In early 1777, the Continental army faced bleak choices. General Washington had skillfully avoided defeat, but the minor victories in New Jersey lent only faint optimism to the American side. Meanwhile, British troops moved south from Quebec, aiming to isolate New England by taking control of the Hudson River. Their presence drew the Continental army up into central New York, turning the Mohawk Valley into a bloody war zone and polarizing the tribes of the ancient Iroquois Confederacy. By 1779, rival tribes in the Ohio Valley were fully involved in the Revolutionary War. Despite an important victory at Saratoga, the increasing involvement of pro-British Indians and the continuing strength of the British forced the American government to look to France for help.