Who fired the "the shot heard round the world"?

barker111

There seems to be a lot of confusion about this famous Colonial American event: http://earlyamerica.com/phorum/read.php?f=2&i=1622&t=1520 Jul 13 05, 7:07 PM

lanfranco

No one knows who fired the shot -- whether a British soldier or an American militiaman. However, the phrase, taken from Emerson's "Concord Hymn," refers to the supposed first shot of the Revolutionary War, in Concord, Massachusetts, on April 19, 1775: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shot_heard_round_the_world Jul 13 05, 7:44 PM

Arpeggionist

Emerson credits Paul Revere with having fired that shot. Most history books, however, credit Nal Prescotts father (whose name escapes me currently). Jul 14 05, 1:03 AM

tjoebigham

In Emerson's poem, the lines go: "Here the embattled farmers stood/And fired the shot heard round the world." He never said Revere fired it! (Which he didn't!) Jul 15 05, 8:02 AM