A BGES Revolutionary War Field Program: Victory at Saratoga: Turning Point of the Revolution

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1 A BGES Revolutionary War Field Program: Victory at Saratoga: Turning Point of the Revolution The Saratoga Campaign had a direct influence on the development of three nations: England, France and the United States. The Saratoga Campaign was the first major defeat the British had sustained and it triggered an inexorable track towards American independence. The surrender of John Burgoyne at Saratoga would bring the French into the war on the American s side an event that would bring on French bankruptcy within twenty years, the resulting French Revolution marked a dramatic change in attitudes towards hereditary governance in Europe. Gentleman Johnny Burgoyne was an excellent soldier whose accomplishments had not yet led to knighthood and thus he was a clever courtier seeking the achievements, sponsorship and opportunities to move to the highest levels of British society. A serious student of the military art, Burgoyne was a ladies man, a gambler and playwright. Known only to history as the man who lost an army at Saratoga, historian Cubbison brings a special insight into the general directly from the papers of the man himself. The campaign that Burgoyne touted in the court of the King bypassed his immediate superior in Canada; however, it also displayed shades of brilliance if not impossibly complex demands on cooperation and coordination between surrounding military units and commanders. Eventually the burdens of the campaign wore Burgoyne down and at the point where his greatest leadership skills were required his discipline and spirit failed. His army and his future both failed. This program will be examined through the eyes of the aggressor the British Army and its leader, John Burgoyne. Through his papers we will see the campaign in contemporary context. This is a program whose presentation is unique among studies of the Revolutionary War and its campaigns. You are well advised to register it will be a distinct experience. Wednesday, August 10, :00 PM Check in at headquarters hotel for meet, greet and to pick up your reading books. Doug will make a presentation on the Northern Theater Campaigns of 1775 and They will set the stage for the following days by demonstrating the value both sides placed on operations on and along the Hudson River and Lake Champlain.. Dinner on your own. Thursday, August 11, 2016

2 We will start 8:15 with a drive to Mt. Defiance and its overlook of Lake Champlain. While there we will overview Burgoyne s strategy for the campaign and discuss how he obtained approval and the resources to execute it. We will then cross to Fort Ticonderoga and Fort Mount Hope. We will spend time walking the earthworks and lines protecting the fort and consider the British move against it. Following lunch we will head to Mount Independence with its splendid overlook of the fort and the staging area for attacks against the fort. Our last objective for the day is to follow the operations leading to the engagement at Hubbardtown. This is a fine battlefield and one where there is much to discuss and see. Lunch is provided. Friday, August 12, 2016 This morning we will start with a little known or visited site where Benedict Arnold built a navy at Skenesboro. Although properly labeled for his treachery later in the war, Arnold was a brilliant and aggressive commander who might, had his ego permitted it, been the greatest general of the war and a leader in the new republic. We will then follow the British through Fort Edward and along the Hudson to the Saratoga National Battlefield Visitor s Center. We will examine the American defensive lines. After we eat we will visit the Visitor s Center and Doug will lecture on the British Artillery a treatise that you can study in much more depth in his book on the same subject. After we finish the lecture we will return to Ticonderoga. Lunch provided. Saturday August 13, 2016 This morning we have two battles to cover each that involves a great deal of walking and discussion. Although not as complex as Civil War battles the melt down of Burgoyne s leadership and the resulting collapse in purpose would soon lead to British disaster. The first battle we will study is Freeman s Farm. One has to wonder why and how Burgoyne let him self be checked and ultimately denied his campaign supplies. We will do a combined driving and walking tour of the British defensive works. We will then walk the frequently overlooked and thus improperly interpreted Grand Ravine. Our afternoon will cover in much detail the interim period between Freeman s Farm and the subsequent engagements at Barber s Wheatfield and Arnold s dramatic and decisive attacks at Balcarres and Breymann s redoubts. We will look at how the British retreat from the field that will finish our work there. As we return to Ticonderoga we will follow the British retreat route and then spend some time at Fort Miller and the British surrender site while Schylerville is not as striking as the surrender field at Yorktown, be assured the French were very impressed and the British crown was mortified. Lunch provided. Thank you so much for joining us. Depart at your leisure this evening or in the coming days. This is a pretty part of the country and it is all the more so if you include a drive

3 back through the Adirondack Mountains and the great race track at Saratoga Springs. Thanks for coming. About the Faculty: Douglas R. Cubbison is a Curator of the Wyoming Veterans Museum in Casper, Wyoming. He previously served with the Research and Publication Team, U.S. Army Combat Studies Institute, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Other assignments included a tour as the Command Historian with the 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, New York and as the Cultural Resources Manager for the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, New York. Doug is graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He served in the United States Army reserves as a Major, Field Artillery. Mr. Cubbison also has significant experience advising Federal, state, local and private agencies and organizations in the preservation, interpretation and development of historic parks. His areas of particular interest are 18th and 19th Century American Military and Social History. He has completed numerous publications and papers. Hotel Information: Best Western Plus Ticonderoga Inn and Suites 260 Burgoyne Road Ticonderoga, NY Reservations must be made by July 7, Any cancellations must be done no later than August 7, Room rate is $ plus tax. Transportation: The servicing airport is Albany (ALB). An expensive alternative is Rutland, Vermont double connection and small planes. Some people can take Amtrak to Albany but all options will likely require you to rent a car. Recommended Reading: You will be provided with a reading book and maps upon arrival. The following books are suggested to enhance your readiness for the program. Douglas Cubbison: Burgoyne and the Saratoga Campaign, His Papers $25 Douglas Cubbison: The Artillery Never Gained More Honour Out of print. You may find it on the secondary market.

4 John Luzader, Saratoga: A Military History of the Decisive Campaign of the American Revolution $25 Michael Logusz, With Tomahawk and Musket, The Saratoga Campaign and the Wilderness War of 1777 $30 Nathaniel Philbrick., Valliant Ambition, George Washington, Benedict Arnold and the Fate of the American Revolution $35 Registration Form Victory at Saratoga: Turning Point of the Revolution A BGES Revolutionary War Program Presented by Doug Cubbison August 10-13, 2016 from Ticonderoga, NY Name: Address: City/State/Zip: Phone: Registration includes three lunches, one dinner, a reading book with maps, the academic program, support of a professional historian, tour director and transportation appropriate to the registration which will be limited to two vans: 19 people. We will also provide snacks, bottled water and a limited selection of sodas. Registration $695 Current BGES member $625 Teacher/full time student with identification $575 I am not a member but would like to join so that I can get the member s rate or I am a member who is past due to renew. Please accept my donation of

5 $ (must be $75 or more which is tax deductible) Send me the books indicated, I have enclosed $ I am sending a deposit of $200 plus full payment for any books and or memberships. Total enclosed is $ I will pay the balance due before the event. Check enclosed Charge my (circle one) MC VISA AMEXP Discover $ # Exp: CVV: Signature: Mail to BGES Seminars, PO Box 1176, Chatham, VA or fax credit cards to

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