The sun had barely risen on April 19, 1775, when about seven hundred British soldiers reached Lexington, Massachusetts. Seventy-seven militia members stood on the town green. Their captain told them not to fire unless fired upon. Then a shot rang out. To this day, nobody knows which side pulled the trigger first. That single shot is called the shot heard round the world. Eight minutemen died in the brief skirmish. The British continued to Concord to search for hidden weapons. When they reached the North Bridge, they found hundreds of armed colonists waiting. The minutemen fired and forced the British to retreat. The march back to Boston became a disaster for the British. Colonial fighters hid behind stone walls, trees, and barns. They fired at the soldiers from every direction. By the end of the day, the British had suffered 273 casualties. The colonists lost 95. The battles proved that ordinary citizens could stand against trained soldiers. Within weeks, thousands of volunteers joined the fight. The American Revolution had begun.