The Revolutionary War Started in Portsmouth, New Hampshire NOT Lexington and Concord?

Everyone knows about the shot heard around the world.

The shot famously started the Battle of Lexington and Concord, in Massachusetts, and the Revolutionary War in April of 1775.

But what if that was not really the start of the Revolutionary War? What if Paul Revere rode to Portsmouth, NH, warning about a battle there first?

How the Revolutionary War Started in Portsmouth, New Hampshire:

According to a Historical Digression article, there is an argument to be made that a battle in Portsmouth, NH, four months prior to the Battle of Lexington and Concord, was the real start to the Revolutionary War.

With tensions high and on the verge of a rebellion, loyalist leaders knew they needed to get ahead of the American colonists who were fed up with British control.

Knowing they were on the verge of war, in December of 1774, General Thomas Gage (for the British) decided that preventing rebellion was better than fighting it.

The plan? Capture all of the gunpowder, cannons, and other weapons in Portsmouth, NH, so that the American colonists could not use them...

Capture of Fort William and Mary, Portsmouth, NH:

Many know the story of Paul Revere riding his horse through Massachusetts, warning colonists that the British were coming...but he did it in New Hampshire first.

On December 13, 1774 (months before the "start" of the Revolutionary War), Paul Revere rode his horse through Portsmouth, NH, warning colonists of General Gage's plan to take all of the gun powder and weapons.

The very next day, December 14, 1774, after gathering 400 colonial militia, the American Colonists took control of Fort William and Mary in Portsmouth, NH.

Six soldiers for the British side put up a fight, but not enough to stop 400 colonists.

There were gun shots, cannon shots, injuries, and a takeover. The King's flag was taken down from the fort and stomped on.

Was THIS not the start of the Revolutionary War? There was bloodshed. There were weapons fired upon the uninformed troops. There were rebels acting in an organized and strategic manner.