Death of Jane McCrea

Jane McCrea, a patriot’s daughter in love with a loyalist in Burgoyne’s army, gained fame as a martyr in 1777. She met death on her way to join her fiancé — either shot in the crossfire of battle (the British claim) or murdered by Indians (the patriots’ version). American leaders used the story of the vulnerable young woman as propaganda to inspire the American drive for victory at Saratoga. Wadsworth Athenaeum Museum of Art, Hartford/Art Resource, NY.