#The Battles of Lexington and Concord

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

I'm among friends :: ["No Kings" protests Atlanta Ga]

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We will defeat Trump's agenda. We will do so by banding together in common cause. The sooner that everyone understands that fact and gets on board, the sooner the day when Trump's agenda will collapse. We must do everything, everywhere, all at once. Some efforts must be coordinated to be effective (e.g., law firms and universities defending their members), while others must be mass movements that rise from the ground up. See The Guardian, Anti-Trump protesters in the US might look to the Czech Republic: ‘We are an example’.

No Kings Day was a positive sign that we are heading in the right direction. We must act with greater urgency and numbers to hasten the day when we can fully re-establish the rule of law and the democratic norms of justice, decency, and dignity.

[Robert B. Hubbell Newsletter]

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Yesterday, on the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord at the beginning of the Revolutionary War, Americans across the country protested against President Donald J. Trump, his billionaire sidekick Elon Musk, and the administration in general. The decentralized 50501 movement, which stands for “50 protests in 50 states on 1 day,” was one of the organizers of the protests, planning more than 700 events. Spokesperson Hunter Dunn described 50501 as a “pro-democracy, pro-Constitution, anti-executive-overreach, nonviolent grassroots movement.” Notably, protests have spread to small towns all around the country, including towns in Republican-dominated areas.

[Heather Cox Richardson: Letters From An American]

[deborabuerk-the-write-stuff]

The Historic Battles of Lexington and Concord Explained

The Semiquincentennial of the American Revolution, Part Two. On April 19, 2025, as the sun rises over the horizon, we commemorate not just a milestone in our family—the 70th birthday of my beloved husband—but also a momentous occasion in our nation’s history. Two hundred and fifty years ago, on this fateful day, the echoes of freedom began to reverberate across the colonies, igniting the flames…

[tallmadgeandtea]

GOOOD MORNING MASSACHUSETTS

[karagin22]

By the rude bridge that arched the flood,

Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled,

Here once the embattled farmers stood,

And fired the shot heard round the world.

[todaysdocument]

Deposition #1 of Solomon Brown, Jonathan Loring and Elijah Saunderson of Lexington, Massachusetts Regarding the Events of April 18 and 19, 1775 at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Record Group 360: Records of the Continental and Confederation Congresses and the Constitutional ConventionSeries: Papers of the Continental CongressFile Unit: Massachusetts State Papers

N. 1 11

We Solomon Brown Jonathan Loring & Elijah Sanderson All of Lawful Age and of Lexington in the County of Middlesex and Colony of the Massachusett Bay in New England do testifie & declare that on the Evening of the Eighteenth of April Instant being on the Road between Concord & Lexington and All of us mounted on Horses we were about ten of the Clock suddenly surprized by Nine Persons whom we took to be Regular Officers who Rode up to us Mounted and Armed each having a Pistol in His Hand, and after Putting, Pistols to our Breasts and seizing the Bridles of Our Horses, they swore that ^if^ we Stirred another Step We should be all Dead Men, upon which we surrender ed Our Selves they Detained us untill Two o clock the Next morning in which time they searched and Greatly abused us, having first Enquired about the Magazine at Concord, whether any Guards were posted there and whether the Bridges were up and said Four or Five Regiments of Regulars would be in Possession of the Stores Soon they then brought us back to Lexington, cut the Horses Bridles and girt[h]s turned them Loose and ^then^ left us Lexington April 25 1775

Solomon Brown

Jonathan Loring

Elijah Sanderson

Middlesex SS April 25 1775

Jona Loring Solomon Brown and Elijah Sanderson being duly Cautioned to Testify the whole Truth, made Solemn Oath to the Truth of the above Deposition by them subscribed

Coram

Wm Reed

Josiah Johnson } Just.

