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# The Shot Heard ’Round the World: Lexington, Concord and the Start of War
- URL: https://www.cascadepbs.org/show/the-american-revolution/extras/the-shot-heard-round-the-world-lexington-concord-and-the-start-of-war-zzazhe/
- Published: 2025-11-05T21:15:43.000Z
- Updated: 2026-05-12T20:12:54.000Z
- Description: Tensions erupt as colonists confront the British Army at Lexington and Concord, beginning the war.
- Author: Cascade PBS Staff
- Tags: The American Revolution, #ZZZ_Show_f16516f8-e9bd-49d8-b49b-96781c68070a, #v1.7, #ZZZ_Extra_a5622d15-aa98-4764-8395-38d5afa6a65a, #extra

The Patriots catch wind of a secret British plan to move troops from Boston into Concord and they dispatch William Dawes and Paul Revere to warn other Patriots that the British are coming. The British attack a Patriot force in Lexington, but they are overwhelmed by hundreds of militiamen pouring in from the countryside and forced to retreat to Boston. The American Revolution has begun.