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Bunker Hill was a battle of the American Revolutionary
War that took place on June 17, 1775 during the Siege of Boston. General
Putnam was in charge of the revolutionary forces. Major William Prescott was
second in charge. Prestcott is known as the officer that talked to his men
with these words:"don't shoot until you see the whites of their
eyes!" Although the battle is known as "Bunker Hill", the
majority of the fighting actually occurred on nearby Breed's Hill. A common
misconception is that it all took place on Bunker Hill. British forces under
General Howe drove the tired hungry and scared American militia from
fortified positions on Breed's Hill and Bunker Hill. The battle was a pyrrhic
victory for Howe. His immediate objective was achieved, but the attack
demonstrated the American will to stand in pitched battle, caused substantial
British casualties,at least 1500 british soldiers were killed or wounded, and
did not change the status of the siege. After the battle, British General
Henry Clinton remarked in his diary that "A few more such victories
would have surely put an end to British dominion in America."
Background
Boston had been occupied by the British army since 1768. Since May of 1774
Massachusetts had been under martial law under General Thomas Gage. After
armed conflict with the colonialists started on April 19, 1775 at the Battle
of Lexington and Concord Gage's forces had been besieged in Boston by 8,000
to 12,000 militia led mainly by General Artemas Ward. In May, the British
garrison was increased by the arrival of about 4,500 additional troops and
Major General Howe. Admiral Samuel Graves commanded the fleet within the
harbor.
General Gage started work with his new generals on a plan to break the siege
of Boston. They would use an amphibious assault to remove the Americans from
the Dorchester Heights or take their headquarters at Cambridge. To thwart
these plans, General Ward gave orders to General Israel Putnam to fortify
Bunker Hill.
The battleground
The Charlestown Peninsula extended about 1 mile (1600 meters) toward the southwest
into Boston Harbor. At its closest approach less than 1000 feet (300 meters)
separated it from the Boston Peninsula. Bunker Hill is an elevation at the
rear of the peninsula, and Breed's Hill is near the Boston end, while the
town of Charlestown occupied the flats at the southern end.
Description of the battle
On the night of June 16, American Colonel William Prescott led 1,500 men onto
the peninsula. At first Putnam, Prescott, and their engineering officer,
Captain Richard Gridley, disagreed as to where they should locate their
defense. Breed's Hill was viewed as much more defensible, and they decided to
locate their primary redoubt there. Prescott and his men, using Gridley's
outline, began digging a fortification 160 feet (50 m) long and 80 feet (25
m) wide with ditches and earthen walls. They added ditch and dike extensions
toward the Charles River on their right and began reinforcing a fence running
to their left.
In the early predawn, around 4 am, a sentry on board the HMS Lively was first
to spot the new fortification. The Lively opened fire, temporarily halting
the Americans' work. Admiral Graves, on his flagship HMS Somerset, woke
irritated by gunfire he hadn't ordered. He ordered it stopped, only to
reverse himself when he got on deck and saw the works. He ordered all 128
guns in the harbor to open up on the American position. The broadsides proved
largely ineffective, since the ships couldn't elevate their guns enough to
reach the fortifications.
It took almost six hours to organize an infantry force, gather up and inspect
the men on parade. General Howe was to lead the major assault, drive around
the American left flank, and take them from the rear. Brigadier General
Robert Pigot on the British left flank would lead the direct assault on the
redoubt. Major John Pitcairn led the flank or reserve force. It took several
trips in longboats to assemble Howe's forces on the northwest corner of the
peninsula. On a warm day, with full field packs of about 60 pounds (30 kg),
the British were finally ready about two in the afternoon.
The Americans, seeing this activity, had also called for reinforcements. The
only troops to get to the forward positions were two New Hampshire regiments
(1st NH and 3rd NH) of 200 men under John Stark and James Reed. Stark's men
took positions along the fence on the left or north end of the American
position. Since low tide opened a gap along the Mystic River, they quickly
extended the fence with a short stone wall to the north. Gridley or Stark
placed a stake about 30 meters in front of the fence and ordered that no one
fire until the regulars passed it. Private John Simpson, however, disobeyed
orders and fired as soon as he had a clear shot, thus starting the battle.
Prescott had been steadily losing men. He lost very few to the bombardment,
but had ten volunteers to carry every wounded man to the rear. Others took
advantage of the confusion to join the withdrawal. Two generals did join
Prescott's force, but both declined command, and simply fought as
individuals. One of these was Dr. Joseph Warren, the president of the Council
and acting head of Massachusetts' revolutionary government. The second was
Seth Pomeroy. By the time the battle started the total involved defenders
numbered about 1,400 and they faced 2,600 regulars.
The first assaults both on the fence line and the redoubt were met with
massed fire at close range and repulsed, with heavy British losses. The
reserve, gathering just north of the town, was also taking casualties due to
rifle fire from a company in the town. Howe's men reformed on the field and
made a second unsuccessful attack at the wall.
The Americans had lost all fire discipline. In traditional battles of the
18th century, companies of men fired, reloaded, and moved on specific orders,
as they had been trained. After their initial volley, the Americans all
fought as individuals, and every man fired as quickly as he could reload and
find a target. The British withdrew almost to their original positions on the
peninsula to regroup. The navy, along with artillery from Copp's Hill on the
Boston peninsula, fired heated shot into Charlestown. All 400 or so buildings
and the docks were completely burned, but the snipers withdrew safely.
The third British assault carried the redoubt, due to a number of factors.
The reserves were included. Both flanks concentrated on the redoubt. The
Americans ran out of ammunition, reducing the battle to a bayonet fight, and
most of the American soldiers' rifles didn't have bayonets.