Wm Stickney } Pacix

I Elijah Saunderson abovove (sic) named do further testifie & declare that I was on Lexington Common the morning of the Nineteenth of April afore said having been dismissed by the Officers abovementioned & saw a Large Body of Regular Troops advancing toward Lexington Company, many of whom were then dispersing -- I heard one of the Regulars whom I took to be an officer Say Damn Them we will have them, & immediately the Regulars shouted aloud, Run and fired on the Lexington Company which did not fire a gun before the Regulars Discharged on them Eight of the Lexington Company were killed while they were dispersing and at considerable Distance from Each other, and many wounded, & altho a spectator I narrowly Escaped with my Life

Lexington April 25 1775 Elijah Saunderson

Middlesex SS April 25 1775

Elijah Saunderson above named being Duly cautioned to Testify the whole Truth made Solemn Oath to the Truth of the above Deposition by them subscribed

Wm Reed

Coram Josiah Johnson } Just.

Wm Stickney } Pacis

Province of the Massachusetts Bay Charlestown ss

I Nathaniel Gorham Notary & Tabellion Puplic by Lawful authority duly admitted and Sworn hereby certify all of whom ^it^ doth or may concern that William Reed Josiah Johnson & William Stickney Esqrs are three of his Majesty's Justices of the Peace for the County of Middlesex and that full faith and credit is to be given to their transactions as such in Witness whereof I have hereunto affixed my Name & Seal this Twenty Six Day of april Anno Domini one Thousand Seven Hundred & Seventy five

the foregoing are true copies attest

Nathaniel Gorham Noy Pubc

No 1 [sideways, in left margin]

[jamescanningauthor]

So Happy to Have Been at the 250th Anniversary of the Battle of Lexington & Concord!

Reenactment photos under the Read More!

The Regulars

The Militias

Civilians/Evacuees

[tfc2211]

The Battle of Lexington and Concord, which marked the beginning of the American War of Independence, April 19, 1775. (DeAgostini/Getty Images)

The Battle of Lexington depicted in a 1910 portrait by William Barnes Wollen.

[jamescanningauthor]

The raid on St Albans, Vermont, in the American Civil War! It is my favorite fact to tell people about, and I have single-handedly gotten more people into this obscure historical incident than anyone else I can think of. I even told Brandon Fisichella about it this morning when I met him at Lex250, he was very nice :)

(okay no, but put in the tags something youre the unofficial influencer of. Like something youve purchased enough, used enough, bragged about and endorsed enough to others that you should be an influencer for)

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Michael de Adder :: @deAdder

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LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

April 20, 2025

Heather Cox Richardson

Apr 21, 2025

Yesterday, on the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord at the beginning of the Revolutionary War, Americans across the country protested against President Donald J. Trump, his billionaire sidekick Elon Musk, and the administration in general. The decentralized 50501 movement, which stands for “50 protests in 50 states on 1 day,” was one of the organizers of the protests, planning more than 700 events. Spokesperson Hunter Dunn described 50501 as a “pro-democracy, pro-Constitution, anti-executive-overreach, nonviolent grassroots movement.” Notably, protests have spread to small towns all around the country, including towns in Republican-dominated areas.

One of the signs in Miami read, “I’m here fighting for your due process,” a right the Trump administration has abandoned with its rendition of men to CECOT, a notorious terrorist prison in El Salvador. Today, Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) appeared on a number of news programs explaining that his trip to El Salvador to make contact with his constituent Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whom the administration said it sent to CECOT through “administrative error,” was about defending the rule of law.

“I am not defending the man. I'm defending the rights of this man to due process,” Van Hollen told Jonathan Karl of ABC News. “And the Trump administration has admitted in court that he was wrongfully detained and wrongfully deported. My mission and my purpose is to make sure that we uphold the rule of law, because if we take it away from him, we…jeopardize it for everybody else.”

The right to due process is central to the rule of law in the United States, and the Trump administration has ignored it since at least March 15, when it spirited more than 250 men from the U.S. to CECOT. It claimed the men were all dangerous gang members who had committed crimes, but did not provide their names. Once news outlets got a list of the men, their investigations found the administration had lied about the men’s criminal status. Bloomberg reported that 90% of the men sent to CECOT had no U.S. criminal record.

