The Battle of Bunker Hill resulted in 226 British soldiers killed. The British also suffered 828 wounded, making their total casualties far higher than those of the colonial forces despite winning the battle.
The battle was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston. Colonial troops fortified Breed’s Hill on the Charlestown Peninsula, although the engagement became known by the name of nearby Bunker Hill. British forces captured the position after three assaults.
Colonial losses were 138 killed, 305 wounded, and 30 captured. The severe British casualties showed that inexperienced colonial troops could resist disciplined regular soldiers when defending fortified positions. The engagement therefore became a costly British victory rather than an easy defeat of the colonial army.
The battle is often associated with the command to wait until the enemy was close before firing, but the exact wording and speaker are debated. Another common mix-up is the location: most of the fighting occurred on Breed’s Hill, not Bunker Hill itself. These details place the battle among the early military events remembered in America’s 250th-anniversary history.