The Battles of Saratoga are widely called the turning point of the American Revolutionary War.
The campaign took place in New York in 1777 and ended with the surrender of British General John Burgoyne’s army to American forces commanded by General Horatio Gates. The decisive American victory stopped a major British attempt to divide New England from the southern colonies.
Saratoga had consequences beyond the battlefield. The victory convinced France that the American cause had a realistic chance of success. France then entered the war openly as an American ally in 1778, providing troops, naval power, money, and military supplies.
The campaign included the Battle of Freeman’s Farm and the Battle of Bemis Heights. Benedict Arnold played an important role in the fighting, although his later defection to the British made his reputation one of the most complicated in American history. The final British surrender at Saratoga occurred on October 17, 1777.