Judge James Boasberg ordered the government not to deport the men and, if they were already in the air, to turn the planes around. But the administration went forward nonetheless and has appeared to taunt the courts ever since. After the men were landed and in CECOT, President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador posted on X, “Oopsie… Too late” with a laughing emoji, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio retweeted his post. Last Wednesday, April 16, Boasberg issued an opinion saying that the court concluded “that probable cause exists to find the Government in criminal contempt.” On April 4, Judge Paula Xinis ordered the administration to “facilitate and effectuate” Abrego Garcia’s return. Six days later, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously upheld Xinis’s order.

Last Monday, April 14, in a staged meeting between Trump and Bukele in the Oval Office, Trump made it clear he would ignore the Supreme Court. The administration has maintained that the U.S. has no power to order Bukele to release Abrego Garcia, and in the meeting, Bukele said he would not release the Maryland man.

The administration appears to have tried to create a fiction whereby the U.S. can spirit anyone out of the U.S. without due process, render them to prison in another country, and then declare it doesn’t have the power to get the person back. Vice President J.D. Vance, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and deputy White House chief of staff Stephen Miller were all present at the meeting. Miller mischaracterized the Supreme Court decision to say it had ruled unanimously in favor of the administration, the exact opposite of reality.

On Wednesday, Van Hollen traveled to El Salvador to try to meet with Abrego Garcia, finally securing a visit on Thursday. This appeared to infuriate the White House, which posted on social media an image of a New York Times headline “Senator Meets With Wrongly Deported Maryland Man in El Salvador” edited with red pen to read: “Senator Meets With Deported MS-13 ILLEGAL ALIEN in El Salvador WHO’S NEVER COMING BACK.” Over the image, it posted: “Fixed it for you, [New York Times]. Oh, and by the way [Chris Van Hollen]—he’s NOT coming back.”

There is no evidence that Abrego Garcia is a member of MS-13; indeed, he has never been charged with a crime, and a court had ordered that he must not be deported to El Salvador out of concern for his life. But as control over the narrative of their renditions is slipping out of their hands—influential podcaster Joe Rogan has been defending due process on his show—administration officials appear determined to paint Abrego Garcia as a dangerous criminal.

Yesterday the White House posted on social media an image of a hand that has been very obviously altered by adding “M-S-1-3” over the knuckles. A social media post by Trump is superimposed on the image. It says: “This is the hand of the man that the Democrats feel should be brought back to the United States, because he is such ‘a fine and innocent person.’ They said he is not a member of MS-13, even though he’s got MS-13 tattooed onto his knuckles, and two Highly Respected Courts found that he was a member of MS-13, beat up his wife, etc. I was elected to take bad people out of the United States, among other things. I must be allowed to do my job. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN.” The White House account added: “If he tattoos like MS-13, beats women like MS-13, and tramples the law like MS-13—THEN HE’S PROBABLY MS-13.”

Except the image is clearly false, no courts found he was a member of MS-13, and scholar of MS-13 Óscar Martínez commented: “I covered MS-13 for over a decade: its history, crimes, symbolism, cruelty, pacts with Salvadoran governments. I wrote a book about it. Never, ever, did any of the hundreds of sources I spoke to say anything that would allow us to believe Trump's strange interpretation of tattoos.”

Although Abrego Garcia’s wife did file a temporary civil protective order against him in 2021, she has said she did it out of an abundance of caution after a previous relationship that had been violent. She did not pursue the order, and says the two worked out their issues with counseling.

Perhaps more to the point was Chris Kluwe’s point that “a sitting US President is using falsified evidence to try and deny due process to a man who has committed no crime.” Also to the point is that the administration’s insistence that Abrego Garcia will never come back to the U.S. flies in the face of the Supreme Court’s 9–0 decision that it must work to get him back to the U.S.

Early Saturday morning, the Supreme Court ordered the administration not to deport another group of undocumented Venezuelans under the authority of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act. Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented, but the court was in such a hurry to prevent the rendition of the men—who had already been loaded onto buses to head to an airplane—that it issued its decision without waiting for them to finish writing.

In his One First newsletter, legal analyst Steve Vladeck noted that the court appears not to trust the government’s lawyers anymore. Vladeck saw the order as “a sign that a majority of the justices have lost their patience with the procedural games being played by the Trump administration.”

