General Washington gave him a light reprimand, but it merely heightened Arnold's sense of betrayal; nonetheless, he had already opened negotiations with the British before his court martial even began. Peggy came from a loyalist family in Philadelphia; she had many ties to the British. Word of the siege's disastrous outcome led the company to turn around, and Arnold served for only 13 days. His subordinates, some long-time associates, grumbled about Arnold's unnecessary distribution of supplies and eventually concluded that he was selling them on the black market for personal gain. [62], Arnold had been badly wounded twice in battle and had lost his business in Connecticut, which made him profoundly bitter. [6][103] Among his bequests were considerable gifts to one John Sage, perhaps an illegitimate son or grandson. In that era, people ate most of the common foods without. Wilson believes that the explanation most consistent with the available documentation is that Sage was either the result of a liaison before Arnold left England or that he was Arnold's grandson by one of his older children. In December 1780, Arnold was given command of British forces sent to raid Virginia. Brown was particularly vicious, publishing a handbill which claimed of Arnold, "Money is this man's God, and to get enough of it he would sacrifice his country". Peggy's Childhood Peggy was the daughter of Edward Shippen and born into a prominent Philadelphia family. He performed operations that provided the Americans with relief during the Siege of Fort Stanwix, and key actions during the pivotal 1777 Battles of Saratoga, in which he sustained leg injuries that put him out of combat career for several years. [27] Their son Benedict was born the following year[28] and was followed by brothers Richard in 1769 and Henry in 1772. Promoted to the rank of brigadier general, Arnold constructed a flotilla on Lake Champlain and inflicted severe losses on a greatly superior enemy fleet near Valcour Island, New York (October 11, 1776). He also faced financial ruin, falling 16,000[b] in debt with creditors spreading rumors of his insolvency, to the point where he took legal action against them. He was extremely unpopular there and returned to London permanently in 1791, where he died ten years later. Benedict Arnold passed away on 3 March 1849. [84], Arnold next wrote a series of letters to Clinton, even before he might have expected a response to the July 7 letter. His first name was actually Enoch. [94], Andr was captured near Tarrytown, New York, on Saturday, September 23, by three Westchester militiamen. He organized the militia response, along with David Wooster and Connecticut militia General Gold Selleck Silliman. His performance in the Battle of Ridgefield in Connecticut prompted his promotion to major general. His chaplain Rev. Because of the constant agony of two battlefield wounds in an already gout-ridden leg? [145], There are plaques on the grounds of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, commemorating all of the generals who served in the Revolution. Angry and frustrated, Arnold resigned his military command of Philadelphia in late April. On November 10, 1778, General Nathanael Greene wrote to General John Cadwalader, "I am told General Arnold is become very unpopular among you oweing to his associateing too much with the Tories. [27] Margaret died on June 19, 1775, while Arnold was at Fort Ticonderoga following its capture. As a teenager, Arnold's family faced financial hardship. 4. 1.Saint Benedict was a teenager when he became a monk. [73] By October 1779, the negotiations had ground to a halt. It was General Arnold. The sacrifice of Andr made Arnold odious to loyalists, and his reputation was further tarnished among his former neighbours when he led a raid on New London, Connecticut, in September 1781. Arnold resented this affront, and only Washingtons personal persuasion kept him from resigning. [95] They found the papers exposing the plot to capture West Point and passed them on to their superiors,[96] but Andr convinced the unsuspecting Colonel John Jameson, to whom he was delivered, to send him back to Arnold at West Pointbut he never reached West Point. The absent name is Benedict Arnold, a name now synonymous with "traitor." Many Americans understand why his name has been erased from the chapel of the garrison he once commanded. general, has a name that's become synonymous with deceit and. [81], Early in April, Philip Schuyler had approached Arnold with the possibility of giving him the command at West Point. Benedict Arnold was born to a prominent businessman in Norwich, Connecticut, on January 14, 1741. [68] Stansbury ignored instructions from Arnold to involve no one else in the plot, and he crossed the British lines and went to see Jonathan Odell in New York. He was also convicted of two minor charges of using his authority to make a profit. Arnold returned to England in 1791, but he left to spend several years privateering in the West Indies before permanently settling in London. He also began to insist on a face-to-face meeting, and suggested to Arnold that he pursue another high-level command. Benedict Arnold was born on January 14, 1741 in Norwich, Connecticut and named after his His mother was Hannah Waterman King, a rich widow. Especially galling was a long feud with the civil authorities in Philadelphia which led to his court-martial. Arnold established himself in business in 1762 as a pharmacist and bookseller in New Haven, Connecticut, with the