October 17, 1777 Patriot victory at Saratoga
On this day 229 years ago, during the American Revolution, British General John Burgoyne surrenders 5,000 British and Hessian troops to Patriot General Horatio Gates at Saratoga, New York.
Burgoyne was loved by the ladies, intelligent and a supremely confident man. Before returning to America in 1777 to serve under Thomas Gage, Burgoyne placed a 50-guinea bet with a colleague that America would be defeated within a year. Always popular with the soldiers, Burgoyne was affectionately dubbed by them "Gentleman Johnny" mainly because he was a snappy dresser and chicks dug him.
American Gen Horatio Gates
In the summer of 1777, General Burgoyne led an army of 8,000 men south through New York State from Canada in an effort to join forces with British General Sir William Howe's troops along the Hudson River. Their ultimate goal is to set up a strong line of British forces across NY centered on Albany to cut-off New England from the rest of the rebellious colonies.
Burgoyne's advance from Canada to Saratoga
The Redcoats could then theoretically defeat New England and the Middle Atlantic states in detail and independent of each other. After capturing several forts and leaving detachments of men to hold each of them, but now running dangerously low on ammunition and food, Burgoyne's force camped near Saratoga while a larger Patriot army under General Gates gathered just four miles away. Burgoyne hopes General Howe can link-up up his force as was planned at the beginning of the expedition but Howe is busy wreaking havoc in Pennsylvania.
These reenactor dudes are all about 20 years older and 50 pounds heavier than the real guys, but you get the idea.
On September 19, a British advance column marched out and engaged the Patriot force at the Battle of Freeman's Farm, or the First Battle of Saratoga. Failing to break through the American lines, Burgoyne's force retreated.
On October 7, another British reconnaissance force was repulsed by an American force under General Benedict Arnold in the Battle of Bemis Heights, also known as the Second Battle of Saratoga.
Burgoyne retreated north to the village of Saratoga with his 5,000 surviving troops. By October 13, some 20,000 Americans had surrounded the British. The Americans keep the British off-guard by firing on them from random positions concealed by the surrounding forest -- a technique disdained by the British, but certainly effective in giving them something to worry about.
Four days later, almost out of food and ammunition, Burgoyne was forced to agree to the first large-scale surrender of British forces in the Revolutionary War.
The British are then marched to Boston, placed on ships and sent back to England after swearing not serve again in the war against America. Total Brit losses are approximately 600. American losses are approximately 150.
Burgoyne surrendering to Gates. Burgoyne would never live it down, but British General Howe bears much of the blame for this early British loss.
When word of the Patriot victory reached France, King Louis XVI agreed to recognize the independence of the United States. Helping the Americans hurt their hated common enemy and since "he who hates my enemy is my friend," French military and naval support soon followed. Thereafter, French Foreign Minister Comte de Vergennes made arrangements with Benjamin Franklin, the US Ambassador to the French royal court, to begin providing French aid to the Patriot cause.
As an aside, one of our first purpose-built US aircraft carrier's was named USS Saratoga (CV-3) in honor of our victory.
Here's the first Saratoga underway in 1935.
Here's one of her complement of dive bombing aircraft. A BG-3, already hopelessly obsolete in 1937. We'd have to play catch-up in order to be ready to take on Imperial Japanese Navy carrier based aviation a few years later.
Originally Posted by Okla-homey
