Burgoyne, John

bur-goin', John (1723-1792). An English soldier. He came of a good family and secured influence by marriage into an earl's family. He sat in Parliament, served in Portugal, and joined General Gage in Boston. He was an onlooker at the battle of Bunker Hill. In 1777 he conducted the ill-fated invasion of New York by way of Canada that ended in Burgoyne's surrender, whereby army stores, artillery, and 5,791 fighting men fell into the hands of the Americans. His courage has never been questioned, but the unfortunate end of the expedition, and its influence in encouraging the French to espouse the American cause, led to Burgoyne's neglect. He was refused an audience with the king and was denied a court-martial. He resigned from the army. He wrote plays for the stage and was one of the Parliamentary committee appointed to impeach Warren Hastings. Like many another luckless commander he continued to the end to lay the blame for his defeat on others. He wrote a book to show that the British cabinet was to blame for his defeat at Saratoga.