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George Washington had his share of combat victories in America’s war for independence. But among his most significant triumphs was his brilliant and successful effort to persuade the British to abandon Boston without even putting up a fight. The redcoats simply knew they had already been beaten. On this day 250 years ago Gen. Washington wrote to his compatriot John Hancock to share the good news: It is with the greatest pleasure I inform
you that… The Ministerial Army evacuated the Town of Boston, and that the Forces of the United Colonies are now in actual possession thereof. I beg leave to congratulate you Sir, & the honorable Congress—on this happy Event, and particularly as it was effected without endangering the lives & property of the remaining unhappy Inhabitants. Noting anniversary celebrations in Massachusetts this week, Brian MacQuarrie of the Boston Globe explains how victory was won without shots being fired: … 11,000 British
troops and Loyalists left Boston after waking 12 days earlier to see American cannons suddenly pointed their way from Dorchester Heights in present-day South Boston. No battle ensued, no blood was shed, but the mere sight of those cannons caused the startled British to flee Boston and give General George Washington his first major victory of the Revolutionary War. “What happened here was a real signal to the rest of the colonies. It was a beacon of hope,” said Jonathan Lane, executive director of Revolution 250, a Massachusetts nonprofit group. “There had been a classic
underestimation of America’s ability.”
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