A Close Call
Warren wisely left Boston the following morning and coordinated and led militia in the Battles of Lexington and Concord with William Heath. These battles are considered to be the American Revolutionary War’s first military engagements, and they resulted in a strategic American victory. Although the British managed to destroy cannon and supplies in Concord, they were driven back towards Boston.
As the British were returning from Concord, a further skirmish broke out, and in the melee, Warren narrowly escaped death as a musket ball came so close to his head that it brushed his wig. After his mother had begged him not to fight, Warren told her that he had to face danger to set America’s children free. He refused to shirk his responsibilities and began recruiting and organizing soldiers for what turned out to be an almost 11 month Siege of Boston; although he would not live to see its conclusion.
The Siege of Boston began on April 19, 1775, as the British took refuge in the city. The Revolutionary Army needed cannons to try and breach enemy defenses, and in late April, Benedict Arnold told Warren that he could get some. Warren authorized the mission to take Fort Ticonderoga, and Arnold achieved his goal by capturing it on May 10 with minimal casualties.
Death of a Patriot
The Provincial Congress bestowed the title of major general upon Warren on June 14. Three days later at the Battle of Bunker Hill, he asked General Israel Putnam where the heaviest fighting would be and was told it would take place at Breed’s Hill. Warren volunteered to join the conflict at that location as a private. This action was against the wishes of high-ranking members of the Revolutionary Army. Putnam and Colonel William Prescott asked Warren to become their commanding officer, but he refused on the grounds that both men were more experienced in the art of war.
Warren was brave until the very end as he fought at Breed’s Hill until he ran out of ammunition. However, he waited until the British made their third assault on the hill to give other militia members time to flee. He was recognized by a British officer in the heat of battle and died via a musket ball to the head. The British bayoneted Warren’s corpse until it was unrecognizable, stripped the body of clothing and dumped it in a shallow ditch.
It was an ignominious end to the life of a noble and brave man yet the British were not yet finished. A couple of days after the battle, a Lieutenant by the name of James Drew dug up Warren’s body, spat in his face, jumped on its stomach and cut off the head. This was according to a letter to John Adams written by Benjamin Hichborn. About ten months later, Warren’s brothers and Paul Revere exhumed the body and laid it to rest in Granary’s Burial Ground. It was moved to St. Paul’s Church in 1825 before it was moved for the last time; to the Warren family vault at Forest Hills Cemetery in 1855.
Legacy
It is reputed that General Gage said Warren’s death was equal to the death of 500 revolutionaries. It galvanized the Patriot cause as Warren’s death was seen as an act of martyrdom. At one time, his name was spoken in the same breath as that of George Washington. Streets, towns, and counties were named after him while statues were dedicated to him. In 1782, a Loyalist named Peter Oliver said that if Warren had survived, the name of Washington would have been an obscurity.
While Oliver’s statement is certainly an exaggeration, there is no question that Warren would have been one of the men that shaped America had he lived. He had the intelligence and charisma to succeed as a leader, and his bravery in the war would have ensured the respect of soldiers and politicians alike. Rather than guessing what he could have become, it is better to look at what he actually did and give him the respect he deserves.