Matt's+Digital+Story+Telling

Title of Story: __Battle of Saratoga__

links for pictures: http://footguards.tripod.com/00HOME/GIFsWAVs/sara1.jpg

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http://www.britishbattles.com/images/saratoga/st-ledger.jpg

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Links for Information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Saratoga

The **Battle of Saratoga** in September and October 1777 was a decisive American victory resulting in the surrender of an entire British army of 9,000 men invading New York from Canada during the American Revolutionary War. The Battle of Saratoga was actually two battles about 9 miles south of Saratoga, New York, namely the Battle of Freeman's Farm and the Battle of Bemis Heights, as well as the Battle of Bennington, about 15 miles east of Saratoga. The surrender of General John Burgoyne, who was surrounded by much larger American militia forces, took place after his retreat to Saratoga. The capture of an entire British army secured the northern American states from further attacks out of Canada and prevented New England from being isolated. A major result was that France entered the conflict on behalf of the Americans, thus dramatically improving the Americans' chances in the war.

British General John Burgoyne set out with 3000 red-coated British regulars, 3,900 blue-coated German mercenaries from Brunswick, and 650 Canadians, Tories and Indians from Canada in June. The objective was to reach Albany, New York and there meet up with Colonel Barry St. Leger coming east along the Mohawk River valley with a mixed force of about 600 Tories, Canadians and 1,000 Iroquois Indians, and General William Howe coming up the Hudson valley with a large force from New York City. The result would be control of upstate New York, and isolation of New England. The complex plan required coordination and communication among the three units. The British advance beyond the southern ends of Lakes Champlain and George was slowed to a few miles per day by Americans who cut the trees to block the forest route. When, on August 1, 1777, Burgoyne's forces finally reached the Hudson River at Fort Edward, he was running out of supplies. On August 11, he detached troops to obtain cattle from the farms near Bennington, Vermont, and other supplies there. The detachment was overwhelmed and defeated by aroused American militia at the Battle of Bennington. Burgoyne continued south and crossed to the west side of the Hudson at Saratoga (now Schuylerville). He marched another 9 miles down the Hudson but was eventually blocked at Stillwater by regular soldiers and militia under General Horatio Gates. Over the course of the summer the American forces had grown to roughly 15,000 men as militia poured in from Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York and as far as Virginia.

Knowing a battle was shaping up, George Washington held Howe's army to Philadelphia and sent aid north. He first dispatched Major General Benedict Arnold, his most aggressive field commander, and Major General Benjamin Lincoln, a Massachusetts man noted for his influence with the New England militia. From the main army in Pennsylvania he ordered 750 men from Putnam's force in the New York highlands to join Gates. Then he put the word out for any available militia groups to form up on Gates. In mid-August he detached forces under Colonel Daniel Morgan of the 11th Virginia Regiment with over 400 specially selected Virginia riflemen, chosen for their sharpshooting ability. Morgan's men were given specific instructions to concentrate on officers and artillerymen. In the battle, the sharpshooters were accurate at well over 200 yards (183 m), but suffered from their long reload times and their lack of bayonets for when the enemy got too close. The Americans eventually learned to mix the sharpshooters with trained men armed with muskets and bayonets to protect them.

The original conception of the campaign had been for Burgoyne to advance south via Lakes Champlain and George to the Hudson River and then to Albany, where he would meet with the forces of William Howe, advancing north from the British fortress at New York City. This would cut off the New England states from the rest of America. However, Howe decided instead to make a strategically irrelevant assault on the American capital of Philadelphia. In addition, Howe chose to approach the city by sailing the army to Chesapeake Bay rather than marching overland across New Jersey, rendering his army totally unable to come to Burgoyne's aid. On July 23, 1777, Howe and his army set sail and did not return to the mainland until August 25. Howe succeeded in taking Philadelphia, winning victories at Brandywine on Sept. 11 and Germantown on October 4, but the Continental Congress simply retreated to York, Pennsylvania, and evaded capture. Because of the slow and difficult communications of the period, Burgoyne did not hear of this change in Howe's plans for several weeks; by then it was too late.


 * Captain Pausch’s Hesse Hanau || [[image:http://www.britishbattles.com/images/saratoga/st-ledger.jpg width="103" height="87"]] ||
 * The battle of Sartoga was in Eastern

New York. || || to end the battle ||  || commander at the Battle of Saratoga. || ||
 * General Burgoyne surrenders to General Gates
 * Major General Horatio Gates, the American
 * The death of Brigadier Simon Fraser || [[image:http://www.britishbattles.com/images/saratoga/benedict-arnold-l.jpg width="143" height="88" caption="General Benefit Arnold"]] ||
 * || [[image:http://www.britishbattles.com/images/saratoga/arnold-wounded.jpg width="150" height="128"]] ||
 * There were many British soldiers || [[image:http://www.army.mod.uk/img/ddli/uniform_of_british_soldier_during_this_period.jpg width="98" height="108"]] ||