You're listening to an airwave media podcast. Hello, and thank you for joining the American Revolution. Today, episode 55, the British retreat

from Lexington and Concord.

So last week we left off with Lieutenant Colonel Francis Smith having concentrated all of his surviving regulars back in Concord Village.

He gave the men a short rest and prepared for the march back to Lexington.

His men only carried 36 cartridges each when they left Boston the night before.

Thinking this would be a quick raid that will rely on surprise rather than firepower,

no one bothered to bring any extra ammunition. At the same time, thousands of

militiamen descended on the region, hearing of the attack at Lexington, and

looking to exact some payback.

With every hour their numbers grew.

As the regulars left Concord, they found about 1,000 armed militia shadowing them on either side of the road.

Smith sent out flanking companies to keep the militia at a distance.

Then, about a mile down the road, the regulars had to cross a narrow bridge over a creek, forcing

the flanking companies to fall back into the main column.

There, Major Buttrick, one of the same militia leaders who had attacked the British at Concord's North Bridge, led about 300 militia against the rear of the column of regulars.

They got close enough to kill two regulars and wound four others.

The British rear guard returned fire as the column crossed the bridge. And as I discuss all these skirmishes,

if you're interested, I've put a map up at my blog site,

blog.em-Rev Podcast.com,

showing the path of the British back to Boston

and all the battles that were fought along the way.

Another mile down the road,

...