After the American victory in the Battle of Bemis Heights, Horatio Gates credited himself for the victory. However, it was undeserved as the major factors for American victory had little to do with Gates. In fact, The battle was won mostly through forces that were not under his control. Gates was fortunate that the British generals that John Burgoyne were relying on didn’t come, that John Burgoyne was just as inept of a general as Gates was, and that Benedict Arnold didn’t follow the orders to stay.
Аfter the battle of Freeman's Farm, British Major General John Burgoyne was forced to take a defensive position. This was because many of his men were wounded or fell ill and would need treatment.However, this would prove to be his downfall. Burgoyne’s initial goal was to wait for Henry Clinton and William Howe’s army to aid in taking Bemis Heights. However, what he did not know was that Henry Clinton would go no further than the Hudson river. William Howe, on the other hand, did not feel compelled to even remotely follow Burgoyne’s plan to begin with. This meant …show more content…
This was done in preparation for a massive offensive move from Burgoyne. As time went on, Gates’s men increased to 11,000 soldiers. This heavily outnumbered and outgunned Burgoyne’s measly by comparison 5,000 British soldiers. So before the battle even begun, Gates had a massive advantage. Gates’s men would also have been well supplied in both food and munitions, meaning that they could be less conservative with food. As a result, Gates’s men likely had a higher morale and could fight better than Burgoyne’s. It also meant that Gates could more easily fortify his location, preventing the British from reaching their destination of Albany. Gates had the advantage as a result of his victory at Freeman’s Farm which brought him men willing to fight. However, even with this advantage, Gates’s battle strategies could have nearly costed him the