Benedict Arnold

Born January 14, 1741
Norwich, Connecticut
Died June 14, 1801
London, England

Military leader, traitor

Benedict Arnold occupies a place in American history as the most famous traitor of Revolutionary times. In the early years of the American Revolution (1775–83), Arnold was known as a brave and skilled military planner who has been credited with the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga in New York. But over the years his contributions have been all but forgotten and his name has come to represent disloyalty to one's country.

Born in 1741, Benedict Arnold V was the son of Benedict Arnold IV, a businessman and landowner, and Hannah Waterman King, a stern and commanding woman. The first Benedict Arnold, who came to America in 1657, once served as the governor of Rhode Island.

When he was eleven years old, Benedict V's prosperous parents sent him away to school in Connecticut, where he studied Latin and mathematics. But his education was cut short when his troubled father lost the family fortune. Young Benedict became the subject of jokes after several incidents found him leading his drunken father home from local taverns. At about this time, the boy decided he must learn to be brave. He started picking on bigger boys to fight with, and began to perform daring feats like leaping over wagons in the roadway.

Early career, marriage

When he was about fourteen, young Arnold left home and went to work for a relative, learning the druggist trade. In his mid-teens, he volunteered to fight in three battles of the French and Indian War (1754–63), a conflict between France and England (won by England) to determine who would control the lands in America. He then deserted to be at his dying mother's bedside. When Arnold's father died in debt in 1761, the young man joined his sister Hannah in New Haven, Connecticut. Arnold's cousin paid the debts left by Benedict IV and set the young man up in a pharmacy business that soon became successful.

In Connecticut Arnold also found success as a sea captain, trading mostly horses and other livestock with Canada and the West Indies (an island chain extending from Florida to South America) and possibly smuggling. An energetic and restless man of average height, Arnold was very strong and muscular. He gained a reputation for getting into fistfights and reportedly twice took part in duels. The dark-haired, gray-eyed businessman married Margaret Mansfield in 1767, and within five years the couple had three children, with two more to follow.

Military exploits

When Arnold became a captain of New Haven's citizen soldiers in 1774, America was about to declare her independence and go to war with Great Britain. In 1775, Arnold marched his men to fight in Boston when he heard that the Revolutionary War had broken out. He took part in the capture of New York's Fort Ticonderoga (pronounced Tie-con-der-OH-guh), and led troops that used captured boats to take over the British fort at St. Johns, New Brunswick, Canada.

Arnold's wife died in 1775. Shortly thereafter, he commanded 1,000 troops on a stressful and finally unsuccessful campaign to capture Quebec, Canada. During the attempt, he received a serious leg wound that required months of recovery. Because of his strong leadership, Arnold was promoted to brigadier (pronounced BRIG-a-deer) general (a position just below major general), and in 1776 he commanded a fleet of ships, battling with British gunboats on Lake Champlain and at Valcour Island in New York. The battles that he helped to win there were of great importance in America's victory in the war.

Historian Carl Van Doren described Arnold's abilities as an officer: "He was original and [bold], quick in forming plans, quick in putting them into vigorous execution. He led his soldiers, not drove them, and held the devotion of the [soldiers under him].… But [when it came to dealing with] officers of rank equal or nearly equal with his, Arnold was [stubborn] and arrogant."

Ups and downs in the military

Arnold's hot temper and impatience earned him many enemies. In the winter of 1776–77, Americans who were his personal enemies accused him of misconduct and incompetence. It took the pleas of General George Washington to keep him from resigning from the army.

Arnold's reputation as a brave warrior grew in 1777 as he led an attack and drove British troops out of Danbury, Connecticut. Although he was then appointed major general, Arnold resented the fact that five of his junior officers had been promoted ahead of him. He protested, and as a result, George Washington changed the date of his promotion so Arnold would appear to have held the post of major general longer than the other five generals.

In 1777, a group of businessmen from Montreal, Canada, accused Arnold of stealing property from them. He was found innocent, but was so angry over the way he had been treated that he resigned from the military. Again Washington stepped in, and Arnold changed his mind and resumed his military duties. Arnold then played a major role in the defeat of British General John Burgoyne see entry at Saratoga, New York, where he was once again wounded seriously in the leg.

Arnold's leg was slow in healing this time, which prevented him from resuming command of his troops, so in 1778 George Washington made the mistake of appointing Arnold governor of the city of Philadelphia. Arnold soon demonstrated

that he lacked the necessary patience and political skills for the job. However, he greatly enjoyed his new appointment, entertained on a grand scale, and used his government position to get involved in business deals that might have been illegal.

Marries again, is accused of corruption, commits treason

In 1779, thirty-eight-year-old Benedict Arnold married the young and beautiful Margaret Shippen, daughter of one of Philadelphia's leading families. The Shippens were suspected of maintaining loyalties to Great Britain. That same year, authorities in Pennsylvania charged Arnold with corruption and taking advantage of his official position for his own personal profit. Biographers suspect he may have needed money to support his new wife in the style she had grown up in. Arnold was sent to Washington to be court-martialed (pronounced COURT-mar-shulled). A court martial is a trial conducted by military personnel for offenses against military law.

Arnold was found guilty of two of the charges against him, but as punishment he merely received a gentle reprimand from George Washington. By this time, though, Arnold was thoroughly angry at the treatment he had received from members of Congress and the military. He blamed them for his soiled reputation. Desperately in need of money, he began to entertain the idea of turning traitor and going to work for Great Britain.

