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Benedict Arnold ORIGINAL
- For other people of the same name, see Benedict Arnold (disambiguation).
Benedict Arnold V (January 14, 1741–June 14, 1801) was a general in the Continental Army who defected to the British side during the American Revolutionary War. Serving with the American Patriots he became well known for leading successful campaigns and winning battles, but he gradually became disgruntled. This began with his not receiving what he felt was due credit in a raid on Fort Ticonderoga. Some five years later, in 1780, he plotted with the British to take control of the fort at West Point, New York, which would have given the British control of the Hudson River and split the colonies in half. The plot was thwarted, but Arnold successfully avoided capture by Continental forces. Shortly thereafter, he was given a commission in the British Army, and was eventually elevated to the rank of general. His name is a colloquial synonym for "traitor" in the United States, much like Quisling in Norway, or Pétain in France.
Pre-Revolutionary War life
Arnold was born to Benedict Arnold IV and Hannah Waterman King in Norwich, Connecticut and named after his great-grandfather, who was an early colonial governor of Rhode Island. He was born the second of six children. Only Arnold and his sister Hannah survived to adulthood, the others having succumed to outbreaks of yellow fever. Arnold grew up in a well to do Norwich family, due mostly to his mother's family and contacts. The family was financially sound untill Arnold's father made several bad business deals which caused the family to become in debt. Arnold's father turned to alcohol to solve his problems, and after two years of alcoholism and lack of income Arndold was withdrawn from school at age fourteen because the family could no longer afford the cost. Arnold was being prepared for college most likely at Yale College.
His father's ill health prevented him from training his son in the family mercantile business. Fortunately for the young Benedict his mother's family connections secured for him an apprenticeship with two of her cousins who were brothers, Daniel Lathrop and Joshua Lathrop who were both graduates of Yale. The two ran a successful apothecary and general merchandise trade in New Haven. Arnold spent the years between 1756 to 1760 as an apprentice.
Sources are not clear, but Arnold may have joined the Norwich militia in August of 1757 during the French and Indian War. The unit that Arnold was assigned to retreated back to Norwich and disbanded after a battle near the British held Fort William Henry which was captured by a French force under the command of the Canadian governor Louis Joseph Marquis de Montcalm.
The remaining years of Arnold's apprenticeship had interruptions. His mother who he was especially close to died in 1759 and although not living in Norwich took over the responsibilities of looking after his sick father and younger sister. His father's alchoholism became worse after the death of his wife and he was arrested on several occasions for public drunkeness and refused communion by his church. His father died in 1761 and with his death the then twenty-one year old Benedict Arnold was given the resolve to return his family name back to the elevated status it once enjoyed.
The Lathrops were not new to establishing family members as protégés and in 1761 they financed Arnold to open his own apothecary in New Haven. The gave him key connections in the New England trading network and added him and his business into their growing mercantile network.
Arnold knew how to run a business and his open stances against Britain led New Havenites to reward him with their business. He often allowed his customers to buy on credit when pressed for cash and was known to keep close relations with his clintele. Arnold became bored with running his business and looked for ways to expand his trading network. In 1763 he bought back his family homstead which his father had sold when deeply in debt, but changed his mind and sold it for a substantial profit in 1764. In 1764 he formed a partnership with Adam Babcock another young New Haven merchant. He used the money from selling his homestead and together the two bought three trading ships and by 1765 through West Indies trade the two were raking in huge profits. It was at this time that he brought his sister Hannah to New Haven to run his apothecary for him.
The Stamp Act of 1765 brought mercantile trade in the colonies to a screeching halt. Arnold did not participate in an public demonstrations, but like many merchants did by 1766 conducted trade as if the Stamp Act was no in effect. on January 31 of 1767 Arnold was arrested for an incident where he and his crew roughed up a smuggling informant. He was fined fifty shillings for disturbing the peace. Arnold participated in demonstrations on the night of the 31st in New Haven and gave a rousing speech denouncing the various acts of the British Parliament and participated in the burning of effigies of local crown officials.
