British General Thomas Gage’s goal was the military supplies in Concord, not John Hancock or Samuel Adams in Lexington

When British General Thomas Gage sent the Regulars into Lexington, the Sons of Liberty in Boston thought their goal was to capture John Hancock and Samuel Adams.

Adams and Hancock were regarded as the colonial resistance leaders in Massachusetts. The ardent orator Adams and the businessman Hancock collaborated on a project. Many people thought the King wanted to capture both men and gave Gage the order to do so. On April 19, 1775, both men were residing at the Hancock-Clarke House in Lexington.

Gage's aim for his Regulars was to seize the cannons, supplies, and weaponry that the Massachusetts Provincial Congress was keeping at Concord rather than the two Patriot commanders. It had nothing to do with Adams or Hancock's presence that the Regulars' route from Boston to Concord passed via Lexington. Thus it can be concluded that British General Thomas Gage’s goal was the military supplies in Concord, not John Hancock or Samuel Adams in Lexington.