new since the first draft of history, it is immediate and takes place in realtime. legends take longer to develop and are sometimes based on myth. this fox news series looks at the truth behind the legend. ♪ we're going to get the

toris. [ shouting ] [ gunfire ] >> for the protection it affords them. [ scream ] >> i will blow through this mob. if you continue to interfere in the king's business, i will be forced to defend his interests. just a warning shot across the bow. [ gunshot ]

[ scream ] >> help! somebody help! >> it's one of our liberty boys. >> please, somebody help! >> someone get dr. warren! ♪ [ gunshot ] ♪ ♪ my country 'tis of thee sweet land of liberty ♪ ♪ land where my fathers died land of the pilgrims pride ♪ ♪ from every mountainside let freedom ring ♪

>> pushed to their limits by an oppressive empire, a determined group of rebels unites under the cause of liberty. their quest for freedom will unify a people, ignite a revolution, and forge a new system of government. in time, these brave men and women will come to be known as the american patriots. the seminal figure in the struggle is samuel adams. an influential colonist who defies a king. >> cheers. >> organizes the resistance and, in the end, attains the title of the nation's founding father. behind every title stands a man, and behind every legend lies the

truth. >> the popular image of samuel adams is of a beer-swilling rabble rouser. but that legend doesn't give him the credit he deserves. long before george washington leads an army or thomas jefferson writes of independence, sam adams unites the colonies and takes on the british empire. even more than a founding father, adams is the architect of the revolution, and it is his fight for the natural rights of men that makes america possible. >> gentlemen, i propose we establish an association for the purpose of resisting these attacks for our rights. >> hear, hear. >> the natural liberty of man is to be free from any superior power on earth, not be under the will or the legislative authority of man. but only to have the laws of nature for his rule. >> along with hancock and his cousin john, sam's inner circle includes silversmith and master

organizer paul revere. and an often overlooked hero, dr. joseph warren. >> in defending those same rights, as british citizens against the tyranny of crime by force if necessary. >> by force. is there some patriot army that you're keeping from us, dr. warren? [ shouts ] >> outside in the streets, the city celebrates guy fox day. >> guy fox day goes back to when guy fox planned to blow up the english parliament and the king in session in westminster abbey. the plot was foiled, and every year on the anniversary there would be a grand celebration in the streets. >> in boston, guy fox day becomes more than a party. it's the annual manifestation of the anger of an oppressed people. those with little hope and even less respect from their faraway

rumors. >> rid the streets of them, boys. let's open their noggins. [ shouts ] >> but before their anger boils over into revolution, it begins as a daily struggle in all 13 colonies under british rule. at the epicenter of the struggle is boston. >> as in most conflicts, one front is economic. to wasteful spending the british position, the rebels withhold the enemy's source of income -- taxes. to do this, men like sam adams and john hancock turn to smuggling, sometimes liquor. which means in the eyes of their british rumors, america's

patriots are no more than a group of organized criminals. >> quite nice -- >> mr. hancock? >> samuel. >> john hancock is the richest man in boston. he's inherited a very successful merchant house from his uncle. >> he had a tremendous amount of cash, and that was key for sam adams, who was always broke. >> john, i'm looking for something special. >> how about something beyond his majesty's reach? >> i have just the thing for you, mr. adams. >> a lot of merchants made a lot of money by avoiding the taxation. and john hancock was a major culprit in this. >> from my private reserve. i only ask that put it to good use. >> we'll use it to celebrate my cousin's wedding. thank you, john. >> rich men like hancock worked together with street-level

organizers like sam adams. >> sam? may walk with you, please? >> certainly, i'd appreciate the company. >> you don't require karng, do you? >> not today, sam, i have an appointment. it isn't far. i dare make a show of wealth in the streets for fear of hutchinson hunting me down for a king's ransom. >> you and i both know there are ways around that, john. >> hancock and sam adams symbolized what we think of as one of the characteristics of the united states. people of different backgrounds coming together for common purpose. >> the man responsible for enforcing british rule in massachusetts is lieutenant governor thomas hutchinson. >> all the records -- >> hutchinson was part of this top layer of officials in the colonies that were appointed by the british crown and were answerable to the crown and didn't feel they were answerable

to the americans. >> hold it now! >> in spite of high british taxes, the american colonies are flourishing, while england's economy is struggling. >> the reason that they taxed america was because of the french and indian war. >> it so bankrupted the british tahr treasury that there had to be ways they could make up for lost revenue. they decided to tax the colonies. >> ring the bell! >> many colonists ignore the taxes, so britain takes action. now tax laws and anti-smuggling searches turn revenue collection into combative encounters. >> this includes something called the writs of assistance which is essentially a warrant where the british can search anyone's property freely.

