| Following the
Battle of Lexington and Concord, the patriots had the
British blocked off in Boston. Although the British
defeated the Americans in the Battle of Bunker Hill,
major losses left the British in need of reinforcements
from England.
In support of Washington's troops, Henry
Knox, Chief of Artillery, brought the artillery
captured
at Fort Ticonderoga to fortify their position around
Boston. He arrived in late January, 1776, after dragging
50 cannons by sled over 300 miles across snow covered
mountains.
On the evening of March 4, the cannons were positioned
on top of Dorchester Heights aimed at the British ships
in Boston Harbor. The next morning when British General
Howe saw the cannons aimed at him, he loaded his men and
supplies onto their ships and left the Boston Harbor. He
headed for Canada and set port in Halifax, Nova Scotia. |
