The Battle of Lexington: Historical Corroboration and Source Analysis

Practice vocabulary flashcards defining key historical actors, documentary sources, and historiographical concepts from the Battle of Lexington corroboration study.

Corroboration

The historical process of examining, comparing, and contrasting multiple sources and accounts to determine what happened and separate agreed-upon facts from disputes.

Battle of Lexington

The historical clash between British regular troops and colonial minutemen that took place on Lexington Green on April 19, 1775.

Instigator

The person, group, or side that initiates or provokes an armed conflict, specifically debated regarding who fired first at the Battle of Lexington.

Ensign Jeremy Lister

The youngest of the British officers present at Lexington, who authored a diary account in 1782 stating that the colonists fired first.

Account A

A primary source diary entry written in 1782 by British Ensign Jeremy Lister describing the encounter at Lexington.

Account B

A formal report sworn under oath on April 25, 1775, by 34 minutemen before three justices of the peace asserting that British regulars fired first as the colonists began to disperse.

Account C

A modern children's educational video/cartoon serving as a secondary source to inform viewers about the American Revolutionary War.

Account D

A sworn testimony given under oath by John Parker, commander of the Lexington Militia, stating that British troops attacked without provocation.

Account E

A military report written on April 26, 1775, at Boston Camp by British commander John Pitcairn, asserting that colonial rebels fired first from behind a wall and a Meeting House.

Captain John Parker

The leader and commander of the Lexington Minutemen militia who ordered his men to assemble on Lexington Common and instructed them to disperse and not fire.

Major John Pitcairn

The British commander (second in command of the Marines) leading troops on the march to Concord who ordered the colonists to disperse and commanded his soldiers not to fire.

Lexington Green (Lexington Common)

The open ground where Captain John Parker's colonial militia assembled to consult and where the confrontation and initial firing occurred.

Primary Source

An eyewitness account or document created during or near the time of an event, such as Jeremy Lister's diary, John Parker's testimony, or the minutemen's deposition.

Secondary Source

A source created after a historical event by individuals who were not eyewitnesses and lack direct firsthand observation, such as an educational video.

Minutemen (Colonial Militia)

The armed local colonial inhabitants who assembled under John Parker at Lexington to prevent British troops from destroying munitions in Concord.

British Regulars (Light Infantry)

Trained British soldiers ordered to march from Boston to Concord to seize weapons, whose advance elements engaged the colonial militia on Lexington Green.