>> lieutenant governor, what brings you down from fleet street? >> mr. hutchinson, it's against the law. >> the law, sir, has changed. stay out of my way. >> along with harsh laws permitting search and seizure, there's a broad tax targeting every american colonist. >> the stamp act required that all official correspondence from newspapers to documentation, even playing cards, had to be produced on paper that bore an official stamp purchased from a customs agent. even though it isn't described as a tax, of course it's a tax. and this leads to opposition.

>> i now pronounce you man and wife. you may kiss the bride. [ applause ] ♪ >> sam? >> a heartfelt congratulations to you both. to convince such a lovely woman to wed the likes of you. >> thank you, sam. what is that? >> well -- have you heard of the new laws? >> the new tax. what was it? >> not just a new tax. it's an egregious violation of our -- >> sam -- not today. it's my wedding day. >> just a moment of your time. >> john adams and samuel adams were cousins, but there was a difference in the way they lived their lives. john was an up-and-coming

lawyer. he's much more the hard-working puritan than samuel was. >> there's no need to protract the inevitable. find it within your bearing to accept that's which you cannot control. do you wish to run afoul of old hutchinson? >> will you at least read the new laws? >> i'm quite certain i will become as agitated as you are, sam. >> from old hutchinson himself. >> smells like a musty tavern. the greensbo dragon? >> not exactly. what a grand idea that is. >> when most people think of the founding fathers, they envision wear-wearing politicians debating on the floor of some legislative body. but the first american patriots did their organizing in a bar, a tavern in boston called the green dragon.

it is here that their fight begins. not yet for independence, but for equal treatment as the british citizens they believe they are. ♪ ♪ remember the 5th of november ♪ the gunpowder treason and wine ♪ >> every word of the new law is completely illegal. it is an insult to over 500 years of english common law. you cannot simply search a man's home and seize property without proper cause. >> yes, but how do we respond? what recourse do we have? >> i propose we establish an association for the purpose of resisting these attacks to our rights.

♪ ♪ restore their valor we know ♪ to overthrow >> rid the streets of them, boys. [ cheers ] ♪ >> the people of boston do indeed have the strength they need to put up a resistance. and as the sons of liberty look to their future fight, they know they need a military force. it's no longer a question of if but a question of when. >> i think you found your army, mr. hancock.

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>> charge! >> watching the street gangs on the night of guy fawkes day, sam adams and his fellow patriots see that when they need to fight for their liberty, >> watching the street gangs on the night of guy faukes day, sam adams and his fellow patriots see that when they need to fight for their liberty they'll have an army to call upon. >> like-minded artisans and merchants band together to promote the cause of liberty. they became known as the sons of liberty. >> the sons of liberty is an association of men looking for situations that will lead to a disturbance that will force the attention of the crown. the sons of liberty weren't just in boston. they were very quickly organized and strewn throughout the original 1 13 colonies. >> i think you found yourp ar

ararmy -- your army. >> if samuel adams is the sons of liberty's general, a silversmith worked up from poverty to a leader of men. legend relegates revere as a mere lookout who shouts from atop a horse. but paul revere is both a salesman and a strategist. a multitalented patriot who organizes tough men like ebenezer mcintosh into a force for liberty. >> as tensions escalate in boston, paul revere leads something of a guerrilla army, a band of rebels intent on threatening the king's tax collectors out of existence. >> revere recognized that you need to involve everyone in this. and that includes people from the streets. tough guys whom wouldn't mind getting their hands dirty if it came to that. >> you will hang for this! >> perhaps. but you won't be around to see

it. you gentlemen have a choice -- swear on the holy bible that you resign your positions as the king's customs agents, or you can stick your heads in you're nooses. >> i swear. >> and what was you? >> while the tactics are severe, the colonists feel they're out of options. >> swear, i swear!

>> now you go tell your brother-in-law hutchinson we won't sit idle while the king's agents bleed us dry. >> this form of resistance is not exclusive to massachusetts. anger over the stamp act spreads quickly through all the colonies. >> they were tearing down the stamp collectors' homes. they were burning these customs officials and the royal governor in effigy. so there's a great deal of popular enthusiasm and even violence. >> the stamp acts riots rendered them powerless to collect taxes. >> how much of this stamped paper has been sold to date?

