Siege of Boston Gives Glimpses of Washington

George Washington Shows Patience in First Victory of the Revolution

Mar 4, 2009

General George Washington was naturally aggressive but showed his ability to listen to reason and judge talent as evidenced by his actions during the Siege of Boston.

By the time George Washington took control of the American forces at the siege of Boston, he was already a famous person in the colonies and even known around the world. His journal of explorations in the untamed Ohio Country along with military exploits prior to and during the French and Indian War (or Seven Year’s War) had made him a well known figure.

So when he rode up to the outskirts of Boston in July, 1775, Washington was not pleased to see the rag tag army with little to no discipline that waited his arrival. Despite these initial prejudices, Washington would find and cultivate young and talented officers that would lead eventually to victory.

Breed’s Hill

That battle of Bunker Hill (actually fought on Breed’s Hill but famously misnamed Bunker Hill) was technically a victory for the British Army. They had moved the rebels off the Charlestown isthmus and taken control of the heights.

But the victory had come at a great cost. The British had suffered more than twice as many casualties as the colonials and the battle had proven the American army was capable of standing up to the British regulars in a head to head battle.

Because of the carnage suffered, General William Howe, who had led a charge up the hill and now was in charge of the entire garrison in Boston, was reluctant to mount another full on assault of the colonial works.

That led to a stalemate with both sides digging in on the necks of three peninsulas that made up the Boston area and neither side willing to risk a major engagement against the other’s works.

On the Attack

Washington by his nature was a man of action. It was not like him to sit back and wait for his enemy to come to him. He would go to the enemy.

So when he arrived in July, he began almost immediately to make plans to attack the British in Boston.

But when he presented his plan to his staff, they voted against the measure rightfully suggesting the plan was too dangerous and the British were too well dug in. Despite the fact that his general staff was young and inexperienced, Washington took the advice of the council and deferred his attack.

It was also in these councils that Washington was introduced to two of the generals that would change the war-Nathanial Greene and Henry Knox.

Greene would later prove invaluable during the winter at Valley Forge and later as a thorn in the side of British General Lord Charles Cornwallis in the southern theater, but Knox would play a more immediate role.

Dorchester Heights and Guns of Ticonderoga

Fort Ticonderoga was an early victory for the colonials as a force led by Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold surprised the fort’s garrison and took the fort and its 100 guns without a fight.

It was Knox, a bookseller from Boston with no military experience that proposed the bringing of Ticonderoga’s guns to Boston as a way to change the balance of fire power.

What was exceptional was not that Knox came up with the idea, but rather than Washington put Knox, a man with no history of leadership, in charge of the expedition.

The appointment was brilliant, however. Knox performed his duties flawlessly, transporting the cannon over ice covered lakes and through the treacherous New England winter without losing a piece.

Plans were then hatched to install the cannon on Dorchester Heights, an undefended hill overlooking Boston Harbor. In early March, the colonials sprung their plan into action.

Under the cover of a deafening artillery barrage to mask the sound of the moving cannon, the rebels constructed batteries made from prefabricated walls and supports.

When the British woke in the morning, they found that their ships were under the muzzle of fortified cannons looking down on them from the heights.

Surprise and Retreat

The move took the British completely by surprise due to the speed and stealth in which the Americans were able to construct the batteries.

General Howe himself was said to have remarked on the industriousness of the rebels.

But gathering himself, Howe knew that the siege was over and he had been out moved by the American commander. He ordered the evacuation of his troops and on March 27, the British sailed off and for the moment, no British troops were on colonial soil.

Impact of Boston

Watching the British sail away from Boston, Washington knew his work was far from over. The Redcoats would return and in greater numbers.

But what he might not have known is that he had begun laying the foundations for American victory by the support and faith he had put into his young commanders. Both Greene and Knox revered Washington and worked hard to maintain his trust.

The copyright of the article Siege of Boston Gives Glimpses of Washington in Colonial America is owned by Bryan Rose. Permission to republish Siege of Boston Gives Glimpses of Washington in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.