SMITH, FRANCIS
Smith, Francis
(ca. 1723–November 17, 1791)
English General
I
n 28 years of service,
the rotund, slow-mov-
ing Smith failed to ac-
crue much distinction be-
yond seniority and a
reputation for stodginess.
Nonetheless, he made his-
tory by commanding the
fateful expedition to Con-
cord that precipitated the
American Revolution.
Francis Smith was
born probably in Scot-
land around 1723, and he
entered military service
as a young man. He ob-
tained a lieutenant’s com-
mission in the famous
Royal Fusiliers in April
1741 and, six years later,
transferred to the 10th
Regiment of Foot as a
captain. Smith remained
with that unit over the
next 16 years, rising to lieutenant colonel in
January 1762. He next accompanied the 10th
to Boston in 1767, where he became brevet
colonel on September 8, 1774. There Smith
acquired a reputation as a friendly, gregarious
officer but one possessing relatively few mili-
tary talents.
Having resided in Boston for more than a
decade, Smith witnessed all the political tur-
moil embroiling that city over the issue of
taxes. By 1775, tensions were at the breaking
point, and Governor Thomas Gage was
forced to take decisive action. That April he
received positive instructions from London to
arrest Samuel Adams and John Hancock, two
anti-British political agitators. This was
deemed impractical by Gage, for the two men
could easily slip undercover and escape. He
then hit upon the expedient of sending troops
in various towns for the
purpose of seizing militia
depots. Previously, in
February 1775, one such
force under Col. Alexan-
der Leslie set out for
Salem but was so ha-
rassed by townspeople
that he failed to return
with anything but ridi-
cule. Gage now resolved
to put on a show of force
and destroy cannons and
munitions deposited at
the town of Concord, 16
miles from Boston. The
governor, a political Whig
who honestly empathized
with the colonies, felt
that if the militia were
peacefully disarmed now,
it would prevent the out-
break of violence later.
This was a crucial mis-
sion and, as such, required the presence of an
officer capable of executing the task with
aplomb and skill. Why Gage selected the 52-
year-old Francis Smith has befuddled histori-
ans ever since. Lacking combat experience,
Smith was overweight, notoriously slow in his
movements, and by all accounts a mediocre
leader. However, he was also the senior offi-
cer present in the Boston garrison, and to
pass him over for someone with less seniority
would have been insulting. Besides, Smith’s
reputation for caution and prudence neatly
mirrored Gage’s own, whatever his personal
demeanor. On the evening of April 16, 1775,
Smith was instructed to prepare a force of 700
men and march to Concord in the greatest
possible secrecy. His force consisted of eight
light infantry and eight grenadier companies
culled from all the regiments garrisoned inFrancis Smith
Lexington Historical Society