Bruce Venter meticulously details the Revolutionary War battle that
saved the Continental Army and possibly America.
British and German troops ran into stubborn rebel resistance at
Hubbardton, Vermont, on July 7, 1777. The day would ultimately turn the
tide for the Patriot cause. After capturing Fort Ticonderoga, the
British, under Lieutenant General John Burgoyne, pursued a retreating
Continental army under Major General Arthur St. Clair. In the fields and
hills around Hubbardton, a tenacious American rear guard of about 1,200
derailed the British general's plan for a quick march to Albany. The
British won a tactical victory, but they suffered precious losses.
Patriots, under Colonel Seth Warner, Colonel Ebenezer Francis and
Colonel Nathan Hale, left the British and Germans bloodied while also
saving untold casualties from their own army. Burgoyne and his weakened
force ultimately surrendered at Saratoga on October 17, 1777, paving the
way for a French alliance with the colonies and American independence.