Trump did not take the order well. On Saturday night he posted: “TRUMP’S BEST POLL NUMBERS, EVER. THANK YOU!” After a religiously themed post this morning, he launched another attack on those he sees as his enemies—including judges—and blamed the country’s troubles on his predecessor, President Joe Biden. Then he posted: “We are, together, going to make America bigger, better, stronger, wealthier, healthier, and more religious, than it has ever been before!!! DONALD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!!!”

Trump went on to post about the economy, including a post that said: “THE BUSINESSMEN WHO CRITICIZE TARIFFS ARE BAD AT BUSINESS, BUT REALLY BAD AT POLITICS. THEY DON’T UNDERSTAND OR REALIZE THAT I AM THE GREATEST FRIEND THAT AMERICAN CAPITALISM HAS EVER HAD!” About an hour later, he posted that “many World Leaders and Business Executives have come to me asking for relief from Tariffs. It’s good to see that the World knows we are serious, because WE ARE!”

It’s hard not to read desperation in the last days of Trump’s posts as Americans seem increasingly concerned about the loss of the rule of law, as Trump’s tariffs upset the economy, and as Russia’s president Vladimir Putin seemed to taunt his U.S. counterpart—who badly wants to end Russia’s war against Ukraine, as he promised to do with a single phone call—by declaring a truce over Easter and then promptly violating it.

That the administration seems to be reeling showed also in the news on Friday that the State Department has been torn apart by Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s firing of Peter Marocco, the official who was dismantling the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID. Dasha Burns and Nahal Toosi of Politico report that Marocco is MAGA and was destroying the agency without advice from career officials. MAGA sees his firing as a sign Rubio is part of the establishment they want to destroy.

Also on Friday, Michael S. Schmidt and Michael C. Bender of the New York Times reported that the administration was suddenly claiming that the letter it sent to Harvard University on April 11 withholding federal grants until the university handed administration officials power over the school’s students and programs was “unauthorized.” Nonetheless, the White House was standing by the letter, which prompted Harvard to take a strong stand against the administration. Officials blamed Harvard for the standoff because, they said, university lawyers should have called when they got such a dramatic letter.

In a response, Harvard pointed out that the letter “was signed by three federal officials, placed on official letterhead, was sent from the email inbox of a senior federal official and was sent on April 11 as promised. Recipients of such correspondence from the U.S. government—even when it contains sweeping demands that are astonishing in their overreach—do not question its authenticity or seriousness.” It noted that it didn’t know which statements the government was claiming were “mistakes,” but in any case, the government’s actions had “real-life consequences.”

Today, Greg Jaffe, Eric Schmitt, and Maggie Haberman reported in the New York Times that on March 15, the same day he shared classified plans of a military strike against the Houthis in Yemen on an unsecure Signal chat on which journalist Jeffrey Goldberg had been included, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth shared similar detailed information on a different Signal chat. This one he began himself in January on his personal phone for strategizing with his closest allies, and it brought together about a dozen people, including his wife, his brother, and his personal lawyer.

Four people with knowledge of the second chat group spoke with Jaffe, Schmitt, and Haberman, suggesting that dissatisfaction with Hegseth in the department runs deep. Former Pentagon chief spokesperson John Ullyot resigned last week, and today he began an op-ed in Politico with the sentence, “It’s been a month of total chaos at the Pentagon.” On Friday, Hegseth fired three of his senior staffers, and an official announced that his chief of staff was leaving. Ullyot wrote it was “very likely” that “even bigger bombshell stories” would come this week.

Finally, today was the deadline by which Hegseth and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem were ordered to report to the president whether they recommended invoking the Insurrection Act to deal with conditions at the southern border. That law enables the president to use military troops as law enforcement officers inside the United States.

While the two did not file their report today, Natasha Bertrand, Haley Britzky, Jake Tapper, and Priscilla Alvarez of CNN reported Friday that when they do, they will not recommend the president invoke the act.

