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Chapter III - The Playboy General and French Reliance
The Playboy General and French Reliance 1777 - 1780
In 1777 "Gentleman Johnny" Burgoyne, known as the playboy general, convinced the British high command, which was not known for its keen military strategy, that he should mount an expedition south from Canada down the Hudson River. He planned to rendezvous with Howe's troops near New York City in order to isolate New England from the other colonies. Burgoyne confidently set out from Montreal in mid-June with four thousand British troops, three thousand Germans, fourteen thousand Indians and one of his charming, agreeable mistresses. Initially Burgoyne's advance went smoothly as his troops effortlessly floated down Lake Champlain into New York. However, once he commenced his overland march, trouble began as his troops struggled with heavy artillery carriages and clumsy baggage wagons through the dense forests and ravines of upstate New York. Burgoyne's troops took twenty-four grueling days to travel twenty-three miles, seriously depleting supplies along the way. In July, Burgoyne's forces did capture Fort Ticonderoga, but at the expense of many men and almost all their ammunition.
Known for a certain rashness in his strategy, Burgoyne failed to see the seriousness of his situation. Unknown to him, General Howe would not meet him in New York with supplies and reinforcements as planned, for Howe had already moved his troops into Philadelphia. Burgoyne pressed ahead expecting a brilliant military victory that never materialized. When he finally reached Saratoga, American forces led by General Horatio Gates easily outmaneuvered and completely surrounded Burgoyne's exhausted and starving troops. On October 17, Burgoyne surrendered. In the privacy of his tent, General Gates jubilantly remarked, "If old England is not by this lesson taught humility then she is an obstinate old slut bent upon her ruin."
At Saratoga the Americans achieved more than a military victory, for their success finally convinced the hesitant French government to enter the war as their ally. Since 1775 the French had secretly provided money, munitions and supplies but had consistently refused an open alliance. American commissioners in France, led by the popular Benjamin Franklin whose "simplicity and straightfowardness" had won the hearts of many French women, had been attempting to woo French officials for months. Finally, the French government signed a formal treaty of alliance in February of 1778. With France's entry into the war, Britain could no longer be so confident about its control of the Atlantic Ocean. Furthermore, as the first major power to officially recognize America's independence, France gave Americans a psychological boost.
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