Which 1777 battle helped persuade France to enter an open alliance with the United States?

The Battle of Saratoga helped persuade France to enter an open alliance with the United States.

The Battles of Saratoga took place in New York in September and October 1777. American forces defeated and captured the British army commanded by General John Burgoyne, demonstrating that the revolutionary army could defeat a major British force.

News of Burgoyne’s surrender reached France and contributed to negotiations that produced the Franco-American treaties of 1778. France then provided troops, naval forces, loans, weapons, and other supplies, turning the conflict into a wider international war.

Saratoga is often called a turning point, but it did not end the war. Fighting continued for years, and the decisive final campaign came at Yorktown in 1781. Saratoga’s importance was diplomatic as well as military because it changed France’s assessment of the American cause.