The Battle of Saratoga became the decisive American victory that encouraged France to enter the Revolutionary War. The campaign culminated in British General John Burgoyne’s surrender at Saratoga, New York, in October 1777.
Burgoyne’s army had advanced south from Canada with a plan to divide New England from the other colonies. American forces stopped the campaign in two major engagements, Freeman’s Farm on September 19 and Bemis Heights on October 7. Burgoyne surrendered his army on October 17.
The victory demonstrated that the American forces could defeat a major British field army. France had already provided covert assistance, but Saratoga persuaded the French government that an open alliance might be worthwhile. The Treaty of Alliance and Treaty of Amity and Commerce followed in February 1778.
Saratoga is sometimes confused with Yorktown, which came later and forced the British to negotiate an end to major combat. Saratoga was strategically important because it brought France formally into the war.