Burgoyne Surrenders at Saratoga

On October 17, 1777, British General John Burgoyne surrendered his army to American General Horatio Gates near what is now Schuylerville, New York, ending a campaign built to cut the rebellious colonies in half along the Hudson corridor. Burgoyne had marched his army down from Canada aiming to link up with British forces near New York City, but two hard battles near Saratoga in September and October stopped his advance and left him surrounded. Outnumbered and cut off from supplies, he negotiated terms that let his roughly 5,900 remaining British, German, and provincial troops lay down their weapons instead of fighting to the last man. The news crossed the Atlantic within weeks, and it changed the calculation in Paris overnight.