Baum's detachment of 700 men consisted of Hessian and British Army troops, Canadian and Loyalist irregulars and a number of Iroquois warriors.

The battle was a major strategic success for the American cause and is considered one of the turning points of the war; it reduced Burgoyne's army in size by almost 1,000 men, led his Native American allies to largely abandon him, and deprived him of much-needed supplies, such as mounts for his cavalry regiments, draft animals and provisions, all factors that contributed to Burgoyne's eventual defeat at Saratoga.

The victory galvanized colonial support for the Patriot cause, and played a key role in bringing France into the war on the American side.

[10] Burgoyne's progress towards Albany had initially met with some success, including the scattering of Seth Warner's men in the Battle of Hubbardton.

However, his advance had slowed to a crawl by late July, due to logistical difficulties, exacerbated by the American destruction of a key road, and the army's supplies began to dwindle.

[13] Burgoyne's concern over supplies was magnified in early August when he received word that Howe was going to Philadelphia, rather than advance up the Hudson River valley.

[14] In response to a proposal first made on July 22 by the commander of his Hessian troops, Baron Riedesel,[15] Burgoyne sent a detachment of about 800 soldiers under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Friedrich Baum from Fort Miller on a foraging mission to acquire horses for Prince Ludwig's Dragoon Regiment, draft animals to assist in moving the army, and to harass the Americans.

Along the way, 150 local Loyalists, 58 Canadian irregulars, around 100 Iroquois warriors, and 48 soldiers from the British Army's Company of Select Marksmen joined the detachment.

[17] However, as Baum was preparing to leave, Burgoyne changed the goal to be a supply depot at Bennington, having received intelligence reports that the town was defended only by 400 demoralized militia from Warner's command.

[21] They were first marched to the Fort at Number 4 (modern-day Charlestown, New Hampshire), then crossed the Connecticut river border into the Grants and stopped at Manchester, where Stark conferred with Warner.

During this time, Baum's men constructed a small redoubt at the crest of the hill and hoped that the weather would prevent the Americans from attacking before reinforcements arrived.

[5] Stark sent out skirmishers to probe the Hessians lines, who killed thirty British-allied Iroquois warriors in spite of the difficulties of keeping their gunpowder dry.

Burgoyne sent 550 men under Heinrich von Breymann, while Warner's company of about 350 Green Mountain Boys came south from Manchester under Lieutenant Samuel Safford's command.

[5][3] Late on the night of August 15, Stark was awakened by the arrival of Parson Thomas Allen and a band of Massachusetts militiamen from nearby Berkshire County who insisted on joining his force.

[1] Stark was not the only beneficiary of unexpected reinforcements; Baum's force grew by almost 100 when a group of local Loyalists arrived in his camp on the morning of August 16.

Stark is reputed to have rallied his troops by saying they were here to fight for their "natural born rights as Englishmen"[30] and he added "There are your enemies, the Red Coats and the Tories.

[32] When the fighting broke out around 3:00 PM the Hessian position was immediately surrounded by gunfire, which Stark described as "the hottest engagement I have ever witnessed, resembling a continual clap of thunder.

Especially after Burgoyne's Indian screen left him, small groups of local Patriots began to emerge to harass the fringes of British positions.

[41] A significant portion of Stark's force returned home[42] and did not again become influential in the campaign until appearing at Saratoga on October 13 to complete the encirclement of Burgoyne's army.

[43] John Stark's reward from the New Hampshire General Assembly for "the Memorable Battle of Bennington" was "a compleat suit of Clothes becoming his Rank".

[44] A reward that Stark likely valued the highest was a message of thanks from John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress, which included a commission as "brigadier in the army of the United States".