Over the following years the various acts of parliament forced many New England merchants out of business. Arnold came near to personal ruin being in debt of 15,000 pound sterling by the end of 1766. Arnold continued his anti-act activities which led him into contact with his future father-in-law Samuel Mansfield. Arnold met and quickly fell in love with Margaret Mansfield who he married on February 27 1767. He like his father married into a richer more elite family than his own.
Arnold developed a profitable trading venture in the West Indies with Samuel Mansfield. Margaret died an untimely death in 1775 of an unknown illness, but bore Arnold three sons before her death. Margaret worked closely with Arnold's sister Hannah in running the mercantile business while Benedict was at sea. During their marriage Arnold was rarely home, he spent much of their marriage trading between Quebec and the West Indies.
Arnold was involved in a duel in the West Indies with a captain Croskie who he met in the Bay of Honduras. Arnold was invited to a social gathering of Croskie's, but could not attend. Arnold apologized to Croskie the next day and explained his circumstances. Croskie would not accept the apology and called Arnold a "dammed Yankee, destitute of good manners or those of a gentleman". Arnold was shocked by the rudeness and challanged Croskie to a duel. The captain missed and Arnold wounded the captain slightly. A second duel was challaned, but Croskie refused and apologized to Arnold, a handshake ended the affair.
Arnold was in the West Indies when the Boston Massacre occured on March 15 1770, but later wrote that he was "very much shocked" and wrote "good God; are the Americans all asleep and tamely giving up their liberties, or are they all turned philosophers, that they don't take immeadiate vengeance on such miscreants". He was himself very much aware of the growing British presence in the colonies. The statement of his shows his original sentiment as an American patriot and unwillingess to allow the mother country to meddle in American affairs.
Wartime career
In late 1774 sixty-five New Haven residents including Arnold furnished themselves with weapons and hired a military expert to direct their training. They trained through the winter and in March 1775 Connecticut officials made the group the Governor’s 2nd Company of Guards. They were authorized to elect their own officers and Arnold was chosen as their captain. He was chosen for his firm beliefs in American liberty despite his inexperience. He treated his captainship as if he were preparing for war, continuing their training and exercises. When news reached New Haven on Friday, April 21 of the battles at Lexington and Concord, Arnold called a meeting of his company and voted to leave for Massachusetts the next morning, after admitting a few Yale students into the guard to boost their numbers.
The company assembled on New Haven Green the next morning to a crowd of several hundred citizens cheering, but many members lacked powder and weapons. The town fathers had refused to grant access to the New Haven magazine, but through some intimidation by Arnold and his company received the keys. The company quickly set off to Massachusetts among hurrahs and cheers from the New Haven populace. On the road Arnold ran into Colonel Samuel Holden Parsons who told Arnold of the shortage of cannons and other weapons the American camp near Boston Massachusetts and the two of them noted the number of brass cannons in the dilapidated Fort Ticonderoga. They parted way, Parsons quickly made his way to Hartford where he a handful of provincial leaders took money from the treasury to establish a force to take the fort under the command of Captain Edward Mott who was to link up with Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys.
When Arnold arrived in Cambridge he convinced the Massachusetts officials to fund an expedition to take the fort. They made him a Colonel in the Massachusetts militia and gave him among other things ten horses and several captains under his command to ride across Massachusetts and raise an army to take the fort. The same day that Arnold and his captains rode off the forces of Mott and Allen met up in Bennington. As his captains mustered troops, Arnold rode north to find Allen to try to take command of the operation citing his official Colonelship. He met Allen and Allen agreed to allow Arnold to head the column citing his commission.
Arnold led his men to Ticonderoga and they assaulted the fortress on May 10 1775 in the early hours of morning. By all accounts the assault lasted approximately ten minutes and ended with a confrontation between the commanding officer Captain Delaplace, Allen and Arnold. The fort was taken in a bloodless fight, but as soon as the battle was over Allen usurped Arnold and took control of the force leaving Arnold with nothing for the time being as Allen and his men controlled the fort, but soon the men began to drift off back to their farmlands. Before the desertions, fifty Green Mountain Boys had seized the fort at Crown Point.
Crown Point and Ticonderoga yielded together 201 cannons, 100 of which were useable and sent back to George Washington who positioned them on the Dorchester Heights overlooking Boston. The presence of these weapons even though they lacked powder and ammunition forced the British army under General Thomas Gage to evacuate Boston. The force retreated by sea to Nova Scotia in March 1776.
