<P> General George Washington's strategic decisions also improved the situation for Gates' army . Washington was most concerned about the movements of General Howe . He was aware that Burgoyne was also moving, and he took some risks in July . He sent aid north in the form of Major General Benedict Arnold, his most aggressive field commander, and Major General Benjamin Lincoln, a Massachusetts man noted for his influence with the New England militia . He ordered 750 men from Israel Putnam's forces defending the New York highlands to join Gates' army in August, before he was certain that Howe had indeed sailed south . He also sent some of the best forces from his own army: Colonel Daniel Morgan and the newly formed Provisional Rifle Corps, which comprised about 500 specially selected riflemen from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia, chosen for their sharpshooting ability . This unit came to be known as Morgan's Riflemen . </P> <P> On September 7, Gates ordered his army to march north . A site was selected for its defensive potential that was known as Bemis Heights, just north of Stillwater and about 10 miles (16 km) south of Saratoga; the army spent about a week constructing defensive works designed by Polish engineer Tadeusz Kościuszko . The heights had a clear view of the area and commanded the only road to Albany, where it passed through a defile between the heights and the Hudson River . To the west of the heights lay more heavily forested bluffs that would present a significant challenge to any heavily equipped army . </P> <P> Moving cautiously, since the departure of his Native American support had deprived him of reliable reports on the American position, Burgoyne advanced to the south after crossing the Hudson . On September 18 the vanguard of his army had reached a position just north of Saratoga, about 4 miles (6.4 km) from the American defensive line, and skirmishes occurred between American scouting parties and the leading elements of his army . </P> <P> The American camp had become a bed of festering intrigue ever since Arnold's return from Fort Stanwix . While he and Gates had previously been on reasonably good terms in spite of their prickly egos, Arnold managed to turn Gates against him by taking on officers friendly to Schuyler as staff, dragging him into the ongoing feud between the two . These conditions had not yet reached a boil on September 19, but the day's events contributed to the situation . Gates had assigned the left wing of the defenses to Arnold, and assumed command himself of the right, which was nominally assigned to General Lincoln, whom Gates had detached in August with some troops to harass the British positions behind Burgoyne's army . </P>

The battle of saratoga 1777 took place near the hudson river