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1777: Tipping Point at Saratoga

by Dean Snow (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 160 ratings
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In the autumn of 1777, near Saratoga, New York, an inexperienced and improvised American army led by General Horatio Gates faced off against the highly trained British and German forces led by General John Burgoyne. The British strategy in confronting the Americans in upstate New York was to separate rebellious New England from the other colonies. Despite inferior organization and training, the Americans exploited access to fresh reinforcements of men and materiel, and ultimately handed the British a stunning defeat. The American victory, for the first time in the war, confirmed that independence from Great Britain was all but inevitable.

Assimilating the archaeological remains from the battlefield along with the many letters, journals, and memoirs of the men and women in both camps, Dean Snow's 1777 provides a richly detailed narrative of the two battles fought at Saratoga over the course of thirty-three tense and bloody days. While the contrasting personalities of Gates and Burgoyne are well known, they are but two of the many actors who make up the larger drama of Saratoga. Snow highlights famous and obscure participants alike, from the brave but now notorious turncoat Benedict Arnold to Frederika von Riedesel, the wife of a British major general who later wrote an important eyewitness account of the battles. Snow, an archaeologist who excavated on the Saratoga battlefield, combines a vivid sense of time and place ― with details on weather, terrain, and technology ― and a keen understanding of the adversaries' motivations, challenges, and heroism into a suspenseful, novel-like account. A must-read for anyone with an interest in American history, 1777 is an intimate retelling of the campaign that tipped the balance in the American War of Independence.
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  1. ISBN-10
    0190618752
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0190618759
  3. Publisher
    Oxford University Press
  4. Publication date
    October 11, 2016
  5. Language
    English
  6. Dimensions
    6.5 x 1.3 x 9.5 inches
  7. Print length
    456 pages
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"... Snow has done a masterful job bringing together voices from across the battlefield, chronicling a pivotal moment in [America's] founding." -- Doug Macgregor, Pennsylvania History: A Journal of Mid-Atlantic Studies

"Altogether 1777: Tipping Point at Saratoga is an excellent account of the battle that arguably insured American independence by encouraging French intervention, and worth a read by anyone with an interest in the Revolutionary War." -- A. A. Nofi, Strategy Page

"An exceptionally detailed narrative, following events day by day and, as the action intensifies, hour by hour. This chronological structure has the merit of making sense of a campaign for which the evidence is often complex and contradictory. The result is a vivid, almost novelistic, account."--Wall Street Journal

"[Dean Snow's] profiles of protagonists...bring the battle to life."--The New York Times

"As the action builds and the characters come into focus, readers will get caught up in their hopes and frustrations. Military history lovers will appreciate Snow's explanations of how battles are fought."--Kirkus Reviews

"In his latest book, Snow takes a magnifying glass to the Saratoga campaign....[He] presents Horatio Gates and John Burgoyne not as competing chess players but as complex individuals immersed in a larger group of individuals who struggle with social politics, ambiguous authority structures, and subordinates with mixed motives and loyalties....Snow's narrative keeps readers engaged, start to finish."--Library Journal

"An easy-reading and well-structured look at the battles that produced the British defeat."--Washington Free Beacon

"Dean Snow breathes new life into a story usually told simply in terms of troop movements, military strategy, and political aftermaths. Snow's account of the military aspects of this campaign is flawless, but it is his sensitivity to the emotional aspects that makes this book a must-read for all readers of the era. He takes us beyond the familiar statistics of the battlefield, beyond the strategic mistakes and successes, and beyond the political consequences of Burgoyne's surrender; he helps us see the meaning of this moment in the lives of the men and women who were there."--Carol Berkin, author of The Bill of Rights: The Fight to Secure America's Liberties

"Dean Snow has written a wonderful book, a veritable primer on how to write a history of a military campaign or battle. Snow's lucid and engrossing writing transports readers to the site of the pivotal collision between the British and American armies at Saratoga. Readers will understand the day-by-day dilemmas and decisions of the commanders and the daily lives of the men they commanded. So good is Snow's writing that readers may think they smell the scent of battle, feel shuddering bombardments, experience the heart-pounding sensations of men under fire, and agonize with the luckless wounded. 1777 is a very good book."--John Ferling, author of Whirlwind: The American Revolution and the War That Won It

