December 1775
Sergeant William Jasper of the 2nd South Carolina Regiment raises the fort's flag at the Battle of Sullivan's Island in Charleston, South Carolina in June 1776
