John Burgoyne was a British general, politician, and playwright. After serving three years in the British parliament, he joined the army in America and in 1776 was given command of the northern army to conduct an invasion from Canada. His campaign got off to a good start after he captured Fort Ticonderoga. The situation changed when a Hessian detachment was defeated near Bennington, VT, while looking for food. The Battles of Saratoga were both his turning point and that of the war itself. Burgoyne surrendered his entire army to Gen. Horatio Gates on October 17, 1777. Burgoyne returned to England shamed and resigned his rank following a parliamentary inquiry into the conduct of the war in America. He was reinstated as commander in chief of Ireland in 1782 for a year and later retired from the military to pursue his writing.