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 War of Independence. 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.

Meanwhile, patriot militia forces continued to arrive, swelling the American ranks. Within the American camp, disputes led Gates to strip Arnold of his command. Once it became apparent that the British would not receive aid in time, Burgoyne attacked again in the Battle of Bemis Heights on October 7 but lost both the battle and his earlier gains. Culminating in heavy fighting, this battle was marked by Arnold's spirited rallying of the American troops. Burgoyne's forces were thrown back to the positions they held before the action of September 19, and the Americans captured a portion of the entrenched British defenses.

Following this loss, Burgoyne was compelled to retreat to Saratoga (now Schuylerville). Finding himself surrounded by a much larger force, he surrendered his entire army to General Gates on October 17. Although British General Sir Henry Clinton moved up from New York City, attempting to divert American attention by capturing Forts Clinton and Montgomery in the Hudson River highlands on October 6, and Kingston on October 13, these efforts were too late to save Burgoyne. News of the surrender at Saratoga was instrumental in formally creating the Franco-American Alliance, although France had already been clandestinely providing supplies, ammunition, and guns, notably the de Valliere cannon which played an important role in Saratoga.

The American Revolutionary War was approaching the two-year point, and the British changed their plans. They decided to split the Thirteen Colonies and isolate New England from what they believed to be the more Loyalist middle and southern colonies. The British command devised a plan to divide the colonies with a three-way pincer movement in 1777. The western pincer under the command of Barry St. Leger was to progress from Ontario through western New York, following the Mohawk River, and the southern pincer was to progress up the Hudson River valley from New York City. The northern pincer was to proceed southward from Montreal, and the three forces were to meet in the vicinity of Albany, New York, severing New England from the other colonies.

British Lieutenant General John Burgoyne moved south from the province of Quebec in June 1777 to gain control of the upper Hudson River valley. His campaign had become bogged down in difficulties following a victory at Fort Ticonderoga. Elements of the army had reached the upper Hudson as early as the end of July, but logistical and supply difficulties delayed the main army at Fort Edward. One attempt to alleviate these difficulties failed when nearly 1,000 men were killed or captured at the August 16 Battle of Bennington. Furthermore, news reached Burgoyne on August 28 that St. Leger's expedition down the Mohawk River valley had turned back after the failed Siege of Fort Stanwix.

General William Howe had taken his army from New York City by sea on a campaign to capture Philadelphia instead of moving north to meet Burgoyne. Most of Burgoyne's Indian support had fled following the loss at Bennington, and his situation was becoming difficult. He needed to reach defensible winter quarters, requiring either retreat back to Ticonderoga or advance to Albany, and he decided to advance. He then deliberately cut communications to the north so that he would not need to maintain a chain of heavily fortified outposts between his position and Ticonderoga, and he decided to cross the Hudson River while he was in a relatively strong position. He ordered Baron Riedesel, who commanded the rear of the army, to abandon outposts from Skenesboro south, and then had the army cross the Hudson just north of Saratoga between September 13 and 15.