America’s 250th: The battle that saved the Declaration of Independence

The Declaration of Independence proclaimed American freedom on July 4, 1776, and the Battle of Yorktown in 1781 ended the Revolutionary War with a final military triumph. But it was the Battle of Saratoga in October 1777 which enabled both.

Without Saratoga, France would not have entered the alliance that supplied the warships and troops to corner the British at Yorktown. The Declaration set out America’s intent and goals, and Yorktown secured them. But, without the Battle of Saratoga, the result might have been very different.

On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress finalized the Declaration of Independence. But the months following that Declaration were anything but peaceful. American forces were put to the test and then put to flight in New York and Canada; they endured hard losses. America had declared its independence, but there was little military might to back it up. Without a significant win over regular British troops, the Declaration could have become a meaningless document of a failed insurrection.

Great Britain was determined to end the revolution by the summer of 1777. Their strategy was to sever New England from the other colonies by converging three armies in Albany, New York. General John Burgoyne was to bring 8,000 men south from the Champlain Valley in Canada, with others moving east on the Mohawk and north up the Hudson. The plan was to isolate the northern colonies and compel an American surrender.

But the campaign did not go as the British had intended. A lack of coordination and stiff resistance kept General William Howe from advancing up the Hudson River Valley, and another contingent under Barry St. Leger was forced to turn back. That left Burgoyne’s men deep in the New York woods, surrounded by the forces of Major General Horatio Gates. With no support and rations running thin, Burgoyne made two forlorn efforts to get through the American lines at Freeman’s Farm and Bemis Heights in September and early October.

On October 7, at Bemis Heights, the matter was decided. From behind dirt walls and the high bluffs where their cannons were positioned, the Americans repulsed the British. At the height of the engagement, General Benedict Arnold led a relentless assault, forcing the British defenses to break and turning an impending stalemate into a decisive American victory. On October 17, 1777, with no way out, Burgoyne surrendered his 6,000-strong army. It was the first time in history that an entire British field army surrendered.

All of Europe was taken aback by the news. King Louis XVI of France had been discreetly sending money and provisions, but he would not openly enter the war until he was sure the Americans could handle the British. Burgoyne’s surrender gave him the assurance he needed. During February 1778, France signed a Treaty of Alliance with the United States, followed soon after by Spain and the Netherlands. What had been a local insurrection was now a world war for Britain.

For the American people and soldiers, still reeling from the fall of Philadelphia and a string of reverses, the win at Saratoga was a big morale builder. It demonstrated that the words of the Declaration could be upheld with military force. At Yorktown, it was the French navy and army, won over because of Saratoga, that would box in Cornwallis and force his surrender. The Declaration was the promise, but the battle at Saratoga provided the allies and the strength to fulfill it.