Battles of Saratoga in the context of "Benedict Arnold"

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⭐ Core Definition: Battles of Saratoga

The Battles of Saratoga were fought September 19 and October 7, 1777 over the same ground by the American Continental Army and the British Army near Saratoga, New York during the American Revolutionary War. The second battle ended with a decisive American victory, and the surrender of the British army there. The outcome greatly affected the course of the war, persuading France to enter the war as an American ally. In both battles, General John Burgoyne commanded the British forces, while General Horatio Gates oversaw the American force. Historian Edmund Morgan described Saratoga as "a great turning point of the war", because it won for Americans the foreign assistance from France, which was the last element needed for victory."

The British Army's campaign in New York was aimed at dividing New England from the middle and southern colonies. Burgoyne led an invasion army of 7,200 to 8,000 men southward from Canada through the Champlain Valley. Hoping to meet British forces marching northward from New York City and eastward from Lake Ontario, Burgoyne's goal was to take Albany, New York. The strategy began promisingly, but stalled due to logistical issues. British General William Howe never moved his forces north, and Brigadier General Barry St. Leger turned back his forces meant to arrive from the west, leaving Burgoyne surrounded by the Americans in upstate New York, 15 miles (24 km) short of his goal. Burgoyne fought two battles, which took place 18 days apart, on the same ground 9 miles (14 km) south of Saratoga, New York. In the first battle, at Freeman's Farm on September 19, Burgoyne won a tactical victory over the Continental Army at the cost of heavy casualties. The battle began with Burgoyne's attempt to flank the entrenched American position on Bemis Heights with some of his troops. American Major General Benedict Arnold anticipated the maneuver and placed significant forces in his way. Still, Burgoyne was able to gain the field. Skirmishes continued in the following days while Burgoyne waited in the hope that reinforcements would arrive from New York City.

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👉 Battles of Saratoga in the context of Benedict Arnold

This monument was erected under the patronage of the State of Connecticut in the 55th year of the Independence of the U.S.A. in memory of the brave patriots massacred at Fort Griswold near this spot on the 6th of Sept. AD 1781, when the British, under the command of the Traitor Benedict Arnold, burnt the towns of New London and Groton and spread desolation and woe throughout the region.

Benedict Arnold (January 14, 1741 [O.S. January 3, 1740] – June 14, 1801) was an American-born British military officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. He fought with distinction for the American Continental Army and rose to the rank of major general before defecting to the British in 1780. General George Washington had given him his fullest trust and had placed him in command of West Point in New York. Arnold was planning to surrender the fort to British forces, but the plot was discovered in September 1780, whereupon he fled to the British lines. In the later part of the war, Arnold was commissioned as a brigadier general in the British Army and placed in command of the American Legion. He led British forces in battle against the army which he had once commanded, and his name became synonymous with treason and betrayal in the United States.

Born in Connecticut, Arnold was a merchant operating ships in the Atlantic when the war began. He joined the growing American army outside of Boston and distinguished himself by acts that demonstrated intelligence and bravery: In 1775, he captured Fort Ticonderoga. In 1776, he employed defensive and delaying tactics at the Battle of Valcour Island on Lake Champlain that gave American forces time to prepare New York's defenses. His performance in the Battle of Ridgefield in Connecticut prompted his promotion to major general. He conducted operations that provided the Americans with relief during the Siege of Fort Stanwix, and key actions during the pivotal 1777 Battles of Saratoga in which he sustained leg injuries that put him out of combat for several years.

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Battles of Saratoga in the context of Capital District (New York)

The Capital District, also known as the Capital Region, is the metropolitan area surrounding Albany, the capital of the U.S. state of New York. The Capital District was first settled by the Dutch in the early 17th century and came under English control in 1664. Albany has been the permanent capital of the state of New York since 1797. The Capital District is notable for many historical events that predate the independence of the United States, including the Albany Plan of Union and the Battles of Saratoga.

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Battles of Saratoga in the context of Benjamin Lincoln

Benjamin Lincoln (January 24, 1733 (O.S. January 13, 1733) – May 9, 1810) was an American army officer. He served as a major general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Lincoln was involved in three major surrenders during the war: his participation in the Battles of Saratoga (sustaining a wound shortly afterward) contributed to John Burgoyne's surrender of a British army, he oversaw the largest American surrender of the war at the 1780 siege of Charleston, and, as George Washington's second in command, he formally accepted the British surrender at Yorktown.

Lincoln served from 1781 to 1783 as the first United States Secretary of War. While Secretary of War, Lincoln became an original member of The Society of the Cincinnati of the state of Massachusetts and was elected as the first president of the Massachusetts Society on June 9, 1783. After the war, Lincoln was active in politics in his native Massachusetts, running several times for lieutenant governor but only winning one term in that office. In 1787, Lincoln led a militia army (privately funded by Massachusetts merchants) in the suppression of Shays's Rebellion, and was a strong supporter of the new United States Constitution. He was for many of his later years the politically influential customs collector of the Port of Boston.

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Battles of Saratoga in the context of USS Saratoga (CV-60)

USS Saratoga (CV/CVA/CVB-60) was the second of four Forrestal-class supercarriers built for the United States Navy in the 1950s. Saratoga was the sixth U.S. Navy ship, and the second aircraft carrier, to be named for the Battles of Saratoga in the American Revolutionary War.

Commissioned in 1956, she spent most of her career in the Mediterranean, but also participated during the Vietnam War, receiving one battle star for her service. One of her last operational duties was to participate in Operation Desert Storm.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Capital District (New York) ← Capital District, New York ← Benedict Arnold ← Benjamin Lincoln ← USS Saratoga (CV-60)
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Continental Army → British Army → Saratoga, New York → American Revolutionary War → History of the United States (1776–1789) → Kingdom of France → Franco-American alliance → John Burgoyne → Horatio Gates → Edmund Morgan (historian) → Saratoga Campaign → New England → Middle Colonies → Southern Colonies → Champlain Valley → History of New York City (1665–1783) → Lake Ontario → Albany, New York → William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe → Barry St. Leger → Upstate New York → Flanking maneuver → Benedict Arnold →