The Battle of Bunker Hill was mainly fought on Breed’s Hill, where colonial forces built fortifications overlooking Boston Harbor.
The battle occurred on June 17, 1775, during the early months of the American Revolutionary War. Colonial troops had occupied Breed’s Hill during the night, constructing a redoubt close to British positions in Boston. British commanders attacked the works in repeated uphill assaults.
The British eventually captured the position, but they suffered heavy casualties. The engagement demonstrated that inexperienced colonial forces could stand against regular British troops, even though the colonial army lost the ground.
The name “Battle of Bunker Hill” persisted because Bunker Hill was the larger and more familiar landmark nearby. Most of the combat, however, took place on Breed’s Hill. The battle’s famous lesson came from the order commonly paraphrased as “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes,” though the exact wording and speaker remain debated by historians.