The second was Benedict Arnold. Word of the siege's disastrous outcome led the company to turn around, and Arnold served for only 13 days. [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. Phillips led further raids across Virginia, including a defeat of Baron von Steuben at Petersburg, but he died of fever on May 12, 1781. In that era, people ate most of the common foods without. [22], The Sugar Act of 1764 and the Stamp Act of 1765 severely curtailed mercantile trade in the colonies. At first, he asked for indemnification of his losses and 10,000,[b] an amount that the Continental Congress had given Charles Lee for his services in the Continental Army. 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. An epidemic of yellow fever ravaged Arnold's family in the 1750s, however, claiming three of his . He was enrolled in a private school in nearby Canterbury, Connecticut, when he was 10, with the expectation that he would eventually attend Yale College. Arnold was born in Connecticut. He followed up that action with a bold raid on Fort Saint-Jean on the Richelieu River north of Lake Champlain. When the British took control of Philadelphia in 1777, Peggy met John Andr, a charming, well-educated British officer. Arnold established himself in business in 1762 as a pharmacist and bookseller in New Haven, Connecticut, with the help of the Lathrops. Things Trump will never be. "No one has betrayed those in uniform like Donald Trump ," said the voiceover in the latest ad . Arnold and his men went towards Boston. Soon after Ticonderoga, Arnold brought his men on a dangerous trek through the . [80] Many of these documents had been lost during the retreat from Quebec. Shutterstock Though one might guess that the dish was named for Benedict Arnold, the most famous traitor of the American Revolution, it was not. In 1764, he formed a partnership with Adam Babcock, another young New Haven merchant. On July 12, he wrote again, making explicit the offer to surrender West Point, although his price rose to 20,000[b] (in addition to indemnification for his losses), with a 1,000[b] down payment to be delivered with the response. [120] The family left Saint John to return to London in December 1791. [38], General Washington assigned Arnold to the defense of Rhode Island following the British seizure of Newport in December 1776, where the militia were too poorly equipped to even consider an attack on the British. attended Canterbury for a while, but when the family's money was lost in some bad business dealings, he had to leave school. They bought three trading ships, using the profits from the sale of his homestead, and established a lucrative West Indies trade. Corrections? [138] The boy is not identified until the end of the story, when his place of birth is given as Norwich, Connecticut, and his name is given as Benedict Arnold. Benedict Arnold began the Revolutionary War as a militia captain. [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. See the fact file below for more information on . 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. [103] He had suffered from gout since 1775,[124] and the condition attacked his unwounded leg to the point where he was unable to go to sea. He hoped that this work would earn him wider respect and a new command; instead, it earned him and his sons a land-grant of 15,000 acres (6,100ha) in Upper Canada,[122] near present-day Renfrew, Ontario. However, his betrayal overshadowed his accomplishments in the wars he fought and won. Arnold had three sons with Margaret Mansfield:[150][151]. He then presented the attack of Fort Ticonderoga. He then went to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and suggested to George Washington a second expedition to attack Quebec City via a wilderness route through Maine. His company marched northeast the following month to assist in the siege of Boston that followed the Battles of Lexington and Concord. Arnold reopened the secret channels with the British, informing them of Schuyler's proposals and including Schuyler's assessment of conditions at West Point. The crowd of hundreds of people was quiet. He presided over the rear of the Continental Army during its retreat from Saint-Jean, where he was reported by James Wilkinson to be the last person to leave before the British arrived. [19][20] The captain was wounded in the first exchange of gunfire, and he apologized when Arnold threatened to aim to kill on the second. [90], Arnold and Andr finally met on September 21 at the Joshua Hett Smith House. When American leaders discovered the plot, Arnold fled. However, his actions at Saint-Jean and Valcour Island played a notable role in delaying the British advance against Ticonderoga until 1777. [31], Arnold was in the West Indies when the Boston Massacre took place on March 5, 1770. I used the widely accepted 1910 translation by the sinologist Lionel Giles, available in various . American, then British officer after defecting during the US Revolutionary War (17401801), For other people named Benedict Arnold, see, Raids in Virginia