In 1779, Arnold exchanged letters with British General Henry Clinton, and began passing information to the British about American troop movements and other matters in exchange for money. His wife Margaret helped him in his efforts, often acting as a messenger.

Turns traitor, fights former comrades

In 1780, Arnold, whose dealings with the enemy were still unknown to General Washington, talked his way into being appointed head of the fort at West Point on New York's Hudson River. Out of both greed and revenge for how he had been treated by the American military, he offered to hand West Point over to the British in exchange for a large sum of money. But when American soldiers captured British Major General John André later that year, the plan failed. André, who acted as a go-between for Arnold and the British, was court-martialed and hanged for spying.

In September 1780, Arnold escaped from the Americans unpunished and fled to the British. As a reward for assisting them, he was made a brigadier general in the British army. Wearing a British uniform, in 1781 Arnold led troops that burned Richmond, Virginia, and conducted raids against his former American comrades in Connecticut, burning the town of New London.

Life in Britain and in Canada

But Arnold was neither liked nor trusted by his new British comrades, who blamed him for the hanging of the popular Major André. As a general, Arnold was expected to round up British soldiers to serve under him, but he was not very successful at that task. So in December 1781, Arnold and his wife set sail for London, England. There King George III and other officials consulted with him on matters concerning America. Still, he felt disliked and neglected, and various business ventures he attempted ended in failure.

By 1785, eager to make money, Arnold moved to St. Johns, New Brunswick, Canada, and got involved in the shipping industry. Around 1786 a son, John Sage, was born to Arnold and a mother whose identity has gone undiscovered by historians.

In 1787, Arnold moved Margaret and their five children from Great Britain to Canada, where they were joined by his widowed sister, Hannah, and the sons from his first marriage. But the local people did not welcome the Arnolds and they never grew to feel part of the community. In 1791, Arnold, Margaret, and their children returned to England, while Hannah and Arnold's older sons returned to America.

Benedict Arnold's remaining years spent in England were unlucky ones. In 1792, Arnold's reputation was tarnished when he fought a duel with the Earl of Lauderdale, who had insulted him in the British House of Lords. Arnold shot but missed the Earl, who finally apologized to him. Arnold's fortunes suffered when he supplied materials for British military boats but lost money on the venture. About this time, he became seriously ill. Arnold suffered from asthma (pronounced AZ-muh, a disease that causes breathing difficulties) as well as swelling of the limbs, among other ailments. His wife said that near the end of his life he grew incapable of even the smallest enjoyment.

Benedict Arnold died on June 14, 1801, in London, leaving his family burdened with debts, lawsuits, and the disgrace of bearing the name of Arnold. Margaret Arnold died soon after in 1804. The couple's four sons went on to serve in the British Army. Benedict Arnold's oldest son by his first wife in America was killed in 1795 in the West Indies, while serving there as a military officer.

For More Information

Allison, Robert J. "Benedict Arnold." In American Eras: The Revolutionary Era, 1754–1783. Detroit: Gale, 1998, pp. 288-9.

Boatner, Mark M. "Arnold, Benedict," and "Arnold's Treason," Encyclopedia of the American Revolution. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stack-pole Books, 1994, pp. 25-43.

Brandt, Clare. The Man in the Mirror: A Life of Benedict Arnold. New York: Random House, 1994.

Fritz, Jean. Traitor: The Case of Benedict Arnold. New York: B. P. Putnam's Sons, 1981.

Martin, James Kirby. Benedict Arnold, Revolutionary Warrior: An American Warrior Reconsidered. New York: New York University Press, 1997.

Van Doren, Carl. Secret History of the American Revolution. New York: Viking Press, 1941.

Weigley, Russell F. "Arnold, Benedict." Encyclopedia of American Biography, second edition. John A. Garraty and Jerome L. Sternstein, eds. New York: Harper Collins, 1995, pp. 41-42.

How Historians See Benedict Arnold

Over the two centuries since Benedict Arnold's death, historians have argued about his true character. Some historians describe him as a monster, who took delight in robbing bird's nests when young and who later became a greedy, self-serving man who was all too eager to sell out his comrades.

But other historians point out that George Washington once called Arnold "the bravest of the brave" in the American Revolution. They observe that he courageously sacrificed his family life, financial security, and health and well being to engage in a conflict that left him physically handicapped and with his reputation smeared by false accusations. They insist his heroic actions must be remembered along with the fact of his treason. Others go so far as to contend that he was forced to become a traitor because he was mistreated and misunderstood by his fellow Americans.

Historian Mark M. Boatner provided an example of these differences of opinion in his Encyclopedia of the American Revolution. He wrote "while some writers credit Arnold with winning the two [Revolutionary War] battles of Saratoga almost single-handed, others question whether he was even on the field in the first battle and maintain that the second was won before he charged in to lead a costly, useless attack."

In the mid-twentieth century, new source material was found by historians that has helped them to get a more balanced view of the man, as both hero and traitor. James Kirby Martin, in his 1997 biography Benedict Arnold, Revolutionary Hero, wrote: "[Arnold's] treason was shocking because of the magnitude of his contribution to the Revolutionary effort." No doubt historians will continue to unravel the puzzle of this complicated historical figure far into the future.