On This Day ... in 1777 & Others
Outnumbered four to one by the American revolutionary forces, Major-General Burgoyne was forced to surrender at Saratoga.
The British camp now found itself under a severe bombardment, with their only hope the rescue attempt from New York that had already stalled. Burgoyne now entered into negotiations with Gates. His proposal was that his army would surrender their arms and march out with honours of war. They would then be taken to Boston, from where they would return to Europe, not to return to America until after the war. This was acceptable to Gates, and on 17 October the British marched into captivity.
The two armies made an interesting contrast. Hardly any of the Americans had a recognisable uniform, one British officer describing them as wearing the cloths 'in which he goes to the field, the church or to the tavern'. The officers had uniforms of a sort, but each one different, possibly reflecting their service in the various state militias. In contrast, the British and Germans had retained their uniforms, although many were tattered. Much to the surprise of the American troops, many of the British officers had managed to keep their dress uniforms in pristine condition. The victorious Americans greeted their new prisoners with a respectful silence.
Of the 7,000 British and Germans who marched from Canada only 3,500 were fit for duty at the date of surrender but worse was to follow. The consequences of Burgoyne’s surrender were catastrophic. France and Spain declared war on Britain and the American effort was galvanized.
1854: British, French and Turkish ships carried out the first bombardment of the Russian fortress port of Sevastopol in the Crimea. Ashore, Lieutenant-Colonel Collingwood Dickson won the Victoria Cross for his gallantry supplying siege batteries with ammunition under heavy fire.
1855: British and French ships bombarded the Kinburn forts in the Crimea. The French vessels included three floating gun batteries plated with iron towed into position: the Devastation, Lave, and Tonnante - the first use of armoured ships in action.
The battle, although insignificant to the outcome of the war as a whole, is notable as an early success of ironclad warships. Although frequently hit (the floating batteries sustained up to 75 hits each) the French ships destroyed the Russian forts within four hours, suffering minimal casualties in the process. This battle, as well as the Battle of Sinope, convinced contemporary navies to abandon wooden warships and focus on armour plating.
1940: The Luftwaffe mounted fighter-bomber attacks following the heavy losses inflicted on their conventional bomber force. Targets during the night included London, Liverpool, Birmingham and Coventry.
Sub-Lieutenant Easton RNVR and Able Bodied Seaman Southwell attempted to defuse a mine dangling six inches above the ground, caught up in its parachute. Unfortunately it slipped and fell to the ground. Both men ran for cover but were caught in the blast. Southwell was killed, and Easton was badly wounded. Both were awarded the George Cross.
In Coventry, 2nd Lieutenant Campbell of the Royal Engineers lay beside a bomb whilst it was being driven away from the factory it had hit, so as to give warning should a timing device activate. He later successfully defused the bomb, but was then killed on 18 October with Sergeant Gibson attempting to defuse another weapon. Both Campbell and Gibson received the George Cross.
1942: 94 Lancasters from Bomber Command's 5 Group conducted an audacious long-range low-level daylight raid on the Schneider arms factory at Le Creusot in central France, which was manufacturing heavy guns and railway engines for the Germans.
After intensive low-flying training, the aircraft set out over the sea, passing around Brittany to make landfall on the Biscay coast. Despite the lack of fighter cover, only one aircraft was lost, when it attacked its intended target at such low level it crashed into the building. Four other aircraft were damaged by bird strikes. 140 tons of bombs fell on the factory and a nearby electricity transformer station. Sadly, a nearby housing estate was also badly hit by bombs that fell short.
1944: A Royal Navy Task Force led by the battlecruiser HMS Renown bombarded Nicobar. Fleet Air Arm Corsair, Hellcat and Barracuda aircraft from HMS Indomitable and HMS Victorious also conducted air strikes.
1948: Boy Seaman A R Lowe won the Albert Medal for saving the life of a colleague when a liberty boat capsized during a gale.
1950: In Korea, 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment was in action at Sariwon. In a bold bluff, the battalion's second-in-command, Major Ferguson, convinced at least 1,500 North Korean soldiers to surrender during confused fighting.
Comments
Sorry about Gentleman Johnny...He was an honorable man.
His reaction to the horrific death of an American girlfriend (Jane McCrae) to one of his officers at the hands of his indian allies was all one could ask for.
It is not widely known that most of the nearly 6000 captured British and German soldiers were kept as prisoners in Virginia until the end of the war...but elected to stay in America when freed.
To be related to one of these soldiers is considered a point of pride in the south today.
Posted by: bjbarron | October 18, 2005 12:52 AM
That battle pretty much sealed the American rep as a nation of violent gun nuts.
Burgoyne slowly marched south through the forests of Northern Vermont / New York with a bunch of Indian allies ... and every last hillbilly within a hundred miles just converged on him, carrying the weapons they had used to fight those same indians for the last few hundred years.
The Continental Army just brought the cannons to complete the party ...