Aftermath
The British had taken the ground, but at a stiff cost; 1,054 were shot (226
dead and 828 wounded), and a disproportionate number of these were officers.
The American losses were only about 450, of whom 140 were killed (including
Joseph Warren), and 30 captured {20 of whom died}. Most American losses came
during the withdrawal.
British dead and wounded included most of their officers. Of General Howe's
entire field staff, he was the only one not shot. Major Pitcairn was dead,
and Colonel James Abercrombie fatally wounded. The American withdrawal and
British advance swept right through to include the entire peninsula, Bunker
Hill as well as Breed's Hill. But the number of Americans to be faced in new
positions hastily created by Putnam on the mainland, the end of the day, and
the exhaustion of his troops removed any chance Howe had of advancing on
Cambridge and breaking the siege.
The attitude of the British was significantly changed, both individually and
as a government. Thomas Gage was soon recalled, and would be replaced by General
Howe. Howe himself lost the daring he had shown at Louisbourg, and was
cautious through the rest of his service. Gage's report to the cabinet
repeated his earlier warnings that "a large army must at length be
employed to reduce these people" and would require "the hiring of
foreign troops."
The famous order, "Don't fire until you see the whites of their
eyes" was popularized by stories about Bunker Hill. However, it is
uncertain as to who said it, since various writers attribute it to Putnam,
Stark, Prescott and Gridley. Another reporting uncertainty concerns the role
of African-Americans. There were certainly a few involved in the battle, but
their exact numbers are unknown. One of these was Salem Poor, who was cited
for bravery and whose actions at the redoubt saved Prescott's life, but
accounts crediting him with Pitcairn's death are highly doubtful. Other
Africian-Americans present were Peter Salem; Prince Whipple; and Brazillari
Lew. A mulatto Phillip Abbot of Andover was killed in the battle.
Among the Colonial volunteers in the Battle were James Otis, Henry Dearborn,
John Brooks, William Eustis, and William Barton. Among the British Officers
were General Henry Clinton, General John Burgoyne, and Lord Francis Rawdon.
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USS Bunker Hill (CG-52) is a
Ticonderoga class guided missile cruiser laid down by Litton-Ingalls
Shipbuilding Corporation at Pascagoula, Mississippi on 11 January 1984,
launched on 11 March 1985 and commissioned on 20 September 1986. Bunker Hill
operates out of San Diego, California.
Bunker Hill was the first Ticonderoga-class cruiser to be equipped with the
Mk. 41 VLS in place of the previous ships' Mk. 26 twin-arm missile launchers,
greatly improving the flexibility and firepower of the ships by allowing them
to fire RGM-109 Tomahawk missiles.
After commissioning, Bunker Hill entered the Pacific Fleet via the Panama
Canal and began short notice work-ups to deploy to the U.S. Seventh Fleet.
Bunker Hill made her first deployment in July 1987, nearly one year ahead of
schedule during which she provided an anti-air warfare umbrella inside the
Persian Gulf for Missouri and other US flagged tankers and ships transiting
through the Strait of Hormuz.
In August 1988, Bunker Hill shifted homeports from San Diego to Yokosuka,
Japan joining the Midway Carrier Battlegroup for a four month deployment in
the Seventh Fleet, for which she was awarded the Meritorious Unit
Commendation. She was also awarded her first Battle Efficiency Award.
In November 1990, Bunker Hill sailed in support of Operation Desert Shield
and Operation Desert Storm and served as the multinational Air Warfare
Commander (AAWC) and as one of the first ships to launch a Tomhawk Land
Attack Cruise Missile against Iraqi targets. Following the conclusion of the
Persian Gulf War, Bunker Hill participated in organizing and establishing
Operation Southern Watch, the complex enforcement of the United Nations
established no-fly zone over southern Iraq. Bunker Hill made a historical
visit to the Russian city Vladivostok in 1993, and then one year later she
made a port visit to Qingdao in the People's Republic of China.
In March 1996, she took station south of Taiwan to monitor missile tests by
the People's Liberation Army.
In July 1998, Bunker Hill shifted homeports from Yokosuka, Japan back to San
Diego. In Late 2000, Bunker Hill deployed with Abraham Lincoln Battle Group.
She again participated in Operation Southern Watch and conducted boardings
and inspections of over 40 merchant vessels in support of United Nations
sanctions against Iraq. Bunker Hill also escorted Tarawa Amphibious Ready
Group while conducting humanitarian operations off East Timor and training
exercises in Kuwait. Bunker Hill acted as Air Defense Commander for the ARG
where she designed and implemented innovative procedures for CG integration
into an Amphibious Ready Group. Following the attack on Cole, Bunker Hill
sortied from Bahrain to provide support and protection to seven USN and USNS
ships based there and subsequently remained at sea for 67 consecutive days.
Bunker Hill returned from deployment in February 2001.
Since her commissioning, Bunker Hill has deployed six times to the Persian
Gulf and has earned fifteen Battle "E" Awards, including the Golden
Battle "E" in 1996 and 2006 which is given when a ship receives
five such awards consecutively.
As announced in March 2006, Lockheed Martin will be upgrading the Aegis
defence system on 22 navy vessels; the Bunker Hill is the first slated for
the upgrade.
In January 2007, the warship was sent to the coast of Somalia to conduct
antiterrorist operations as part of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower task force.
On 28 February 2008, Bunker Hill was awarded the 2007 Battle "E"
award, it's 6th consecutive Battle "E". USS Bunker Hill was also
awarded the Meritorious Unit Citation for its role in aiding the USS Dwight
D. Eisenhower in 2007.
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