[Perseverando]

Time for another great American (and world) history lesson from American Minute.

[RayChuang88]

You'd think after the bad experience of the British Army at Breed's Hill that General Robert E. Lee would have avoided the disastrous Pickett's Charge on the last day of the Battle of Gettysburg....

[Magnum44]

"Don't Shoot Until You See the Whites of Their Eyes!" -June 1775

June 2020 - "Don't Shoot Until You See the Whites"

[Altura Ct.]

Why would I care what a bunch of evil racist did?

[elcid1970]

There were two other commands given that day:

“Aim for the gorgets!” (the breastplate worn by officers)

And

“Aim for the crossbelts!” (these carried the cartridge box and bayonet scabbard; they intersected at chest level and formed a perfect “X” aiming point.

[Verginius Rufus]

"Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes" has been attributed both to Prescott and to Israel Putnam. Apparently the earliest source for it is something written by Parson Weems (of the George Washington cherry tree story) decades later. The accounts written shortly after the battle do not quote the line. Prescott was in command at the redoubt and was insistent on his soldiers not firing before they were ordered to (because their ammunition was woefully insufficient--that's why they were finally driven out during the third British attack), but he may have used some other expression to get across his point.

The most serious loss on the American side was the death of Dr. Joseph Warren, one of the most important Patriot leaders in Massachusetts.

Prescott, Arizona, is named for Col. Prescott's grandson, who was a famous historian.