By May 14, Arnold wrote to the Massachusetts commission that he had sufficient volunteers to claim ownership of both forts. Allen’s men had been decreasing by the day and this only cemented Arnold’s hold as more Massachusetts volunteers arrived daily. He also wrote that the force should take further steps to secure Lake Champlain, because the British could easily bring a force down from Canada. He outlined a plan to take Fort St. Johns twenty-five miles into Canada; Arnold’s luck appeared when a friend, Captain Oswald appeared at Ticonderoga with a captured British sloop which he later christened Enterprise. He set off with a sloop he christened Liberty and two smaller vessels, to capture a seventy ton schooner at Fort St. Johns . Arnold was able to capture the ship and five smaller vessels with no casualties. In the process he relieved his force of the Crown Point and Ticonderoga prisoners before setting off back across Lake Champlain, where he lost no time in repairing the forts, taking inventory of armaments and training crews for his two new warships. Arnold maintained this command and rebuilding process over the next several months until he resigned in protest the appointment of a superior officer to the Crown Point and Ticonderoga forts.
Shortly after his resignation Arnold learned of the plans for a Canadian invasion led by Philip Schuyler, which disappointed Arnold because he was not given the command. On July 4 1775 Arnold rode for Albany with the hopes of reaching Schuyler and convincing him to allow Arnold a command in his force. Unbeknown to Arnold, Schuyler had formed a positive impression of Arnold based on reports of Arnold compatriots, and a former business partner of Arnold’s who was a good friend of Schuyler. As Arnold neared Albany he had no idea how Schuyler would receive him, and was lucky that he was already an Arnold advocate. Just before he left he learned of the death of Margaret and was forced to make a stop in New Haven to ensure the welfare of his children, asking Hannah to serve as a surrogate mother which she accepted. Arnold met up with Schuyler who immediately used his contacts in Massachusetts politics to rally support for Arnold while the two were in Watertown.
In the middle of August Arnold left Watertown and made his way to Cambridge with the intention of meeting General Washington who was the newly appointed commander of the Continental army. Washington was well aware of Arnold’s impressive, but notorious performance in the Champlain region, and particularly Arnold’s outspoken calls for an invasion of Canada. In Cambridge Arnold was able to make a favorable impression of him based on a report on the armaments situation in the Northern Theater in a letter to congress which had swayed congress to give Washington the funds to improve the situation of the army. Arnold presented a solid argument for himself to lead a second force in unison with Schuyler’s, to descend on Quebec City from Maine. On September 5 1775 Washington called for volunteers for this expedition, and the next day Arnold found himself overwhelmed by the number of patriots ready to fight. Arnold was able to select from this body the men he found most suitable for use numbering approximately 1,050. More importantly Washington secured for Arnold a Colonels commission in the Continental army, which of course carried a great amount of weight compared to his Massachusetts militia commission.
The force left Cambridge on September 15 1775 after having been quickly assembled and put on fifteen schooners to set sail for Maine. Arnold himself rode by horseback to Salem to procure for his force 270 blankets and 200 pounds of ginger before proceeding to Newburyport where he met up with the flotilla carrying his troops and continued the journey by sea to Gardinerston Maine and would arrive on September 22. Meanwhile at Colburn carpenters hastily built 200 flat bottomed bateaux, which would be transported via the Kennebec and then Chaudiere rivers to Quebec City and used after the capture of the city to travel down the St. Lawrence River to meet up with Schuyler’s force attacking Montreal. Arnold met Samuel Goodwin who knew the Maine wilderness that Arnold would have to travel through and arranged for him to be the guide.
