The Saratoga campaign is widely called a turning point of the American Revolutionary War because it helped secure French aid for the American cause.
The campaign took place in 1777 as British Lieutenant General John Burgoyne attempted to control the Hudson River valley and divide New England from the other colonies. His army moved south from Quebec toward Saratoga in present-day New York.
American forces resisted Burgoyne in several engagements, including the Battle of Bennington and the Battles of Saratoga. Burgoyne surrendered his army to General Horatio Gates on October 17, 1777.
The American victory demonstrated that the revolutionaries could defeat a major British force. France subsequently deepened its alliance with the United States and entered the war against Britain in 1778, providing troops, money, naval power, and supplies.