Battle of Saratoga, September 19, 1777

This first major battle of the American Revolutionary War took place near Saratoga with General John Burgoyne leading the British forces, and General Horatio Gates the Americans. The two sides face off on September 19, 1777, near the abandoned farm of Loyalist John Freeman. Initially, the British were pinned by American gunfire until German auxiliary reinforcements turned the tide for Burgoyne late in the day. This gain was soon erased at the Battle of Bemis Heights on October 7, when the Americans captured British defenses, forced Burgoyne to retreat, then surrounded him and forced a surrender on October 17; helping to convince France to enter the war on the American side.
Published in Augsburg by Johann Martin Will, this print belongs to a group that describe General John Burgoyne's Hudson River campaign and General William Howe's Philadelphia campaign, both of which took place in the Fall of 1777. Since many German soldiers fought for the British, there would have been much interest in Europe to learn details of the war. A set at the Library of Congress is titled "Zehn Karten und Ansichten den Schlachtfelden des amerikanischen Unabhängigkeitskreiges in den Staaten Pennsylvanien und New York" (Ten maps and views of battlefields in the American Revolutionary War in the states of Pennsylvania and New York). While the prints likely relied on written accounts sent back to Germany they cannot be considered accurate visual records. The Museum also has a view of "The Attack on Fort Constitution" (33.104.2447).