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How did Henry Knox’s artillery help end the siege of Boston?

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American Revolution *The Surrender of Lord Cornwallis* (at Yorktown, Virginia, on October 19, 1781), oil on canvas by John Trumbull, completed in 1820; in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, Washington, D.C. The painting captures the moment when major fighting during the American Revolution ended and the colonies achieved independence.

During the winter of 1775–76, General George Washington tasked Henry Knox with the monumental challenge of retrieving heavy artillery captured from Fort Ticonderoga in New York. In a remarkable logistical feat, Knox transported 120,000 pounds of cannons and mortars over 300 miles of difficult winter terrain using oxen, horses, and manpower.12

Upon their arrival in the Boston area, these heavy guns were mounted on Dorchester Heights, a strategic vantage point overlooking the city and harbor. By training this newly acquired artillery on the British positions, Washington rendered the British occupation untenable. Faced with the threat of the American cannons, British commander William Howe was forced to evacuate his troops from Boston by ship on March 17, 1776, effectively ending the siege.32