The expedition finally reached the St. Lawrence and on November 9 after an arduous journey made more difficult by a rare late season hurricane and food shortages. In the process Arnold’s force lost over 150 bateaux and was reduced to 650 men. The British had been warned of Arnold’s approach and destroyed every serviceable watercraft on the southern shore and had both warships in the vicinity on constant patrol; the frigate Lizard (twenty-six guns) and the sloop of war Hunter (sixteen guns). Arnold sent his officers into the riverside communities to procure canoes of which they collected twenty-six and later found twenty craft which the British had missed. Late on November 11 the force was able to cross the river and make a move towards the city. Arnold’s intention was the keep the defending force reasonably restricted until his counterpart force led by Schuyler’s subordinate Montgomery could meet up with him at the city. Arnold let Montgomery know of his plans through several messages all but one intercepted by the British unbeknownst to Arnold. In the meantime Schuyler’s force captured Montreal and immediately sent off Montgomery and his column to assist Arnold. Arnold held his position and Montgomery finally arrived on December 1 1775, the two forces combined amounting to 1,325 soldiers versus a mounting number of Québécois defenders numbering approximately 2,100. Arnold on December 15 attempted negotiations with Governor Carelton of the city and the commanding General Cramahé for their surrender guaranteeing safe passage back to England, they refused to accept any meeting with Arnold. Meanwhile Arnold moved his force into the unfortified section of the city and had two methods of weakening the defenders other than an assault. He had his riflemen position themselves in buildings surrounding the fortified section to snipe off soldiers on the ramparts, which they were quite effective at doing. The civilians stayed in the city, and thus the defenders of the fort would not shell the rebels holding the unfortified sections. The second method was a section of two artillery batteries which Arnold positioned north of the city to shell the fort; it is unknown where he acquired the pieces approximately twenty-four in number. The battery was short lived as the British inside the fort were able to use their heavier artillery against the poorly dug in position.
The force continued to maintain the partial siege of the city and prepared to assault on December 31. Arnold was fortunate that several hundred reinforcements arrived from the New York militia arrived days before the scheduled assault boosting the moral of the troops that had been on constant campaign for nearly four months. The attack began at 4 a.m. amid a heavy snowstorm and high winds, but the rebels received little resistance at first. Arnold leading a column towards the fort suddenly came under fire from a hail of musket balls, one slicing through his lower left leg. Arnold was overcome with faintness and carried off to a field hospital worried that he would die never knowing the outcome of the battle. Arnold learned of the unfortunate death of Montgomery as the patriots slowly pushed their way forward, he was killed when struck by a cannon ball never knowing that the Continental Congress just promoted him to major general. Also on December 31, not knowing of the debacle unfolding the continental congress promoted Arnold to brigadier general.
Arnold on January 2 1776 finally learned the fate of his column; his entire force he had brought from Maine was killed or captured. All that now remained under his command were what was left of Montgomery’s troops, the 250 New Yorkers and 100 Canadian volunteers. Arnold decided that retreat was the least favorable option because of the trust that Schuyler and Washington had put in him and his Quebec plan. He decided for the time being to maintain his partial siege as best as possible. Arnold informed the garrison at Montreal of the situation and they sent off 200 men to join Arnold’s force, in addition the congress after having heard of the disaster and Arnold’s plans to hold on were convinced by an outspoken Samuel Adams backed up by General Washington to raise a sizeable force to relieve Arnold and take Quebec. Reinforcements began showing up daily to join the force raising Arnold’s force by mid March to 1,794, and by the end of March the force number 2,505, but 786 were unfit for duty due to smallpox, but the Quebec defenders were suffering more heavily. General Wooster arrived from Montreal on April 1 and informed Arnold that he was taking command of the theater, allowing Arnold to retire back to Montreal seeing no more use for himself in Quebec.
Arnold’s time spent at Montreal was largely uneventful other than a visit by Benjamin Franklin on April 29 to determine the amount of money needed to maintain and strengthen the Montreal Theater. Arnold left Montreal on May 12 for Sorel where he would assist in the assemblage of volunteers. His force amounted to 450 men by May 24 when a combined British and Native American force arrived, but Arnold and his officers decided to remain on the defensive behind entrenchments. The British force then proceeded to negotiate with Arnold for a prisoner exchange which he accepted, the British force then turning back towards Quebec. Arnold left for Montreal to acquire arms for his newly liberated prisoners and arrived back on June 13, just as a British force arrived on the northern bank of the St. Lawrence. Arnold ordered a retreat back to Fort St. Johns and the British sought an active pursuit in hopes of engaging the patriot force in open battle where their outstanding training would pay off, though they would never receive their wish.
