New York State and the American Revolution Part III

Saratoga: Turning Point of the Revolution by Kathleen L. Maher

BACKGROUND

In the autumn of 1777, the British wanted to cut off New England from the colonies in the south, and drew up a plan to control Upstate NY. British General John Burgoyne in Montreal would push south to Albany via Lake George, Lake Champlain, and the Hudson River. In the woods surrounding Lake George, the patriots felled trees to slow him down and wear him out.
Meanwhile, Howe was supposed to come up from New York City and meet Burgoyne in Albany, but he  took a detour to capture Philadelphia. Washington retreated to York, luring Howe further away from his rendezvous with Burgoyne.
Burgoyne's depleted troops attempted to conscript cattle and supplies from nearby Vermont, and the patriots there defended their stores and further weakened "Gentleman Johnny" Burgoyne's troops with skirmishing and counterattacks. As autumn passed, he would need to decide where to make winter camp--either retreat to Ticonderoga which he had just won in July, or advance to Albany. His Native American support had dissipated after the failure at Bennington, but he chose to press on to Albany.
General George Washington had a sense of the battle lines being drawn and sent up Benedict Arnold and Massachusetts General Lincoln, also calling up militias to join them.
Saratoga sets the stage for the showdown.

BATTLE BEGINS

Burgoyne sets out toward Albany again and is met by Morgan's Riflemen, sharpshooters from Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia, and other colonists under General Horatio Gates in the First Battle of Saratoga on September 19, 1777--The Battle of Freeman's Farm. Burgoyne seeks to dislodge the Americans, who commandeered loyalist Freeman's property, from their entrenched position up Bemis Heights. Benedict Arnold throws his army in the way, but Burgoyne rallies to take the Farm, at great loss. For every one Patriot casualty, Burgoyne loses two. Waiting for reinforcements from Howe that never came, Burgoyne lingers in the area while the colonists amass an army.

The Battle of Bemis Heights, the second battle at Saratoga occurs on October 7. Though British General Clinton attempts to join Burgoyne, he fails to provide him the relief he needs. The British and their German allies are encircled by superior numbers of Patriot  

(12,000 and well equipped) forces and attempt to break through. Benedict Arnold, though ordered off the field in the last conflict by Gates and according to some sources possibly drunk, takes the field and inspires the American forces in heavy fighting. He takes out Hessian commander Von Breymann and his redoubt, receiving a wound to his leg.  Morgan's sharpshooters meanwhile actually clip Burgoyne in three places--his horse, his hat and his waistcoat. The Patriots whip Burgoyne soundly. Outnumbered three to one, and having lost many of his best commanders due to Morgan's sharpshooters, he withdraws to Schuylerville and ten days later surrenders.

RESULTS

British in Ticonderoga retreat further north into Ontario.

Benedict Arnold wounded in leg

Disgraced, Burgoyne returned to England, never to be given another command.
The first proclamation of a National Thanksgiving was issued by Congress on Dec 18, inspired by Burgoyne's surrender.
France joins war on Patriots's side.

Escalates the war to a global conflict.
Spain lends Patriots aid against Britain.



Kathleen L. Maher is a patriot from upstate New York, and writes historical fiction and romance. She is represented by Terry Burns of Hartline Literary Agency, and has a Civil War novella coming out May 1st set in New York City. Find her on facebook and twitter as well as her blog featuring New York State history with an emphasis on Christian fiction. 

Cinchona and the Colonies

“What is it?” he asked weakly.

“It is called Peruvian bark, Mr. Lowe. It has been blended with wine to make it easier to ingest.”

             Excerpt from The Road to Deer Run

The character of Daniel Lowe in the above-mentioned book was fortunate that Widow Thomsen was familiar with effective medicinals. She knew that this drug—Peruvian bark or cinchona—would be an effective treatment for the terrible symptoms that malaria could cause.

The wonderful discovery of Peruvian bark was truly a Godsend to the American colonists. Otherwise known as cinchona, the bark of this South American tree contained quinine. When added to wine, the alcohol allowed the substance to leach into the drink, producing a medicine that would treat the fever and chills of malaria.

The marshy lowlands throughout the thirteen colonies, but especially in the South, were filled with malaria-carrying mosquitoes. With a quick and painful bite to humans, these insects could spread a parasite that caused the dreaded malaria. The mosquitos were no respecter of class, as both wealthy and poor suffered greatly from the fever, headache, and chills that returned on a regular basis to malaria victims. The only advantage that the wealthy had was their ability to purchase escape from the lowlands where the mosquitoes thrived during the worst of the summer months.

Although cold winters could kill off mosquitoes every year, the northern colonies were not exempt from the disease. There were outbreaks of malaria in Massachusetts in 1634, 1647, 1650, and 1668. In 1775, Congress allotted $300 for quinine to protect George Washington’s troops from malaria.

When Brigadier General John Glover escorted the British prisoners of war out of Saratoga, New York, in 1777, he suffered from a “mysterious illness,” which caused chills, headaches, dizziness, and nausea, followed by high fever. Although he took the medicinal quinine, these attacks—assumed to be malaria by a researcher—continued as new parasites continued to grow in his bloodstream.

Some of the thousands of British prisoners on this trek under Glover had already suffered as well from the mosquito-borne disease. Once you had malaria, it was usually your life-long, unwelcome companion.

The earliest journal accounts of the medicinal qualities of Peruvian bark date back to the late 1500’s. The use of the “fever tree” bark was introduced into European medicine by Jesuit missionaries who brought the cinchona compound back to Europe in the early 1600’s.

The name “cinchona” has its own unique history. In 1638, the Countess of Chinchon, wife of the Viceroy of Peru, was suffering from waves of fever and chills that threatened her life. In the Viceroyalty of Peru, the court physician was summoned to treat her but all his efforts failed. He decided to administer medicine that he had obtained from the local Quechua Indians, who had been using the bark of this tree to treat similar symptoms. The Countess survived and legend says that she brought the cinchona bark back with her to Europe in the 1640’s.

Rawhide bag for cinchona bark, brought from Peru in 1777

The story was so well known that in 1742, botanist and physician Carl Linnaeus decided to name the tree “cinchona.” Linnaeus held the belief that every plant should have a name.

In order to be prepared for medicinal use, the bark of the cinchona tree is stripped off, dried, and powdered before being added to wine. The bark is also called Jesuit’s bark or Peruvian bark. As with many herbs that were used in colonial times, excessive doses could prove deadly.

(Above photo of bag used by permission of the London Science Museum, Science & Society Picture Library) Click on "permission" to view site.