The Battles of Lexington and Concord began on April 19, 1775, launching the major armed conflict of the American Revolutionary War.
British troops marched from Boston toward Concord to seize military supplies held by Patriot militias. The first clash occurred at Lexington, Massachusetts, where local militia confronted the British column. Fighting continued through Concord and along the road back toward Boston.
The battles were not the first act of resistance in the wider colonial crisis. The Boston Massacre occurred in 1770, and the Boston Tea Party followed in 1773. Lexington and Concord were different because they produced sustained combat between British regulars and colonial forces.
The engagement helped bring the conflict into the open and encouraged the Second Continental Congress to organize the Continental Army. George Washington was appointed commander in chief soon afterward, linking the battles directly to the war remembered during America250.