Saratoga Springs--It’s Not Just for Horse Racing!

Saratoga Springs--It’s Not Just for Horse Racing!

I had the good fortune to attend the New York State Council for the Social Studies conference in Saratoga Springs last month. While Saratoga is famous for its horse racing, it also has a significant history that those of us in the social studies/history field--and all Americans--should know. The Battle of Saratoga in the fall of 1777 is considered the turning point in the American Revolution, directly leading to France’s entry into the war as a decisive military ally to the struggling Americans.

The battle resulted from a failure of the British army to gain access through Canada, which left a large surplus of British troops along the St. Lawrence River. In 1777, these troops were to move south and join forces with General Sir William Howe’s troops along the Hudson River. Leading a force of about 8,000 British troops southward, General John Burgoyne forced the surrender of Fort Ticonderoga (July 6) and Fort Edward on the upper Hudson (July 31). He left nearly 1,000 men behind to garrison Fort Ticonderoga. Having collected 30 days’ rations, Burgoyne crossed the Hudson and encamped near Saratoga. General Horatio Gates, the American commander, was camped four miles away with 12,000 men and was receiving daily reinforcements.


On September 19, Burgoyne’s army moved south and engaged the Continental forces at the Battle of Freeman’s Farm, or the First Battle of Saratoga. Burgoyne failed to pierce Gates’s lines, however, and thus open a way to Albany. On October 7, he led 1,500 of his men out on reconnaissance, but met with a fierce American counterattack under General Benedict Arnold. This engagement was called the Battle of Bemis Heights, also known as the Second Battle of Freeman’s Farm or the Second Battle of Saratoga. By now, Burgoyne’s army had been reduced to about 5,000 effective troops and his supplies were running low. On October 8, Burgoyne began his retreat, but Gates, who by now had 20,000 men, surrounded him at Saratoga. On October 17, Burgoyne surrendered his troops under the Convention of Saratoga, which provided for the return of his men to Great Britain on condition that they would not serve again in North America during the war.

The American victory in the Battles of Saratoga persuaded the French to recognize American independence and to give open military assistance, thus marking a turning point in the uprising and making possible its ultimate success. If the men at Saratoga had failed, the British army could have easily accomplished their plan to cut off the east coast of America, and slowly move eastward to Boston to destroy the rebel American Army. Without this victory, it is quite possible there would be no America and all the ‘Founders’ would have been hanged for treason.