Arnold spent the remaining months of the summer at Fort St. Johns writing regular reports back to Albany and the Congress on the situation in his theater. He spent that time reinforcing the fort and building new fortifications and constantly requesting more men, money and artillery from congress. It is during this time that Arnold began construction of the Lake Champlain squadron, not knowing the size or strength of the British naval force massing for an eventual land-naval combined operation. By September 1 Arnold had moved his flotilla into the northernmost part of the lake to take up a defensive position ten miles south of the mouth of the Richelieu River. The river was the main artery into British controlled territory, there they would wait for the as of yet unprepared British fleet. During this period several more ships arrived from various points on the lake to join Arnold’s flotilla. By September 6, the British fleet commanded by Cramahé had assemble a fleet capable of crushing the Americans, including a ship that was enormous compared to other inland waterway craft, the Inflexible mounting 18 12-pounders. C ramahé finally made his move on October 4, moving down the river to engage Arnold’s flotilla which he encountered on October 11. Arnold ordered his fleet forward led by his flagship The Congress, the wind favored him and he was able to rush forward with his most powerful four ships and cause the British fleet to scatter in all directions. The British entered the situation with a great deal of overconfidence which proved to Arnold’s benefit once the British fleet scattered and he moved the rest of his fleet in. The schooner Royal Savage ran aground and Cramahé’s ships moved in to pound it without mercy effectively destroying the ship. This only spurred the British on and they attempted to move in, but the wind was highly unfavorable, they managed however to turn exposing their full broadside to the American lines. At the height of the battle an American shot broke the spring line of the Carleton the British flag ship and the bow began to drift into the American lines, Arnold quickly ordered all fire onto the vessel and a hail of iron tore through the ship which began to list as if it might keel over. Cramahé ordered the ship to evacuate, but nothing happened at first; the captain Dacres being unconscious and his second officer having lost an arm. Finally two small schooners moved in and were able to pull the ship away from the American lines. The battle continued till 5p.m. when both sides moved back to a distance of approximately 700 yards. The battle has been called a draw and the American fleet retreated back to Crown Point by cover of darkness to replace the dead and wounded, repair ships and restock supplies.
Arnold’s fleet arrived back at Crown Point with the British close behind, but the British called off their pursuit not wanting to come within range of the heavy guns in the fortress. General Gates arrived at Crown Point on October 26 and relieved Arnold of his command ensuring him that he would receive a greater command soon, in the meantime he was sent back to Ticonderoga to maintain the fortification there. Despite Arnold’s achievements to date the opinions about him among several influential patriots were not positive. Unfortunately for Arnold there was no one present among the congressional delegates in late 1776 to shed a positive and accurate light on his achievements.
Meanwhile by late November George Washington’s army was in full retreat across New Jersey fleeing General Howe who had given Washington’s army a rather heavy thrashing, causing concern for patriots that the war may be lost. Word reached Ticonderoga and Gates immediately set sail down the Hudson river with eight regiments with the intention of joining Washington. Arnold left Ticonderoga and caught up with Gates and his force who had reached Bethlehem Pennsylvania on December 15. Gates allowed his soldier the rest for three days and Washington welcomed the first of the Ticonderoga troops into his Bucks county camp on Sunday the 21st, four days before his raid on the Hessians across the Delaware river. Arnold on his way to Washington’s camp ran into a courier who had a letter ordering Arnold to make haste for New England because the British had moved into Rhode Island. Arnold quickly made his way to see Washington and then was able to make his way back to New Haven after having been away for almost two years. He was joyfully welcomed by his three sons and his sister Hannah, where in New Haven he waited for his orders and the military situation in New England to unfold.