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[deborabuerk-the-write-stuff]

The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere: A Revolution Begins

The Semiquincentennial of the American Revolution, Part One. The American Revolution, a pivotal event in history, was a time of great change and upheaval in the United States. It marked the birth of a new nation and set the stage for the principles of democracy and freedom we hold dear today. Friday, 18 April 2025, a momentous day that marked the 250th anniversary of Paul Revere’s midnight ride…

[rainyiscollateral]

Stalingrad, the Alamo, Lexington and Concord, and the battle for Corusant. Easy.

(would’ve said gettysburg but you did, gr)

Any battle at all except Waterloo. Reblog if you can think of one!

[padowski109]

Novel celebrates 250th anniversary of the start of The War for Independence

Novel celebrates 250th anniversary of the start of The War for Independence

Next year, we will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of The Declaration of Independence - actually celebrating the founding of the United States of America. But this year represents the 250th anniversary of the beginning of The War for Independence. And that war started with The Battle of Lexington and Concord.

That battle is the basis for my novel, "The Ghost of Lexington and Concord." It's written for young adults but, I believe, all freedom loving Americans will appreciate the story of three teens helping a ghost from that battle to solve a two-and-a-half-century old mystery. Of course, the question is whether they will survive the adventure.

The book is on Amazon, if you'd like to check it out. If you'd like, you can use this link: https://bit.ly/4h0NVpX

[robertreich]

Today marks the 250th anniversary of the battles of Lexington and Concord, which began the American Revolution and our war against monarchical power. I do not advocate violence. I’m simply reminding you that this nation was founded on resistance to arbitrary authority. We built American democracy in the face of what seemed to be impossible odds. And we will never, ever give up that fight. A few groups are holding peaceful rallies across many parts of the country tomorrow to mark this anniversary, celebrate the anti-monarchical uprising of 1775, and denounce Trump’s increasingly autocratic rule. I encourage you to join these demonstrations where you live. You may be feeling helpless, powerless, and alone. But you are not. Most Americans are as disgusted by the Trump regime as you are. Trump and his regime want us to feel helpless, powerless, and alone — because that’s Trump’s way of taking over. We may not always agree with our government (hello?), but we cherish our system of government. We believe in the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the separation of powers, and checks and balances, and we believe no person should be above the law. We believe in due process. We prefer democracy to dictatorship. Our system was founded in opposition to monarchy. Trump is actively trying to move America from democracy to dictatorship. My friends, what the Trump regime has unleashed on America is intolerable. It is time — beyond time — for a national civic uprising.

[jamescanningauthor]

I am SO fucking hype for the 250th anniversary of the battle of Lexington tommorrow, I am going to be there by the Battle Green at 5am I don't even care I am chugging the melatonin tonight at 8pm. Anyone else hype? I will be taking photos and videos so anyone interested hit me up if you are attending, or if you can't for any reason, I will tell you and show you all about it!

[indynerdgirl]

250 years ago today!

Battles of Lexington and Concord, April 19 1775

248 years ago today the American War of Independence began with the “shot heard ‘round the world.”

“Throw down your arms! Ye villains, ye rebels!” called a British major. The colonists refused. “Stand your ground. Don’t fire unless fired upon but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here.”

- Minutemen Capt. John Parker

At that moment we as a people decided that we'd had enough of a government telling us what to do. Unfortunately, it seems that too many people today have forgotten the sacrifices it took to get our independence and over the years we have given the government too much control over our lives again.

[usnatarchives]

"Listen, my children, and you shall hear…" 🏇

On the night of April 18, 1775, Paul Revere rode through the Massachusetts countryside to warn patriots of the approaching British forces. His ride helped ignite the Revolutionary War.

But Revere didn't ride alone. William Dawes and Samuel Prescott were also crucial messengers that night. Their coordinated efforts alerted militias before the battles of Lexington and Concord. Dive into primary sources on Docs Teach: https://www.docsteach.org/activities/printactivity/prequel-to-independence

The National Archives holds powerful visual records of this moment in history, including art and documents that tell the full story of Revere's mission. Explore the ride's legacy in this curated photo set: https://www.archives.gov/research/military/american-revolution/pictures