Born February 24, 1723
Sutton, England
Died August 4, 1792
London, England

Military leader, politician, playwright

"As long as British soldiers have their bayonets, they have the means to fight their way out."
Portrait: John Burgoyne. Reproduced courtesy of the Library of Congress.

British general John Burgoyne was best known for leading a failed military campaign against the rebel colonists during the American Revolutionary War (1775–83). Back in England, Burgoyne had to defend himself before the British government for his defeat and was stripped of his military rank and privileges. He spent his later years as a politician, a playwright, and a leader of London society.

Burgoyne was born in 1723 in Sutton, England. His mother, Anna Burenstone Burgoyne, the daughter of a very wealthy man, brought a large sum of money to her marriage. It was soon gambled away by her husband, an army captain named John, who spent a good...