People

Places

Events

Entertainment

Magazine

Invention & Technology

Travel

Blog

Discussions

December 1975 Volume 27, Issue 1

Browse our American Heritage Magazine issues from 1954 to the present.

Archives >>

Subscriber Services:
American Heritage Subscriber Services:
Invention & Technology 2006: Most Popular Featured Stories Presidents Immigration in America American Heritage Books Guide to the Best of the Web 60 Years of American Heritage Magazine Archives 20 Years of Invention and Technology Magazine Archives Forbes Collector Picture of the Day Quote of the Day Polls Local Events Calendar

American Heritage
April 1963

SARATOGA

BATTLES OF THE REVOLUTION

Tenth in a series of paintings for AMERICAN HERITAGE by DON TROIANI

On July first of 1777 the able, affable “Gentleman johnny” Burgoyne set out from Crown Point on Lake Champlain with his competent Hessian ally, Baron Friedrich von Riedesel, thereby opening a campaign that he had wagered would see him home victorious by Christmas. Burgoyne’s plan was to bisect the colonies; Colonel Barry St. Leger would move east through the Mohawk Valley with seventeen hundred men, Howe would march north from New York, and Burgoyne would take his ninety-five hundred troops south to Albany, where he would meet with Howe and St. Leger. But it was not to be. St. Leger, laying siege to Fort Stanwix in the Mohawk Valley, was discouraged by rumors that Benedict Arnold was pounding north with reinforcements to relieve the fort. His Indian allies panicked, and St. Leger was driven out of the campaign. Howe, committed to taking Philadelphia, never started north at all.

Still, Burgoyne did well enough at first. On July 6 he took Fort I iconderoga without a fight. Then, rather than continue his advance to the upper reaches of the Hudson by way of Lake George, he inexplicably plunged into the dense wilderness south of the fort. It took nearly a month to build a road through the woods, and the task so sapped British supplies that Burgoyne was forced to send most of his left wing to Bennington to replenish his stores. There the contingent was set upon and destroyed by militia under John Stark.

Faced with mounting disaster and the knowledge now that there would be no help from Howe, Burgoyne decided nonetheless to push on to Albany. He was some thirty miles north of his goal on September 19 when his army, ragged and dispirited and now only six thousand strong, came up against an American force of roughly the same size under Major General Horatio Gates. Gates was a vainglorious and uninspired commander, but lie had some good men under him, among them Colonel Daniel Morgan and his riflemen. These boys struck the first blow against Burgoyne’s regiments as the British advanced into lands cleared by a farmer named Freeman. The rough, wearing battle that ensued cost the British more than six hundred men before von Riedesel swept down from the east and saved them from total destruction. Burgoyne dug in and waited for reinforcements that never came while British morale was chipped away by constant American raids. At last, on October 7, Burgoyne made his final cast at victory. Fifteen hundred men left their trenches and formed into battle order under a cloudless autumn sky. They were hit on the left by tough New Hampshiremen under Enoch Poor and on the right by Dan Morgan’s riflemen. The British units began to disintegrate and then fled back to a pair of redoubts that had been prepared while Burgoyne waited for reinforcements. This might have been the end of the fight but for an extraordinary display of personal courage by Benedict Arnold. A sulky Gates had relieved him of command after a squabble some weeks before, but Arnold, with no authority save boldness, rushed into the fight and led an attack against the redoubt on the American right. When this was checked, he galloped across the entire front, rallied Ebenezer Learned’s Massachusetts brigade, took two stockaded log cabins between the redoubts, and went on to capture, at the cost of a ball in the leg, the other redoubt. Gates never went near the battlefield.

Burgoyne withdrew to a place called Saratoga, dogged by a force now three times his strength. He waited four days; then Stark blocked his last possible escape route. On October 14 Burgoyne asked Gates for terms of surrender.

The import of this momentous victory was not lost on the watchers overseas. Less than four months after Burgoyne surrendered, France cast in her lot with the fledgling American republic.

—R.F.S.

