Ed Helms

Now, news spread and suddenly more than 4,000 Patriot militiamen mobilized to protest.

This shocked the Brits.

They were like, whoa, we had no idea colonists were not only so mad, but also alarmingly good at organizing on short notice.

You know, they had set up these networks already.

I mean, what did British officials think was going to happen when they stripped people of representation and just started confiscating their guns?

It's like a thank you note.

Yeah, they just massively underestimated the moxie of these New Englanders.

This, as I mentioned, became known as the Powder Alarm, and it turned out to be a huge game changer.

It sparked the creation of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress.

It sped up the rise of the Minutemen militia and even kicked off secret intelligence networks keeping a watchful eye on the Brits' movements all around Boston.

But General Gage was not done.

After British spies located colonial munitions in Concord, Massachusetts, he sent troops to destroy them on April 18th, 1775.

That little operation would, of course, lead to the famous shot heard round the world, officially lighting the fuse on the Revolutionary War.

Lexington and Concord.

Now, I have been there, and that is very, very cool.

That feels like a very visceral connection to history there.

It's so interesting.

How often in history does authority escalate a situation in the name of trying to suppress it, right?

Like they're trying to exert control, but they really only just manifest their worst fears.

Yeah, absolutely.