Today is the anniversary of the most important event in American History and it was a loss! If the rebels holding Breed’s Hill had put up the fight the British expected of them, the revolution would have ended that day and independence would have come some other way and in some other decade.
- The battle was actually fought on Breed’s Hill. Col. William Prescott had been ordered to fortify the higher Bunker Hill, but for some reason he proceeded to a hill closer to Boston. He either disobeyed orders or was not good with geography. Breed’s Hill was a poor choice. The British could, and should, have used their navy to land forces behind it and thus cut off Prescott’s men.
- The battle was a pyrrhic victory for the British who lost almost half of their 2,200 men. The colonists suffered about 400 casualties out of 1,200. Although a defeat, the fact that the colonists stood up to the best army in the world made the Revolution viable.
- The battle was witnessed by a future president. John Quincy Adams watched with his mother Abigail. Benjamin Pierce, the father of future President Franklin Pierce, fought in the battle.
- 150 African-Americans fought in the battle. Salem Poor was commended by white officers for his leadership and bravery. He is credited by some for killing British Major Pitcairn (although another black named Peter Salem may have done this).
- Dr. Joseph Warren, one of the key figures in the rebellion, was appointed Major General, but insisted in fighting in the ranks as a common soldier. He was killed in the battle and buried in the common grave. Months later, in an early example of forensics, his body was identified by his friend Paul Revere. Revere, an amateur dentist, was able to identify the body by way of a false tooth.
- The famous phrase “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes” was most likely said by Gen. Israel Putnam, not by Prescott. It was actually not good advice because the normal British tactic was to march up to an enemy position, absorb the enemy volley, and then charge while they were reloading. It would have been smarter to open fire at a longer range and get more shots in.
- Besides the fight for the redoubt Prescott built on the hill, there was a separate fight for a rail fence on the side of the redoubt. On the other side, the British burned the town of Charlestown to deprive the rebels of using it for sniping.
- When the rebels began to run low on ammunition, they began to fire nails, scrap metal, and broken glass. At the end, some were throwing rocks.
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/503234/11-facts-about-battle-bunker-hill
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