>> none, sir -- >> impossible! these stamps are required for everyone! >> with no colonial taxes being collected, parliament is in a state of panic which means so is hutchinson. >> you have to read at parliament, they're dealing with an empire that is stretching all around the world. if they allow the abuse of tax collectors in boston, that would encourage lawlessness all around. they decided i've got to make an example by putting more troops in boston to kind of clamp down on the trouble. >> boston is now under military occupation. >> this is an outrage. >> a provocation! >> watch -- there's no turning back now. >> oh, there's no turning back for me not after this incident parade. >> for paul revere, the army's

arrival creates an opportunity. he creates a propaganda piece he calls "landing of the troops." as it travels through the colonies, so does the fear of military occupation. in sharp contrast to paul revere, the man now in charge of boston is a born aristocrat. >> the senior commander is general thomas gage who was very much a veteran. he'd been in america during the french and indian war. >> the choice of hardened war yor-- warrior, thomas gage, proves the brits have had enough with resistance. >> what had begun as a force to protect the americans become an army to police the americans. >> general gage arrives with his own army. >> general gage. what do you think of our fair town of boston thus far? >> what i see of boston is a complete collapse of law and

order. it shall end now. . >> knowing battle could be imminent, paul revere and the sons of liberty keep a close eye on the new arrivals. >> i was one of upwards of 30 chiefly mechanics who formed ourselves into a committee for the purpose of watching the movements of the british soldiers and gaining every intelligence on the movements of the tories. >> with an army camp in the center of their city, bostonians have a constant reminder of their own repression. while rank and file british soldiers start to wonder who has it worse. >> these british soldiers are a long way there home. young men who are frightened. most of them have hardly the slightest idea of what the political debate is. they're told by their officers you need to keep the peace. >> apple. >> i don't believe she's for

sale. >> back to work. before anyone takes notice. >> right now we're tired of taking orders. >> this is the farmers brigade. if you desert this army, general gage will untwist you himself. >> for many of the soldiers arriving, america had been a faraway blase that you read about in the -- place that you had read about in the newspaper. when they get there, they see what all the fuss was about. this really is a suggestion of a much better life than america. a desertion becomes a serious problem. >> we have a family, please -- >> some troops arrive with their families. one of the benefits of the world-class army. but with those benefits come rules. >> one hallmark of a professional army at this time is a high state of discipline. physical, corporal punishment for various crimes. and the punishment of choice was

the lash. >> the derogatory term lobster for british soldiers or what later becomes lobster back doesn't actually have anything to do with the red coats most british soldiers wear. the term comes from the welts and the scars many of the men have on their backs from being whipped. >> please help my husband, sir. >> john, take her. >> punishment for desertion could bring 250 lashes. with a number that high, the torture will be spread out for days. each session could be the one a soldier doesn't survive. >> mr. samuel adams of boston here to see you, my lord. >> send him in. >> general gage. i mean this from the bottom of my heart -- what a shame it is that a man of your marshal distinction has been forced to

accept such an -- such a mission -- >> out -- >> no, to free englishman and deny countrymen -- >> seize him. >> you may proceed. but mind you, captain preston here stands at the ready with his sword. >> i've come to request some degree of clemency for one of your soldiers. >> a deserter, i assume? >> mr. gibbon. >> what is his punishment? >> 250 lashes, general. >> certainly a death sentence. general gage, clemency can sometimes be just as powerful as voracity. >> very well, mr. adams. what should be done for me?

>> the city of boston shall welcome you with a grand party. >> well, then it shall be so. >> captain, let's be sure to make a memorable impression on the troops and the town of boston. he was 34% eastern european. so i went onto ancestry, soon learned that one of our ancestors we thought was italian was eastern european. this is my ancestor who i didn't know about. he looks a little bit like me, yes. ancestry has many paths to discovering your story. get started for free at ancestry.com

>> general and mrs. thomas gage.

