The Battle of Saratoga was the 1777 American Revolutionary War victory often called the conflict’s turning point.
The Saratoga campaign took place in northern New York from June to October 1777. American forces first stopped British General John Burgoyne’s advance at the Battle of Freeman’s Farm, then defeated his army at Bemis Heights on October 7. Burgoyne surrendered ten days later on October 17.
The victory had major diplomatic consequences. France, which had already been providing covert assistance, entered a formal alliance with the United States in 1778. French military, naval, and financial support later became critical to the American war effort, especially during the Yorktown campaign.
Saratoga is sometimes confused with Yorktown, the later 1781 victory that effectively ended major fighting. Saratoga did not end the war, but it demonstrated that the Continental forces could defeat a major British army and helped bring France openly into the conflict.