Posted by: Kristopher | October 17, 2007 4:45 PM
And a fair number of those long arms were rifles, much longer ranged than the Brown Bess muskets.
Posted by: Bob in San Diego | October 19, 2008 11:10 AM
The hell of it was that the British had prior experience in Indian and forrest fighting in America. Another case of lessons learned being filed and forgotten I guess?
Posted by: toad | October 17, 2009 6:13 AM
George the German may have quit but my family never did..out here in the colonies now taking it back one bit at a time.
Posted by: Thud | October 17, 2009 6:54 AM
Thud,
I'll believe you're getting somewhere when I can watch Test cricket on ESPN.
Posted by: Kim du Toit | October 17, 2009 1:55 PM
Saratoga Battlefield is run by the National Park Service and is probably the only intact 18th century battle field that still looks the way it did over two hundred years ago, thanks to Local and and State preservasionists with a big plus that it is on the way to nowhere! coming back from nowhere!
Posted by: exlimey | October 17, 2009 4:00 PM
Mt Du Toit...cricket now on 'to do' list, list is rather large as only one of me and 300 million Americans but I will persevere.
Posted by: Thud | October 17, 2009 4:54 PM
Thud,George the German didn't quit,he took the U.K.
Your Royal Family are Germans,not British...Except for Harry,who isn't P.C.'s biological son. And he's A secret American.
Thud,if by re-taking the States means importing Belhaven Scottish Ale & Old speckled Hen in Nitro cans,then well done. Be warned,Thud & Family,We kept our Muskets!
Posted by: Larry Graham | October 17, 2009 10:35 PM
This thread is getting out of hand. I say we mix equal parts Bovril and Jack Daniel's and drink until blind. Solidarity among the English speaking peoples!
Posted by: Cris | October 18, 2009 3:00 AM
Mr.Du Toit...cricket is on 'to do' list but only one of me and 300 million Americans so I may be a while.Mr.Graham...we English did a good job starting America off but it has come to my attention that you seem to have handed the place over to some Mexican types and a chap from Kenya...I'm putting that right...slowly I might add.
Posted by: thud | October 18, 2009 4:07 AM
Point well taken Thud,with excellent British Ale & American Firepower things should workout fine...Eventually. Cheers Thud.
Posted by: Larry Graham | October 18, 2009 5:20 AM
Mr Graham...I'll bring the ale...you the muskets and we can start setting things to rights,I expect we shall be rather busy.
Posted by: Thud | October 18, 2009 5:47 AM
I fear you are being unkind to the kenyan boy, he is, so far, the least bloodthirsty if the african king despots.
Posted by: chris Edwards | October 18, 2009 3:19 PM
Four full years after making my comment and I find it hard to believe domestic America has fallen so far as to be prey to the Marxists we've already beaten once overseas.
I see no gentle way to take America back with the combination of Moonbats and RINOs we have in government.
Posted by: trainer | October 18, 2009 4:57 PM
"A man could kill from sun up to sun down and still his work would never be done."
I'm afraid we haven't enough ale or whiskey, firearms or ammunition to finish the job properly. Socialism is a virus which, after being nearly wiped out, mutates and again ravages those with weak immune systems.
The Kenyan boy doesn't kill humans. He kills their humanity.
Posted by: POWinCA | October 19, 2009 4:21 AM
His reaction to the horrific death of an American girlfriend (Jane McCrae)
SNIP
Fiancee
to one of his officers at the hands of his indian allies was all one could ask for.
Burgoyne slowly marched south through the forests of Northern Vermont / New York with a bunch of Indian allies ... and every last hillbilly within a hundred miles just converged on him, carrying the weapons they had used to fight those same indians for the last few hundred years.
SNIP
Largely because of the murder of Miss McCrae. If the finacee of a Loyalist officer wasn't safe, who was?
Plus St Leger's / Walter Butler's (Theyandenega's)Iroquois running wild for the Jonston's in the Mohawk Valley was viewed as further proof of what awaited the Colonists.(Herkimer and the Albany militia stopped the Iroqois at Oriskany while the New Englanders destroyed a foraging column of Hessians at Bennington in the Hampshire Grants...further nails in Burgoyne's coffin)
And a fair number of those long arms were rifles, much longer ranged than the Brown Bess muskets.
SNIP
Myth. Few rifles were employed in the war - and those by specialized troops. Rifles took too long to load and didn't take a bayonet, which left the soldier helpless after the first round.
Saratoga Battlefield is run by the National Park Service and is probably the only intact 18th century battle field that still looks the way it did over two hundred years ago, thanks to Local and and State preservasionists
SNIP
I had the pleasure of attending several lectures by Sir John Keegan when he spent a year as scholar in esidence at Vassar College in the Hudson Valley. One thing he remarked upon in his first lecture was that due to westward migration, most farms in the area had been abandoned for better locales, returning the terrain to how it must have appeared at the time of the War of Independence.
Posted by: Beausaber | October 28, 2009 4:43 PM