Great Britain kept raising taxes on the 13 colonies, despite the gentlemanly protests of Ben Franklin (“Taxation without representation”) leading to the Boston Tea Party. In response, Britain dissolved the local governments while the colonists built their militia and stockpiles in Concord, Massachusetts. In 1775, 700 redcoats were sent to seize the weapons. However, good intelligence and the rides of Paul Revere and William Davis adequately warned people. After a skirmish in nearby Lexington, the first major battle of the Revolutionary War occurred on April 19 at the Old North Bridge, which is now Minute Man National Historic Park.
