Battle of saratoga essay

 Journals of the Continental Congress 1774-1789. Vol. US Government Printing Office, 1780. However, this was not to materialize as several factors led to the defeat and surrender of the British forces (Morrisey 5). Consequently, the win at Saratoga shaped the course of the American Revolution war in that America was able to get foreign assistance from the French, who was Britain's enemy at the time. As such, they hoped to cut off the colonies from the others essentially dividing the country into two. This would then permit the British forces to focus their efforts on New England. The British would go about separating New England from the other colonies through the creation of a division line running between Canada and New York, both controlled by the British (USCC and LoC 1789).

Britain's forces would advance take them through the Hudson River Valleys and along Lake Champlain, routes that were previously used for communicating, transport and conducting raids and invasions. As such, the British devised a three-pronged attack plan to quell the revolt by advancing on New York in three regiments led by different officers. Thus, he devised a plan that involved attacking Philadelphia, which would force Washington's troops into an open battle where Howe hoped his forces would have the upper hand (Tucker 6). Howe would then leave his deputy, General Henry Clinton, to carry out the plan. Though the British were initially successful, the first part of the scheme saw Americans emerge triumphant (Schecter 9). The second blow to the British forces came when Leger's troops were forced to retreat to Canada when an American militia headed by General Nicholas Herkimer repulsed the force of loyalist and Iroquois Indians taking most of their supplies.

The first battle occurred at Freeman’s Farm when the Continental army engaged General Burgoyne's forces, which had moved south. Effects of the Battle on Politics and Economy The political implication of the battle of Saratoga is that the French got into a political agreement with the colonies and became the first country to recognize American independence from British rule. Moreover, the French saw that the Americans could defeat the British and offered to support them in retaliation for the British defeating them in the French and Indian war (Morrissey 42). Also, with the French support also came support from the Spanish and the Dutch who wanted to see the British weakened. Additionally, financial and military support from the French was crucial in overseeing the Battle of Yorktown where General Washington emerged victorious (Morrissey 43).

On the other hand, the victory at Saratoga had implications on the political careers of General Gates and General Washington. Consequently, this led to the Continental dollar depreciating. Also, the deaths of non-disabled men in the battle coupled with market disruption enhanced inflation. This saw the Continental dollar specie value decrease by approximately 20% of its original value by the end of 1777 (USCC and LoC 1779). As such, this was a big blow to Congress has it was dependent on revenue derived from currency emissions (USCC and LoC 1779). The Congress was forced to diversify revenue sources such as loan going to the extent of it authorizing confiscation of property by the army. As such, it is clear that without Washington standing out in the wars and surviving the plots against him, he would not have gone ahead to create a lasting impact in the history of the United States.

As we have seen, the Battle of Saratoga proved a pivotal moment in the Revolutionary War and the United States history as it helped cement the belief that the British could be overpowered. The plan by Burgoyne and the British to divide the colonies into two contributed into the Battle of Saratoga with severe political and economic implications. The outcomes of these implications are that a new constitution was established to solve the financial problems beside Washington going on to play a crucial role in the American political scene. As such, I believe that the Battle of Saratoga is one of the most significant victories by the United States army as it set up the country to what it is today.