>> as the sons of liberty fight for the full rights of british citizens, parliament pushes back general and mrs. thomas gage. >> as the sons of liberty fight for the full rights of british citizens, parliament pushes back. general thomas gauge is britain's enforcer in the americas, but more than collecting taxes, he's there to send a message. comply with the crown, or suffer the consequences. >> margaret, may i introduce governor hutchinson? >> governor. >> welcome. ♪ >> if you'll excuse me, my dear. >> mrs. gage. my name is dr. joseph warren. are you enjoying boston, i hope? >> it is a rather small town, is it not? >> very much so. >> joseph warren is more than just boston's most prominent physician. secretly he's also one of the

highest ranking members of the sons of liberty. >> joseph warren is interesting because he's responsible for setting up the spy network that would alert as to what the british troops were up to. >> history will later ask if mrs. gage, an american herself, is a spy for the rebel cause, sharing information with dr. warren. >> boston has its attractions. >> i see that it does, doctor. >> please! >> captain? what is your business here? >> deserters, general. >> assembly your firing squad -- >> i'm sorry, sir. please, sir. spare us, sir, please. >> surely these soldiers's actions don't -- >> do not interfere.

>> gage is a man who has no kbau qualms about executing people in public in front of onlookers. this is someone who believes in that hierarchy and is going to reinforce it through whatever means necessary. >> ready! present! fire! [ gunfire ] >> there are two things i cannot abide -- deserters and rebels. do tell your good friend mr. adams i send my regards. >> the reality of the situation, the whole message is behave, we

can terrify people. and that is very much the strategy. >> the fear put into the colonists soon becomes hate. life under british rule is now a back-and-forth struggle. getting even with the other side whenever possible. one side of this vicious game, the 29th regiment afoot, whose soldiers terrorize the streets of boston. >> the red coats, many of whom are just boys, are unsupervised at night. there's also a kind of freedom that comes from having a certain degree of power or authority for others. this is a recipe for violence. >> look here. spry looks like -- >> excuse me. >> hi. i believe you are correct.

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i let my mistakes kind aof take over my life. i was point-five credits away from completing high school and i didn't do it. angela: i got pregnant and i was the main one working so, i did what i had to do to survive. jocelyn: sentía que la escuela no era para mí. karim: most of my family they never graduated high school or even let alone go to college so i'm trying to break that barrier. jackie: my family never stopped pushing for me to be better because they knew what i could become and who i could become as a person. karim: everyday after work i went straight to school, studied hard, and it paid off. jocelyn: sentía como que si quiero cambiar el mundo tengo que cambiara mi primero.

group: surprise! surprise! surprise! angela: i could not have gotten my diploma without my family. jocelyn: mi consejera, ella fue lo máximo para mí porque me ayudó mucho con todo. jackie: i've been given an opportunity and i'm just thankful for it. angela: yeah it's hard, but keep on going and keep on trying. karim: the high school diploma has just added to the confidence and now i feel unstoppable. narrator: find free adult education classes near you at finishyourdiploma.org. >> all right. i'm loaning you then. >> living side by side, british soldiers and american colonists are engaged in a daily battle. all right, come along, you

men. >> living side by side, british soldiers and american colonists are engaged in a daily battle. >> out of the way, you! >> the british are constantly worried about these radicals terrorizing them. the radicals, in turn, are angry about the british troops. so it's kind of this horrible mix where the anxieties on both sides are feeding the tension. >> though the colonists struggle daily for their rights, the british continue to treat them like an inferior species, even forcing young men into military service. >> his majesty's navy -- >> what gives you the right? >> we have this group of british thugs who would haunt the back alleys, the bars, and literally press men into service. that was happening with increasing frequency. >> let me go! >> ay! >> christopher sider was a young

rebel in a group known as the liberty boys. >> grab that little squid. >> the liberty boys were inconspicuous. soldiers wouldn't pay as much attention to young boys. this made them very valuable to spies. >> you have no right to do this! >> look, mr. revere. >> lay into him, boys. [ gunshot ] [ shouting ]

>> that will heal up nicely, lad. i have a shot of rum for you at the green dragon. >> sam adams has been from the beginning advocating decisive action. it seems like he's always proven right. so the question becomes, when is it time to take the kind of action that he's really calling for. >> sam adams' idea to protest the taxes is to get all of the colonies together to join in on a boycott against english merchants. >> the insidious have thrust upon us. >> samuel adams and the sons of liberty are not above marking

the place with manure on the door. they're not above breaking the windows of that place. >> watching our fine young men in the battle, i see. >> i am. >> christopher, welcome to you and that fine throwing arm of yours. our liberty boys are going to give the tories hell. >> yeah! >> a reckoning well deserved. >> walking down the street, the mob sees ebenezer richardson who was an informant to the customs house about various merchants who were not paying their taxes. >> get him! >> for the rule of the crown and protection it affords them! >> they were also haunting a bostonian merchant who refused to join the nonimportation agreement.