and Connecticut colonies, Arnold's birth records indicate that he was born January 3, 1740 (, One British pound in 1776 would be worth about 160 in 2019. With Benedict Arnold, he led the Green Mountain Boys to capture Fort Ticonderoga from the British in 1775. His grandfather, after whom he was named, was one of the founders of the Rhode Island colony, but Arnold's father was the opposite of the upstanding Benedict Arnold I. [137] A moralistic children's tale entitled "The Cruel Boy" was widely circulated in the 19th century. Washington refused his resignation and ordered him north to assist with the defense there. [55], Andr conferred with Clinton, who gave him broad authority to pursue Arnold's offer. [55], Arnold lived extravagantly in Philadelphia and was a prominent figure on the social scene. Lee Moran. 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. At his request, a court martial was held to clear his name. Stansbury's testimony before a British commission erroneously placed his meeting with Arnold in June. Benedict Arnold's name is synonymous with the word traitor. [77] Arnold worked over the next few months to publicize this fact; however, Washington published a formal rebuke of his behavior in early April, just one week after he had congratulated Arnold on the birth of his son Edward Shippen Arnold on March 19:[78], The Commander-in-Chief would have been much happier in an occasion of bestowing commendations on an officer who had rendered such distinguished services to his country as Major General Arnold; but in the present case, a sense of duty and a regard to candor oblige him to declare that he considers his conduct [in the convicted actions] as imprudent and improper. In May 1775, Arnold's forces eventually clashed with the British at Fort Ticonderoga - nestled along the shores of Lake . Arnold's letters continued to detail Washington's troop movements and provide information about French reinforcements that were being organized. For a time, he was a successful businessman, but after yellow fever took the lives of three of the Arnold children, the patriarch was devastated. Benedict Arnold's name has become infamous for his treacherous acts regarding the fort at West Point, which he was in command of, and his very name has even become a synonym for either treason or betrayal. On December 8, 1781, Arnold and his family left New York for England. Benedict Arnold High School Gallery Official Name Benedict Arnold High School Location Details Universe Earth-Twelve Country United States of America First Appearance Adventures of Bob Hope #95 ( November, 1965) Contents 1 History 2 Residents 2.1 Students and Alumni 2.2 Faculty 3 Notes 4 See Also History This article is a stub. [148] He was buried at St Mary's Church, Battersea, England which has a commemorative stained glass window. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Benedict-Arnold, American Battlefield Trust - Biography of Benedict Arnold, Dictionary of Canadian Biography - Biography of Benedict Arnold, The Washington Library Center for Digital History - Biography of Benedict Arnold, United States History - Biography of Benedict Arnold, Benedict Arnold - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11), Benedict Arnold - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up), Benedict Arnold: meeting with Maj. John Andr. [85], On August 3, 1780, Arnold obtained command of West Point. One plaque bears only a rank and a date but no name: "major general born 1740". Later,. He could not cope with failure and disgrace. [141] Historian Barry Wilson points out that Arnold's descendants established deep roots in Canada, becoming leading settlers in Upper Canada and Saskatchewan. [89] Eventually, a meeting was set for September 11 near Dobb's Ferry. His father was a successful businessman and young Arnold was educated in private schools. He engaged in a variety of business deals designed to profit from war-related supply movements and benefiting from the protection of his authority. [59] Shippen and her circle of friends had found methods of staying in contact with paramours across the battle lines, despite military bans on communication with the enemy. [1] [7] Arnold was the fourth surviving member of his family named after his great-grandfather Benedict Arnold I, an early governor of the Colony of Rhode Island; his grandfather (Benedict Arnold II) and father, as well as an older brother who died in infancy, were also named for the colonial governor. The fourth niche is pointedly empty. Before anyone spouts off about me being a 'libtard' I am a conservative. [1] Only he and his sister Hannah survived to adulthood; his other siblings died from yellow fever in childhood. Arnold demanded a court martial to clear the charges, writing to Washington in May 1779: "Having become a cripple in the service of my country, I little expected to meet ungrateful returns". [1] He was named after his great-grandfather Benedict Arnold who was once governor of the colony of Connecticut. Neither side knew for some days that the other was in