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sidereaThere's been a lot of really great public addresses of various kinds on the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord. I thought I'd share a few.
1.
Here's one that is quite worth your time. Historian Heather Cox Richardson gave a talk on the 18th of April in the Old North Church – the very building where the two lanterns of legend were hung. It's an absolutely fantastic account of the events leading up to April 19, 1775 – a marvel of concision, coherence, and clarity – that I think helps really see them anew.
You can read it at her blog if you prefer, but I strongly recommend listening to her tell you this story in her voice, standing on the site.
2025 April 18: Heather Cox Richardson [YT]: Heather Cox Richardson Speech - 250 Year Lantern Anniversary - Old North Church (28 minutes):
2.
Also of note was a particular part of the reenactment at Lexington: the sermon of Reverend Jonas Clarke, the pastor of First Parish Church, to the Lexington militia when they regrouped after the initial massacre, preparing to attack the Regulars on their return from Concord through Lexington.
When it came on the livestream, it was so arresting, the chatbox fell almost completely still.
2025 Apr 19: NBC10 [was livestream on YT]: "Watch the reenactment of the Battle of Lexington, 250 years later" starting from 2:03:00, going to 2:10:25. I don't know the identity of the interpreter portraying Clarke; if you know, let me know and I'll give credit.
This is, I assume, not a historical text, not sounding remotely like one, but a modernly written one for the occasion of this reenactment. Indeed, Jonas Clarke's own memoir of the event [warning: rightwing website] does not include of any mention of his giving a sermon to the militia as they prepared to rejoin the fight.
Content advisory: this is an unapologetic Christian sermon – and not one of the toned-down kumbayah ones you might be used to hearing at civic events, either – and it is pro-war.
3.
I found this deep-dive into the history of the minutemen fascinating. We tend to use the term "minutemen" to mean "anybody who fought for America in the Revolution", but – I hadn't known – it's actually a more specific term than that. In preparation for the outbreak of violence, the towns around Boston decided to establish especially trained crack militias – in addition to their ordinary militias – able to turn out at mere minutes notice, hence "minutemen".
The point of the fame of the minutemen was not "gee, it was amazing the colonials were so able to muster so fast", it was "gee, what a great job of preparing themselves for war the towns around Boston did, investing the resources in organizing and training an able rapid-response force."
(Also lots of terribly important information about taverns in Colonial Massachusetts. Ahem.)
2025 Apr 19: Atun-Shei Films [YT]: "Who Were The Minutemen?"
1.
Here's one that is quite worth your time. Historian Heather Cox Richardson gave a talk on the 18th of April in the Old North Church – the very building where the two lanterns of legend were hung. It's an absolutely fantastic account of the events leading up to April 19, 1775 – a marvel of concision, coherence, and clarity – that I think helps really see them anew.
You can read it at her blog if you prefer, but I strongly recommend listening to her tell you this story in her voice, standing on the site.
2025 April 18: Heather Cox Richardson [YT]: Heather Cox Richardson Speech - 250 Year Lantern Anniversary - Old North Church (28 minutes):
2.
Also of note was a particular part of the reenactment at Lexington: the sermon of Reverend Jonas Clarke, the pastor of First Parish Church, to the Lexington militia when they regrouped after the initial massacre, preparing to attack the Regulars on their return from Concord through Lexington.
When it came on the livestream, it was so arresting, the chatbox fell almost completely still.
2025 Apr 19: NBC10 [was livestream on YT]: "Watch the reenactment of the Battle of Lexington, 250 years later" starting from 2:03:00, going to 2:10:25. I don't know the identity of the interpreter portraying Clarke; if you know, let me know and I'll give credit.
This is, I assume, not a historical text, not sounding remotely like one, but a modernly written one for the occasion of this reenactment. Indeed, Jonas Clarke's own memoir of the event [warning: rightwing website] does not include of any mention of his giving a sermon to the militia as they prepared to rejoin the fight.
Content advisory: this is an unapologetic Christian sermon – and not one of the toned-down kumbayah ones you might be used to hearing at civic events, either – and it is pro-war.
3.
I found this deep-dive into the history of the minutemen fascinating. We tend to use the term "minutemen" to mean "anybody who fought for America in the Revolution", but – I hadn't known – it's actually a more specific term than that. In preparation for the outbreak of violence, the towns around Boston decided to establish especially trained crack militias – in addition to their ordinary militias – able to turn out at mere minutes notice, hence "minutemen".
The point of the fame of the minutemen was not "gee, it was amazing the colonials were so able to muster so fast", it was "gee, what a great job of preparing themselves for war the towns around Boston did, investing the resources in organizing and training an able rapid-response force."
(Also lots of terribly important information about taverns in Colonial Massachusetts. Ahem.)
2025 Apr 19: Atun-Shei Films [YT]: "Who Were The Minutemen?"
(no subject)
Date: 2025-04-21 12:45 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2025-04-22 02:30 am (UTC)Thank you for these. I would normally have read the blog post for #1 instead of watching a 28-minute video, but I'm glad I watched the speech.
(no subject)
Date: 2025-04-25 03:37 am (UTC)