[ shouting ] >> i will blow through this mob! just a warning shot across the bow. >> no! somebody help! >> it's one of our liberty boys. out of my way. >> quick. >> someone get dr. warren!

>> there's nothing i can do. >> most people think the revolutionary war is trigger the by a shot from a british soldier on lexington green. but the conflict is actually set into motion five years earlier by a loyalist informant who takes the life of christopher cider, the 11-year-old liberty boy becomes the first american patriot to die for the cause of freedom. >> to declare our independence. >> america is at war, dr. franklin. >> welcome home. >> for more revealing stories on these and other patriots featured in "legends and lies," purchase the companion book, available at billoreilly.com.

test.

>> when a young patriot gives his life for the cause of liberty, nearly all of boston is in mourning. when a young patriot gives his life for the cause of liberty, nearly all of boston's in mourning. the burying ground will become the final resting place of many founding fathers, but before them comes 11-year-old christopher. >> samuel adams made this into a huge public spectacle and there was a great deal of anger in boston. >> they staged an incredibly elaborate funeral with the bedecked coffin that gains mourners as it passes through town. >> while heartbroken by the death of the young boy at the hands of the british loyalists, sam adams also sees an opportunity to harness the tragedy. he uses the funeral as a rallying cry. a plea for all americans to

fight for individual rights that we hold so dear today. >> i'd like to present boston's most renowned poet. was like our victim, but a child. >> just four years older than christopher sider, phyllis wheatley is a young poet with a future on her way to becoming the first published african-american. she memorializes the moment, turning a victim into a patriot. >> in heaven, eternal court, it was the creed. how the first for the cause. to clear the country of the hated. his courage for the common good. all are endangered. death. the stars beheld the fatal blow. saw the young champion gasping on the ground. >> mine eyes have never seen

such a funeral. it shows there are many more lives to be spent if wanted in service to their country. it shows, too, that the faction is not yet expiring and that the auger of the people is not to be quelled by the slaughter of one child. >> it's in full view, this outpouring of sentiment, over the loss of one individual who symbolizes the promise of what many people think should be an independent nation. >> liberties of our country, and the freedoms of our civil constitution, must be defended. and all hazards, they've been purchased at the expense of our treasure and our blood. they be an everlasting mark of infamy if ever we should suffer. violence without a struggle. this we are in most danger of presently.

therefore, we must be aware of it. >> the funeral now has boston looking to the sons of liberty for revenge. >> this boy's death becomes propaganda for samuel adams and sons of liberty and this is like a match to light the fuse that will end to begin the american revolution. complicated cash back cards? some cards limit where you earn bonus cash back to places they choose... then they change those places every few months. quicksilver keeps it simple. with quicksilver you always earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, everywhere. 'tis the season for simple. what's in your wallet?

in the days that follow christopher sider's funeral,

tension in boston reaches a climax. >> one of our boys -- >> please, somebody help me. >> what have they done? >> christopher snyder is confirmation of discontent with the british and unjustice coming from the parliament to the people of boston are feeling very angry. >> where is the money? you owe me -- first you take a job and cheat an honest man. >> honest man? where is this honest man you speak of? i don't see one before me know. >> hey. hey. >> the captain is an officer in his majesty's army. he's a thief and scum. you know the type. >> the british want to demonstrate that we hold the

power, and you guys better do what we tell you to do. >> with the town on edge, brigades of the british army are never far away. reinforcements arrive at a moment's notice. >> captain preston brings out the guard, they form in front of the house and in that point it escalates and a mob starts to grow. the more forces from there, the more radical the situation gets. [ bell tolling ] >> the buildup of tension, of fear, and eventually it exploded.

>> somebody help! somebody help! please. >> remember, every detail. every detail.

>> just days after christopher sider is buried, five more american colonists join him as martyrs in the struggle for freedom. what starts as a protest against military occupation escalates into a bloody reminder of the disregard the british have for american lives and american liberty. the boston massacre finds a lasting place in american history. not just as a horrible tragedy, but as a thought for true patriots to stand up and fight for the unalienable rights we hold so dear today. life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. >> your fathers staked their lives on the cause of their country.

news is the first draft of history. it is immediate and takes place in real time. legends take longer to develop and are sometimes based on myth. this fox news series looks at the truth behind the legend. previously on "legends and lies" compatriots. >> i propose we establish an association that's perfect for resisting these attacks. >> we won't sit while agents, leaders strive. >> liberty boys are going to give the tories