Arnold spent a little over a week of the new year in New Haven due to the unknown situation in Rhode Island rode off for Providence, at thirty-six he still considered himself a youthful patriot able to carry the fight on, under the command of General Spencer. On December 8 1776 a sizeable British force under General Clinton captured Newport and spent the remaining months of the winter inactive, it would be Arnold’s job to dislodge them. Arnold arrived in Providence on January 12 and immediately after gathering sufficient intelligence penned a letter to Washington informing him of Clinton’s soon departure for England and British preparations for the Rhode Island force to depart for New York possibly. Arnold was made the deputy commander of all North East Colony troops which amounted to the six colonies north of New York; unfortunately for Arnold he had only 2,000 troops in the Rhode Island vicinity versus 15,000 redcoats in Newport and all troops for the time being were slated for Washington’s army. Secondly Arnold was passed up for a promotion in January when twelve other Brigadiers were promoted, he was cautioned by George Washington to not be brash and allow time to take its course.
In mid April Arnold grew discontent with the lack of action in Providence and bid farewell to General Spencer, he rode for New Haven where he would prepare to ride for Philadelphia to see Congress. He was preparing to leave on April 26 when a courier came into New Haven with shocking news; a large British force of 2,000 under the command of General Tryon had landed in Norwalk Connecticut and was preparing to march inland, most likely to Danbury a major supply depot for the Continental Army. Arnold immediately left New Haven with several friends to ride off across Connecticut to call for volunteers. The party was only able to raise about 100 volunteers, but was joined by militia General Gold S. Silliman who had mustered a force of 500 volunteers from eastern Connecticut. The British force reached Danbury that Afternoon. Arnold and his fellow officers moved their force near Danbury so they could adequately monitor the British columns. Tryon’s intention was to destroy the ammunition depot at Danbury and then head back out to sea; it would be Arnold’s task to intercept them. By 11 a.m. on April 27 General Wooster’s column had caught up with Tryon’s rear guard in an attempt to delay the British while Arnold moved his force into their return path. The delay gave Arnold the time to situate his troops behind a series of fences and stone walls on a farm outside Ridgefield Connecticut.
Tryon’s column arrived in an organized fashion around 3 p.m. in front of Arnold’s position. Tryon ordered an immediate assault expecting the lines to break easily, his force of 2,000 was overwhelming for the patriots with 500, but much to his surprise the patriots held. Tryon then ordered outflanking parties to go forth and under withering fire from right and left flanks the patriots broke and ran. Arnold in a desperate attempt rode back and forth among his troops brandishing his sword in an attempt to rally a rear guard. Arnold’s horse suddenly collapsed having been hit by nine musket balls trapping Arnold’s leg beneath the dying horse. A nearby enemy soldier having just mounted a wall supposedly shouted to Arnold “Surrender! You are my prisoner!” Arnold’s reply was “Not yet,” and shot the soldier with his pistol and then freed himself from the dead horse. He managed to limp off into a local swamp amid musket fire able to fight another day.
Tryon was confident that he had destroyed all patriot opposition and could spend the night at Ridgefield burying his dead and tending to the wounded. Meanwhile Arnold lost no time in reorganizing his force throughout the night and assembled his column at a point two miles north of Norwalk between two roads, the British having to take one of them to get back to the coast. Arnold would be ready no matter which road they took to attack their flank and rear. Tryon was well informed to Arnold’s plan by local loyalists and he moved his column accordingly, breaking his column in two and moved one towards Arnold’s position and the other taking the southern road as bate for Arnold. Tryon’s intention was not to fight a pitched battle, but only to disperse the rebels waiting for him. Arnold’s force found out about the situation too late to move into a more suitable position and Tryon’s force escaped Connecticut with little harassment after Ridgefield.
Arnold left General Silliman in command and journeyed to Philadelphia to meet with congressional members arriving on May 16 to the cheers of enthusiastic citizens. Arnold’s intention was to clear his good name and tell congress all of his thoughts and plans for the New England Theater. Over the next several days he met with various delegates and stayed in the home of John Adams on the 21st. Schuyler was also in Philadelphia at this time trying to clear his name with congress over the fighting in Canada the previous year. When Schuyler left for New York this left Arnold as the ranking officer in the Philadelphia region and he quickly took command of the forces there. Congress quickly took this command away from him, appointing a junior brigadier from Pennsylvania, General Mifflin. It seemed to Arnold that no matter what he did congress didn’t want him no matter how determined he was to fight for the cause of liberty. Arnold would remain in the capitol until he became fed up with the situation and handed in his letter of resignation to the Pennsylvania State House on July 11, while at that time an urgent telegram was on its way from Washington requesting Arnold be posted to the Northern Theater upon his learning of the fall of Ticonderoga.