help of the Lathrops. The British promised 20,000[b] for the capture of West Point, a major American stronghold; Washington greatly admired Arnold and gave him command of that fort in July 1780. In real life: Arnold left for England in late 1781, before the official surrender, in an unsuccessful bid to persuade the Crown to keep the war going in America. What does it mean to call someone a Benedict Arnold? His ventures met with mixed success. After Arnold was wounded in 1777, George Washington named him military governor of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, recently abandoned by the British. Answer (1 of 54): Go up to most British people and ask who Benedict Arnold was, and you will get a resounding "who?" back. Peggy Shippen had barely turned eighteen when in June of 1778, following the evacuation of Philadelphia by a British army, Major General Benedict . "[32], Arnold began the war as a captain in the Connecticut militia, a position to which he was elected in March 1775. Wikipedia Sign up to our newsletter. [13] A commonly accepted story that he deserted from militia service in 1758[14] is based on uncertain documentary evidence.[15]. Arnold purchased large tracts of land in the Maugerville area, and acquired city lots in Saint John and Fredericton. [31], Arnold was in the West Indies when the Boston Massacre took place on March 5, 1770. Shutterstock Though one might guess that the dish was named for Benedict Arnold, the most famous traitor of the American Revolution, it was not. I used the widely accepted 1910 translation by the sinologist Lionel Giles, available in various . He was the second of the couple's six children. Far fewer know . The French had besieged Fort William Henry in northeastern New York, and their Indian allies had committed atrocities after their victory. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. January 14, 1741, in Norwich Connecticut. Benjamin Franklin wrote that "Judas sold only one man, Arnold three millions", and Alexander Scammell described his actions as "black as hell". Four days later, Arnold sent a ciphered letter with similar content into New York through the services of the wife of a prisoner of war. Andr was captured the next day, near Tarrytown, with those plans tucked inside his boot. Among others, he shared the name with his father and. Some theatrical treatments of the 19th century explored his duplicity, seeking to understand rather than demonize it. His physicians diagnosed him as having dropsy, and a visit to the countryside only temporarily improved his condition. During the American Revolution, British Major John Andr joined with American General Benedict Arnoldin a scheme to secure British control over the American fortification at West Point, New York. To raise money, he violated several state and military regulations, arousing the suspicions and, finally, the denunciations of Pennsylvanias supreme executive council. [135] Jefferson Davis and other southern secessionist leaders were unfavorably compared to Arnold, implicitly and explicitly likening the idea of secession to treason. During the American War for Independence, several engagements were fought at the five-pointed star-shaped Fort Ticonderoga. The Hudson River Chain today He knew that he was distrusted and disliked by senior military officers on both sides. His father was a successful businessman and young Benedict had a comfortable childhood. [83], Andr returned victorious from the Siege of Charleston on June 18, and both he and Clinton were immediately caught up in this news. Benedict Arnold, (born January 14, 1741, Norwich, Connecticut [U.S.]died June 14, 1801, London, England), patriot officer who served the cause of the American Revolution until 1779, when he shifted his allegiance to the British. It is impossible to say when 37-year-old Benedict Arnold first met 18-year-old Peggy Shippen, but we do know that on September 25, 1778, he wrote her a love lettermuch of it an exact copy of . Meanwhile, in April 1779, Arnold married Margaret (Peggy) Shippen, a young woman of loyalist sympathies. [12] In 1757 when he was 16, he did enlist in the Connecticut militia, which marched off toward Albany, New York, and Lake George. Benedict Arnold's reasons for betraying America were extraordinarily complex. It is what happened after 1775 that began to wear him down and bring on his disillusionment. Clinton was uninterested in most of his aggressive ideas, but finally authorized him to raid the port of New London, Connecticut. The other leg ached constantly, and he walked only with a cane. Arnold's name had become synonymous with the word traitor. One critic said that he was a "mean mercenary, who, having adopted a cause for the sake of plunder, quits it when convicted of that charge". Various translations of Sun Tzu's The Art of War have been published over the past century. During this time, Arnold brought his sister Hannah to New Haven and established her in his apothecary to manage the business in his absence. [55], Andr conferred with Clinton, who gave him broad authority to pursue Arnold's offer. [137] A moralistic children's tale entitled "The Cruel Boy" was widely circulated in the 19th century. Arnold's childhood was marred by tragedy; by age 20, he was an orphan struggling to make his way in the world as an apothecary. [128], Arnold left a small estate, reduced in size by his debts, which Peggy undertook to clear. Arnold received a commission as a brigadier general in the British Army, an annual pension of 360,[b] and a lump sum of over 6,000. Though the location was used for training cadets in engineering starting in 1794, it officially became the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1802. Arnold commanded the army only until May 20, when Lord Cornwallis arrived with the southern army and took over. [60] Some of this communication was effected through the services of Joseph Stansbury, a Philadelphia merchant.