The American victory the Battle of Saratoga of 1777 won America the support it desperately needed. In this battle, the British was led into defeat by General John Burgoyne. His army tried to isolate the New England from the other sister colonies but his army was beaten bythe forces of Horatio Gates and General Benedict Arnold. The colonial victory was what the French needed in their decision to help the American cause. King Louis XVI believed that if the revolutionaries win the war then Britain will weaken. The French sent troops and materials to the amateur army and in 1779 Holland and Spain also lent a helping hand to the Americans.