"Dean Snow's book 1777 offers a splendid account of the Saratoga campaign. Its reconstruction of the battles focuses on more than strategy, tactics, and military forces-indeed, it gives an extraordinary account of the actions of the armies, not just day by day, but hour by hour. Just as impressive in the book's coverage are the stories it offers of participants-common soldiers of both armies, their officers, and many of the families that took part, sometimes in the action itself. Both armies receive careful and detailed attention, thereby making this account balanced and fair-minded in every respect."--Robert Middlekauff, author of Washington's Revolution: The Making of America's First Leader

"As the action builds and the characters come into focus, readers will get caught up in their hopes and frustrations... [and] military history lovers will appreciate Snow's explanations of how battles are fought."--Kirkus Reviews

"In his latest book, Snow takes a magnifying glass to the Saratoga campaign... [He] presents Horatio Gates and John Burgoyne not as competing chess players but as complex individuals immersed in a larger group of individuals who struggle with social politics, ambiguous authority structures, and subordinates with mixed motives and loyalties... Snow's narrative keeps readers engaged, start to finish."--Library Journal

"Borrowing from a rich storehouse of letters and diaries preserved by families and historian/aficionados, Snow creates an indelible image of what it was like to be in a campaign that forever changed the soldiers and the land they lived on."--Electric Review

"An exceptionally detailed narrative, following events day by day and, as the action intensifies, hour by hour. This chronological structure has the merit of making sense of a campaign for which the evidence is often complex and contradictory. The result is a vivid, almost novelistic, account."--Wall Street Journal

"An easy-reading and well-structured look at the battles that produced the British defeat."--Washington Free Beacon

[Dean Snow's] accounts of the battles are downright exciting....[his] descriptions of such actions are as fine as I have ever encountered."--Journal of the American Revolution

"An excellent and detailed account."--H-Net

"Dean Snow has opened a unique perspective on the 'momentous culmination' of the decisive Saratoga Campaign by highlighting the human dimension of combat. 1777: Tipping Point at Saratoga warrants the serious reflection of all students and scholars of the American Revolutionary War."--Michigan War Studies Review

"The American victory at Saratoga has been the subject of literally dozens of books. Dean Snow's 1777 is among the best."--CHOICE Reviews

"Dean Snow's narrative is a faithful and meticulous chronicle, ably interweaving a rich tapestry of first-hand accounts with detailed descriptions of the battle's geography, planning and execution. What follows is a panoramic of the issues, personalities and events that culminated in the great American victory of the early Revolution."--Jack Tracey, History

Book Description

A richly detailed narrative of the campaign that changed the course of the American Revolution.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Oxford University Press (October 11, 2016)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 456 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0190618752
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0190618759
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.75 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.5 x 1.3 x 9.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 160 ratings

About the author

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Dean R. Snow

Dean R. Snow

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Dean Snow is an archaeologist and ethnohistorian. He received his BA from the University of Minnesota in 1962 and his PhD from the University of Oregon in 1966. He taught at the University of Maine and later at the University of Albany, during which time he established and carried out archaeological research programs in highland Mexico, New England, New York and the British Isles. He is known for his research into the paleodemography of prehistoric populations in all of these areas. Snow moved to Penn State in 1995, where he served as Head of the Department of Anthropology. He has served, as president of the American Society for Ethnohistory, Chair and later Secretary of Section H of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a Fellow at Dumbarton Oaks in Washington, D.C., and as President of the Society for American Archaeology 2007-09. He carried out research on human sexual dimorphism as expressed in European cave art. His 1777: Tipping Point at Saratoga was published in 2016. He published a new edition of Archaeology of Native North America with Nancy Gonlin and Peter Siegel in 2019. The Extraordinary Journey of David Ingram, is scheduled for publication in 2022.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
160 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Therese M.
5.0 out of 5 stars This is a wonderful book. It has a lot of details about ...
Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2016
Verified Purchase
This is a wonderful book. It has a lot of details about the many participants in the Battles at Saratoga organized as a diary of the battles. The details allowed me to finally understand how the Americans defeated the British. This shows two giant and complicated organizations, the two Armies, trying to destroy each other and how they maneuvered and fought. The discipline and courage of the Americans and the unwillingness of the British to imagine defeat were at least three of the contributing factors. Only in all these details can I understand what happened. This is not a book for a silly reader who wants flashy plots, it is for a serious reader who wants to understand history. As just a person interested in the American Revolution I found that my previous views of Benedict Arnold, General Gates, and General Burgoyne were all incorrect. Arnold was not a great leader, Gates was not a fool, and Burgoyne was not a wastrel. The secondary figures,such as Colonel Morgan, are detailed and fill out the picture of who won these battles and how. The politics that was active between the states and within the Armies are explained and of great benefit to understanding how this war weighed on the whole country.
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Ryan
5.0 out of 5 stars Best non-fiction I've read in a long time
Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2017
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Best non-fiction I've read in a long time. Among the best "battle" books I've ever read. Very familiar with the Saratoga story but this author presents it in such an interesting and thought provoking manner. My highest praise: Mr. Snow is a really good story- teller. I learned a lot I didn't know before and I viewed a lot I did know, from a new perspective. there are little vignettes throughout the book that really helped bring the story to life for me. It's such a cliché, but this book truly gives you a taste of being there. I thought both sides were fairly presented. I especially respect the portrait of the very complicated Benedict Arnold. My first exposure to this part of the Revolutionary War was in reading Kenneth Robert's, "Rabble in Arms". I'm guessing Mr. Roberts would have approved.
2 people found this helpful
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Steven Peterson
4.0 out of 5 stars This is a fine book on the critical Revolutionary War battle at Saratoga
Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2016
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This is a fine book on the critical Revolutionary War battle at Saratoga. The battle opened the way for support from France and others.

