What engagement is generally considered the first battle of the American Revolutionary War, commemorated by America250?

The Battles of Lexington and Concord are generally considered the first battles of the American Revolutionary War, a beginning remembered by America250.

On April 19, 1775, British troops marched from Boston toward Concord, Massachusetts, intending to seize colonial military supplies. At Lexington, British regulars and local militiamen confronted one another, and shots were fired. The British continued to Concord, where colonial forces resisted them before the troops began their return to Boston.

Militia units attacked the withdrawing British column along the road, inflicting significant casualties. The fighting marked the transition from political protest to open warfare between Great Britain and the American colonies. Paul Revere and William Dawes had helped spread the warning, while Samuel Prescott completed much of the alarm ride.

The engagement was not a single battle at one location but a series of clashes across several communities. Fighting continued during the Siege of Boston, and the Continental Congress later appointed George Washington commander in chief of the new American army.