THEY WERE THERE:

“we could do no other than treat with the enemy”

General John Burgoyne,
British Army:

No possibility of communication with your lordship [George Germain] having existed since the beginning of September … I have to report to your lordship the proceedings of the army under my command from that period; a series of hard toil, incessant effort, stubborn action; till disabled in the collateral branches of the army by the total defection of the Indians; the desertion or timidity of the Canadians and Provincials, some individuals excepted; disappointed in the last hope of any timely co-operation from other armies; the regular troops reduced by losses from the best part to three thousand five hundred fighting men, not two thousand of which were British; only three days’ provisions upon short allowance in store … I was induced to open a treaty with Major-general Gates. …

[On September 18] The enemy appeared in considerable force to … draw on an action where artillery could not be employed …

Captain Benjamin Warren,
Continental Army:

Friday 19th. Received intelligence that the enemy was nigh. … About two o’clock the action began on our left, between their advanced guard and Capt. Morgan’s, who was a flanking party; he beat them back to the main body. … The engagement began again at 25 minutes after three o’clock with great spirit on both sides, we beat them back three times and they reinforced and recovered their ground again, till after sunset without any intermission when both parties retired and left the field …

General Burgoyne:

It was soon found that no fruits (honor excepted) were attained by the preceding victory, the enemy working with redoubled ardor to strengthen their left; their right was already unattackable.

On our side it became expedient to erect strong redoubts. … In this situation things continued till the seventh, when … it was judged advisable to make a movement to the enemy’s left…

Ebenezer Mattoon,
Continental Army:

Gen. [Benjamin] Lincoln says, “Gen. Gates, the firing at the river is merely a feint; their object is your left. …”

Gates replied, “I will send Morgan with his riflemen, and [Major Henry] Dearborn’s infantry.”

Arnold says, “That is nothing; you must send a strong force.”

Gates replied, “Gen. Arnold, I have nothing for you to do; you have no business here.”

Arnold’s reply was reproachful and severe.

Gen. Lincoln says, “You must send a strong force to support Morgan and Dearborn, at least three regiments.” Two regiments … were then ordered to that station and to defend it at all hazards. …

We then advanced into the line of infantry. … During this time, a tremendous firing was heard on our left. We poured in upon them our canister shot as fast as possible, and the whole line, from left to right, became engaged. … Col. Johnson’s regiment, coming up, threw in a heavy fire and compelled the Hessians to retreat. Upon this we advanced with a shout of victory. … We were met by a fire from the British infantry. … They advanced with a quick step, firing as they came on. We returned them a brisk fire of canister shot, not allowing ourselves time even to sponge our pieces. … At this juncture Arnold came up with a part of Brooks’s regiment, and gave them a most deadly fire, which soon caused them to face about and retreat with a quicker step than they advanced.

The firing had now principally ceased on our left, but was brisk in front and on the right. At this moment Arnold says to Col. Brooks (late governor of Massachusetts), “Let us attack Balcarras’s works.”

Brooks replied, “No. Lord Auckland’s detachment has retired there, we can’t carry them.”

“Well, then, let us attack the Hessian lines.”

Brooks replies, “With all my heart.”

We all wheeled to the right and advanced. No fire was received, except from the cannon, until we got within about eight rods, when we received a tremendous fire from the whole line. … Still advancing, we received a second fire, in which a few men fell, and Cen. Arnold’s horse fell under him, and he himself was wounded. He cried out, “Rush on, my brave boys!” After receiving the third fire, Brooks mounted their works, swung his sword, and the men rushed into their works. …

Captain Georg Pausch,
Hessian forces:

… Two of my men had been shot dead; three or four were wounded; a number had straggled off, and all of the infantry … either gone to the devil or run away. … Seeing that all was irretrievably lost, and that it was impossible to save anything, I called to the few remaining men to save themselves. …

Lieutenant Thomas Anburey,
British Army:

After waiting the whole of the 13th day of October in anxious expectation of what it would produce … a council of war was called, to which all the Generals, Field-officers and commanding officers of corps were summoned, when it was unanimously agreed that in the present circumstances we could do no other than treat with the enemy.