Two if by Sea on April 18, 19 1775
Thomas Gage Orders Capture of John Hancock, Sam Adams and the Powder
Feb 10, 2008
On April 14th General Gage received orders from the Earl of Dartmouth, the Secretary of State for the Colonies to arrest "the principle actors and abettors of the provincial congress" of Massachusetts and that "force should be repelled by force." The clear message was that the General had been taking it too easy on the Americans and needed to take a more proactive and violent stand. Gage wasted no time in setting in motion a secret mission to send 700-800 picked troops to arrest John Hancock and Samuel Adams in Lexington and to confiscate a store of arms, powder and several canon, in Concord.
General Gage's Headquarters Springs an Intelligence Leak
While Gage set his secret plan into motion, it seems that there was nothing at all secret about it. There have been several theories as to how the mission was compromised. The most titillating blamed his American born wife, Margaret Kemble. While this has never been proven, it is almost certain that Gage believed it. Immediately after the failure of this mission, she was shipped to England. It is said that Gage never had much to do with her again. Another indirect source was the Naval Admiral Samuel Graves, who was not very discreet in his preparations for troop transport across Boston's Back Bay. Finally, in a city which had a decided majority of its residents on the rebel side, a slip of the tongue here or there was bound to be reported. Undeniably, it was a combination of all these events that ruined the surprise. Dr. Joseph Warren was able to sound the alarm.
The Regulars Are Out!
The old military adage "Hurry up and wait" was never more true than at about 10:00PM on the night of the eighteenth of April. The picked troops were to gather on the Boston Common to begin crossing. By 11:00 PM a two small lights appeared in the Old North Church steeple; the signal paul revere arrange as a back up to the midnight riders mission. It was the first visible signal that the Gage's mission was compromised. Admiral Grave's boats were late and then the landing sight proved to be a swamp. This meant that Redcoats had to wade in to shore. Then there were forced to wade again over a creek because the commander, Lt. Col. Smith, wanted to eliminate the noise of a bridge crossing and preserve the already lost element of surprise. By the time the march to Lexington was finally ready to begin on the Cambridge side of the Charles River, it was almost 1:00AM.
Calm Before The Storm
All of the had caused the Regular Troops to make it only as far as Somerville by 2:00Am where Smith has allowed the men to stop for water to refresh themselves. Although they were quickly back on the march, it looked as if their plan to be at Lexington by 3:00am was doomed. By 3:00AM the long line of Ministerial troops stopped once again at the town of Menotomy. They had collected a haggard group of prisoners along the way that ranged from Minute Men Scouts to Housewives making a trip to the outhouse at the wrong time. Three Menotomy members of the Provincial Congress had actually fled to the cornfields to hide. Loyalists had begun report to Col. Smith that hundreds of Militia Men were turning out. Captured rebel scouts, attempting to awe him, corroborated the news that the alarm was widespread. Smith then decided to send Major Pitcairn ahead toward Lexington with the light infantry to secure bridges and clear the way. He also sent an express to Boston for reinforcements. He had no idea how much he would need them before this long day was over.
Sources
The Long Fuse: How England Lost The American Colonies by Don Cook, 1995, Atlantic Monthly Press
The War For American Independence by Samuel B. Griffeth II, 1976, Universityof Illlinois Press
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