Battle of Concord

The Battle of Concord is the second part of the first battle of the American Revolution. The first shots of the war were fired near the city of Lexington as the British were attempting to march from Boston to capture several colonial armories. While the handful of colonists at Lexington were outmatched and routed, by the time the British reached Concord, they found a significantly larger force comprised of several nearby city's militias awaiting them. The British were turned back and the on their return march to Boston, their forces were slowly whittled down by colonial sharpshooters firing from the woods on either side of the path.

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Speech Relevance

From 'A Time For Choosing':

You and I know and do not believe that life is so dear and peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery. If nothing in life is worth dying for, when did this begin--just in the face of this enemy? Or should Moses have told the children of Israel to live in slavery under the pharaohs? Should Christ have refused the cross? Should the patriots at Concord Bridge have thrown down their guns and refused to fire the shot heard 'round the world? The martyrs of history were not fools, and our honored dead who gave their lives to stop the advance of the Nazis didn't die in vain. Where, then, is the road to peace? Well, it's a simple answer after all.

Reagan is asking, if freedom isn't worth dying for, why did our fore-fathers (to quote the Declaration of Independence) mutually pledge our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor, to challenge the British?

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Source Links

(Wikipedia)