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The Art of Mort Künstler / Original Paintings / /
The focus of numerous one-man shows at major museums and galleries across the country, Mort Künstler's original paintings offer us the opportunity to appreciate both America's history, as well as the rare talents of one of its great artists. For information about purchasing one of these works of art, contact info@mortkunstler.com or call 516.624.2830 Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Redcoats at North Bridge – SOLD Concord, Massachusetts, April 19, 1775 |
Historical Information
General Thomas Gage's attempt at a quick strike on patriots around Boston lost the element of surprise thanks to Paul Revere's heroics. But the real work had not yet begun. Nine hundred British light infantry and grenadiers passed through Lexington on the night of April 19, 1775. While they failed to catch any patriot leaders, they easily scattered the first ragged bands of American Minutemen – whose members would be ready "at a minute" – who showed up. A small band of American militia retreated slowly before the redcoats as they approached Concord, then withdrew across the rickety North Bridge to a small hill north of town, from where they watched the British destroy the arsenal. While the British searched for weapons and any stray patriots, more militia assembled. Soon more than four hundred Americans lay opposite the North Bridge, where the British posted a light infantry company of fewer than a hundred soldiers to stand guard. The American militia, under Colonel James Barrett, debated whether to take advantage of their superior numbers and storm the bridge.
Captain Isaac Davis, commanding a company from nearby Acton, made up Barrett's mind by proclaiming "I'm not afraid to go, and I haven't a man that's afraid to go." While the British hesitated, the militia moved forward. Somewhere along the line, a nervous redcoat fired a round, and others followed suit. A few Americans toppled. It was like the Boston Massacre all over again – except this time Americans fired back. Scattered musketry erupted along the river, and soon men fell on both sides. For the British, the contest clearly could end in only one way – their total defeat. The redcoats withdrew, leaving the stunned Americans in possession of the useless old bridge. In the brief skirmish, they had fired what Ralph Waldo Emerson later called, in his poem "Concord Hymn," the "shot heard round the world!"
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.
Date Created: 2013
Medium: pencil
Image Size: 9-3/4" x 13-1/2"
Signature Location: lower left
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