agreement with that offer, due to difficulties in getting the messages across the lines. He led a small contingent of militia attempting to stop or slow the British return to the coast in the Battle of Ridgefield, and was again wounded in his left leg. "[32], Arnold began the war as a captain in the Connecticut militia, a position to which he was elected in March 1775. Yet as every elementary school student knows, Benedict reneged on his original commitment and defected to England. He was extremely unpopular there and returned to London permanently in 1791, where he died ten years later. Peggy came from a loyalist family in Philadelphia; she had many ties to the British. Arnold died in London at the age of 60. He had his leg crudely set, rather than allowing it to be amputated, leaving it 2 inches (5cm) shorter than the right. As early as 1778, there were signs that Arnold was unhappy with his situation and pessimistic about the country's future. 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". [30] The household was dominated by Arnold's sister Hannah, even while Margaret was alive. [1][7] Arnold was the fourth surviving member of his family named after his great-grandfather Benedict Arnold I, an early governor of the Colony of Rhode Island; his grandfather (Benedict Arnold II) and father, as well as an older brother who died in infancy, were also named for the colonial governor. [139] However, not all depictions of Arnold were so negative. Benedict Arnold Is America's Most Famous Traitor. My family have voted conservative in most elections. Besides, I would argue that even if the British d. [42] Amid negotiations over that issue, Arnold wrote out a letter of resignation on July 11, the same day that word arrived in Philadelphia that Fort Ticonderoga had fallen to the British. Though Trump has checked off the betray the USA box quite well. Arnold and Wemyss faced similar situations but created different legaciesWemyss "served with distinction during the war" but became a footnote in history; Arnold lost the respect of people on all sides of the Revolution and his name became synonymously linked to treason. Arnold returned to England in 1791, but he left to spend several years privateering in the West Indies before permanently settling in London. On August 13, Schuyler dispatched him with a force of 900 to relieve the siege of Fort Stanwix, where he succeeded in a ruse to lift the siege. Benedict Arnold was an American Senior Officer during the Revolutionary War. At the end of 1781 Arnold went to England. He also peppered Washington with complaints about the lack of supplies, writing, "Everything is wanting. He was a war hero who persistently fought for America's independence. The Arnold residence attained the reputation as one of early Amsterdam's finer homes. He had established a decent relationship with George Washington, as well as Philip Schuyler and Horatio Gates, both of whom had command of the army's Northern Department during 1775 and 1776. Arnold's early life consisted of study at some of the Continent's best private schools. 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. When Arnold learned the following morning that Andr had been caught and that . He was imprisoned by French authorities on Guadeloupe amid accusations of spying for the British, and narrowly eluded hanging by escaping to the blockading British fleet after bribing his guards. The two-story edifice occupied a lot on the west side of Market between East Main and Division Streets. Arnold immediately hastened to the shore and ordered bargemen to row him downriver to where HMS Vulture was anchored, fleeing on it to New York City. This plan very nearly succeeded, but Arnold changed living quarters prior to sailing for Virginia in December and thus avoided capture. Benedict Arnold was born on January 14, 1741, in Norwich, Connecticut. They had no reason to suspect that Gen. Benedict Arnold, the new commander of the post, would be less than a gracious host. [36] However, an acrimonious dispute with Moses Hazen, commander of the 2nd Canadian Regiment, boiled into Hazen's court martial at Ticonderoga during the summer of 1776. [99][100] Upon receiving Jameson's message, however, he learned that Jameson had sent Washington the papers which Andr was carrying. It was donated by Civil War General John Watts DePeyster, and its inscription reads: "In memory of the most brilliant soldier of the Continental army, who was desperately wounded on this spot, winning for his countrymen the decisive battle of the American Revolution, and for himself the rank of Major General. In the later part of the conflict, Arnold was commissioned as a brigadier general in the British Army, and placed in command of the American Legion. [62], Wetherell says that the shortest explanation for his treason is that he "married the wrong person". 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 . British reinforcements arrived in late March led by William Phillips who served under Burgoyne at Saratoga. 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