Shot Heard 'Round the World

On July 4^th, Americans celebrate Independence Day in the United States. So what better way to celebrate than watching a Schoolhouse Rock History video called Shot Heard 'Round the World, which gives a very brief history of the Revolutionary War of the American colonies against Britain. Excuse the patriotism, but what do you expect?!

"The British are coming! The British are coming!"

Now, the ride of Paul Revere (1)
Set the nation on its ear (2),
And the shot at Lexington (3) heard 'round the world,
When the British fired in the early dawn
The War of Independence had begun,
The die was cast, the rebel flag unfurled (4).


And on to Concord marched the foe (5)
To seize the arsenal there you know,
Waking folks searching all around
Till our militia stopped them in their tracks (6),
At the old North Bridge we turned them back
And chased those Redcoats (7) back to Boston town.


And the shot heard 'round the world
Was the start of the Revolution.
The Minute Men were ready, on the move.
Take your powder (8), and take your gun.
Report to General Washington.
Hurry men, there's not an hour to lose!


Now, at famous Bunker Hill,
Even though we lost, it was quite a thrill (9),
The rebel Colonel Prescott proved he was wise;
Outnumbered and low on ammunition
As the British stormed (10) his position
He said, "Hold your fire (11) till you see the whites of their eyes!"


Though the next few years were rough,
General Washington's men proved they were tough,
Those hungry, ragged (12) boys would not be beat.
One night they crossed the Delaware (13),
Surprised the Hessians (14) in their lair (15),
And at Valley Forge they just bundled up their feet!


And the shot heard 'round the world
Was the start of the Revolution.
The Minute Men (16) were ready, on the move.
Take your blanket, and take your son.
Report to General Washington.
We've got our rights and now it's time to prove.


Well, they showed such determination
That they won the admiration
Of countries across the sea like France and Spain,
Who loaned the colonies ships and guns
And put the British on the run
And the Continental Army on its feet again.


And though they lost some battles too,
The Americans swore (17) they'd see it through (18),
Their raiding parties (19) kept up, hit and run.
At Yorktown the British could not retreat,
Bottled up (20) by Washington and the French Fleet (21),
Cornwallis surrendered (22) and finally we had won!


“The winner! Hurray!”


From the shot heard 'round the world
To the end of the Revolution
The continental rabble (23) took the day (24)
And the father of our country
Beat the British there at Yorktown
And brought freedom to you and me and the U.S.A.!
God bless America, Let Freedom Ring!

(1) un mensajero legendario, (2) revolucionar, (3) el disparo a esta ciudad que marcó el comienzo de la guerra, (4) la suerte esta echado, la bandera rebelde desplegada, (5) enemigo, (6) caminos, (7) uniforme rojo que llevaron las tropas británicas, (8) polvera, (9) emoción, (10) irrumpió, (11) no dispara, (12) harapientos, (13) nombre de un río, (14) soldados alemanes, (15) guarida, (16) milicia especializada capaz de desplegarse rápidamente, (17) juraron, (18) llevarlo a cabo, (19) asaltantes, (20) contenido, (21) flota, (22) rindió, (23) chusma, (24) ganaron