The 1777 March of the Saratoga Convention Army

I intended this blog post to focus on Cambridge as the final stop of the march of the Convention Army.  Two things changed that.  The first was learning that while Burgoyne and his senior officers were primarily quartered in Cambridge, his troops were held in Continental Army barracks on Prospect Hill, the site today marked by the magnificent stone tower shown below, and Winter Hill.  The second was visiting Somerville, which in 1777 was still part of Charlestown and is where both hills are located. The 1777 march of the Convention Army began in earnest on October 18th, with many thinking their destination was Boston.  German Grenadier Johann Bense noted in his diary for that day  "... we set out for Boston..." [1]  A letter dated October 22nd from Greenbush, New York, published in the Massachusetts Spy in Worcester, noted that after grounding their arms, Burgoyne's troops "... marched down to Stillwater, and crossed Hudson's river the 18th in order to ma...

Article IV of the Articles of Convention required "The army under Lieutenant-general Burgoyne, to march to Massachusetts Bay, by the easiest, most expeditious, and convenient route; and be quartered in, near, or as convenient as possible to Boston..." Understanding the routes taken is a study of history and geography.  There is no direct natural route from Saratoga to Boston, but a well established network of roads provided a way across rivers and streams, over mountains, through woods, and past countless farms and villages.  American militia units had taken many of these roads in the summer and early fall of 1777 to join the Northern Army under Major-General Horatio Gates at Saratoga, and would use them to escort Lieutenant-General John Burgoyne's British and German troops to quarters in Cambridge and present-day Somerville (then part of Charlestown) Massachusetts to await their fate.  I'm interested in following their footsteps as closely as possible. Two accounts ...