[61]. Only action by Arnold's superior at Ticonderoga prevented his own arrest on countercharges leveled by Hazen. General George Washington had given him his fullest trust and had placed him in command of West Point in New York. Excited by the prospects, Clinton informed his superiors of his intelligence coup, but failed to respond to Arnold's July 7 letter. Thereafter his name became an epithet for traitor in the United States. [142] His descendants are spread across Canada, most of all those of John Sage, who adopted the Arnold surname. Did he become a traitor because of all the injustice he suffered, real and imagined, at the hands of the Continental Congress and his jealous fellow generals? [1] Only he and his sister Hannah survived to adulthood; his other siblings died from yellow fever in childhood. Benedict Arnold was unhappy with his position in the Continental Army by the time he betrayed the cause of the American Revolution to the British. Arnold said that it would have been better had it been in the chest instead of the leg. Arnold's role in the war was controversial, with some supporting his actions and others supporting the Patriots. Crippled from his wounds, Arnold was placed in command of Philadelphia (June 1778), where he socialized with families of loyalist sympathies and lived extravagantly. [11], Arnold was very close to his mother, who died in 1759. One month after taking command, Arnold slipped the plans to British Major John Andr in exchange for 20,000 pounds of sterling, the equivalent of more than $4 million today. He then went to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and suggested to George Washington a second expedition to attack Quebec City via a wilderness route through Maine. The band played a funeral march. His health simply declined, partly as a result of his war wounds, partly as a result of what used to be called dropsy edema, the dramatic retention of fluid in limbs. "[144] The victory monument at Saratoga has four niches, three of which are occupied by statues of Generals Gates, Schuyler, and Morgan. Two months later he repelled a British attack on Danbury, Connecticut, and was made a major general, but his seniority was not restored and Arnold felt his honour impugned. Benedict Arnold was born on January 14, 1741, in Norwich, Connecticut. At critical moments Arnold inspired the Patriots with his grit and determination and earned the admiration of George Washington. [55], Arnold lived extravagantly in Philadelphia and was a prominent figure on the social scene. He then took the letter back to Connecticut, suspicious of Arnold's actions, where he delivered it to the head of the Connecticut militia. Arnold became a shrewd and prosperous trader in New Haven while also joining the local militia in 1774 and being named its captain soon thereafter. Before his name became synonymous with treason, Benedict Arnold was a bonafide hero of the American Revolutionary War. By Joyce Lee Malcolm. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Interview with Philbrick in Michael Dolan, "Hero And Villain,", Julie Courtwright, "Whom Can We Trust Now? Benedict Arnold's name is synonymous with the word traitor. It just doesn't respect it", "Letter, Benedict Arnold to George Washington pleading for mercy for his wife", "Benedict Arnold: The Aftermath of Treason", "Saratoga National Historical Park Activities", "Saratoga National Historical Park Tour Stop 7", links to primary sources about Benedict Arnold before and after his treason, Arnold, Benedict (17411801), army officer | Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness, Washington's crossing of the Delaware River, African Americans in the Revolutionary War, Intelligence in the American Revolutionary War, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Benedict_Arnold&oldid=1139478021, 18th-century American non-fiction writers, American expatriates in the United Kingdom, British Army personnel of the American Revolutionary War, British people of the French Revolutionary Wars, British spies during the American Revolution, Businesspeople from New Haven, Connecticut, Connecticut militiamen in the American Revolution, Continental Army officers from Connecticut, Continental Army personnel who were court-martialed, Military personnel from Norwich, Connecticut, People of Connecticut in the French and Indian War, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2019, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia pages semi-protected against vandalism, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2020, All articles with broken links to citations, Pages using Sister project links with hidden wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Benedict Arnold (17681795) (Captain, British Army in Jamaica), Henry Arnold (17721826) (Lieutenant, American Legion cavalry), Edward Shippen Arnold (17801813) (Lieutenant, British Army in India; see, James Robertson Arnold (17811854) (Lieutenant General, Royal Engineers), George Arnold (17871828) (Lieutenant Colonel, 2nd (or 7th) Bengal Cavalry). 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