The strength of this book is its detail and its chronological approach. The author (an anthropologist--not an historian) takes a chronological approach (not necessarily revolutionary in fact). He describes the unfolding of British General John Burgoyne's plan, pitched to the British government while he was in London. He thought that a strong force marching down from Canada, taking Fort Ticonderoga, marching down the Hudson to Albany (with concurrent advances from the south and west of two other forces) would cut the American states in two and, hence, lead to victory. This is probably, in fact, not an efficacious strategy. It depends on securing geography rather than destroying enemy forces (Abraham Lincoln came to understand this during the Civil War).

The book discusses the failure of the three force approach to securing the Hudson, leaving Burgoyne hanging, as it were. As his supply lines increased, his difficulties grew. Sending a party out to secure food and horses led to him losing a substantial portion of his army. When he arrived near Saratoga, he was beginning to grow short on food and munitions. In front of him, a force began gathering, in the end under the leadership of General Horatio Gates. With him were such generals as Benedict Arnold and other officers such as Daniel Morgan. Burgoyne tried battle in September and was repulsed. He set up camp to determine his next move. In the meantime. militia began arriving ti support Gates. Over time, the American forces came to outnumber Burgoyne's forces.

The final battle occurred and the denouement came about fairly quickly. We get a good sense of the various generals' modes of operation and how these factors may have affected the final outcome. Aftereffects of the battle are also addressed.

All in all, a good solid book on this key battle during the Revolutionary War.
11 people found this helpful
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J. Groen
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Research
Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2016
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Having read a couple of books on this famous and important battle of the Revolution (two of which are listed in the biography), this is the most detailed and best researched book on this subject. The author uncovers every aspect of the battle that I am aware of, and has interesting insight on the feud between Gates and Arnold. Because of the book is so detailed, it can at times get a little dry, and I would probably recommend other sources for a higher level assessment of the battle. However, if you are interested in this period of history, then you will find this book very interesting, like I did.
4 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Details that fascinate
Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2018
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The manner and approach Dean Snow employees offers the feel of moving among those in the American and British camps. The sense decisions and actions are well presented with the benefit of the very apparent passion the author holds for this part of the Revolution. My one hope was something that blended the archaeological work that Professor Snow led. Either as part of the Epilogue or an addendum, the work he did on site is sparing when he tantalized the reader with that in his introduction. Very readable and very much enjoyed.
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Lawrence D. Ink
5.0 out of 5 stars Like Cornwallis at the war's end
Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2017
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This is a very thorough book about the battle of Saratoga, showing hour by hour what was happening on the battlefield as well as the discussions among the generals about strategy. Benedict Arnold is portrayed as such a petty and insubordinate general one almost feels relieved knowing he will later switch sides in the war. The end is most interesting when, after the British realize they are surrounded and cannot escape, they delay signing the surrender document in the hope that General Clinton will come to their rescue--something that has no realistic chance of happening. Like Cornwallis at the war's end, General Burgoyne can not accept that he was defeated by a ragtag American army.
This is a great book for anyone who wants to know not just what happened militarily at Saratoga, but the also infighting and politics that occurred among the generals.
5 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Sparrow Kelly
5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 31, 2023
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A riveting account of the battle of Saratoga. The author is a talented narrator, the setting is vividly described, likewise the main characters and the action.
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