Arnold left Philadelphia on July 15 and joined Washington on the 17th at his southern Hudson headquarters. A large British force was moving south from Canada after the fall of Crown Point and Ticonderoga. Schuyler then in command of the Northern Theater was having trouble mustering volunteers and Washington wanted Arnold to raise an army, Arnold rode for New York at once. He arrived in Albany on July, 21st with little fanfare, but was rather well briefed by General Schuyler on the situation, including the entire troop strength in New England being only 6,359, with two serviceable artillery pieces. The British force moving down from Canada comprised nearly 3,500 troops commanded by General Burgoyne which intended to meet up with another force of 3,025 Hessians that had been sent as a diversionary force earlier under General von Riedesel.
Arnold sent out several captains to call up volunteers and by July 27 they had been successful in raising another 750 men. The patriots were gathering their force in Albany should Howe attack North instead of South towards Philadelphia. Howe had been holed up in New York for the winter and seemed to have a problem separating from the social life he encountered there. The force under Burgoyne and the troops that Howe had could prove to be very dangerous if used in combined operations. Arnold spent the remainder of July and August in Albany as Schuyler’s junior officer organizing the volunteers that arrived.
In late August Arnold moved a force out to Fort Schuyler with the eventual intention of utterly destroying Burgoyne’s force which had by this time been cut off from Canada. By September 15 Burgoyne’s force was on the move towards Albany, several Patriot deserters had informed him of the rebel disposition. The rebels by that time had been placing entrenchments eight miles south of Saratoga, which Burgoyne was privy to this information. Arnold moved out at dawn of the 16th with a column of 3,000 soldiers to asses the situation of Burgoyne’s force. His force then pulled back by evening to the Bremis Heights encampments after having fought several localized skirmishes throughout the day mostly intended to probe the strength of the British column. By this time von Riedesel met up with Burgoyne and their force numbered over 6,000. The intention was to engage in battle on the 19th and destroy the rebel force through flanking maneuvers and their superior numbers would be of great benefit, the plan was an exact copy of the successful assault on Ticonderoga.
The Battle for Freeman’s Farm commenced near 10 a.m.. On the 19th British artillery battery fired a salvo signaling to the three British columns facing the American positions to commence their attack. Arnold, commanding the left wing of the American forces, ordered Colonel Morgan to assault the British while they were still advancing in separate columns. Morgan charged into General Fraser's column and inflicted severe casualties, they were then forced back across the field. Arnold sent forward two more brigades to support Morgan and Arnold's reinforced line repulsed the British attack with severe losses. Arnold was angered at Gates for not sending in reinforcements to break the British lines. Arnold was then relieved of his command. Although they had to leave the field, the Americans had halted Burgoyne's advance and inflicted heavy losses on the British.
Arnold although relieved of his command participated in the following battle that made up Saratoga, effectively leading troops into battle he had no authority to command. Over the next several weeks Arnold and Gates exchanged harsh language via the pen and both wrote reports back to congress lambasting the other and painting themselves as heroes. Arnold ended up in a hospital due to another horse being shot out from under him and spent much time at that location. The new year showed some improvement in his health, but he had during his hospital time begun his distrust of the congress and the patriot cause. While in Philadelphia by the end of March he met Peggy Shippen the daughter of Judge Edward Shippen. Peggy had been courted by Major John André when the British were in control of Philadelphia. Arnold and Shippen wed quickly on April 8, 1779.
By June, Arnold finally received a new command when Washington again made him the commander of the Philadelphia region. Arnold accepted his post, but with a sense of diminished liberty and service to the congress that had betrayed him before. He decided that while in Philadelphia he would no longer parlay with the congress peacefully, but at every turn attempt to undermine their authority and smear their good names. He truly felt that ingratitude for his accomplishments and the accomplishments of the so many others who had died were unnoticed by congress. It was in June when he learned of the Franco-American alliance, but felt that the French were just as much enemies as the British harking back to the Seven Years War.
Arnold was in command of Philadelphia for some time until so incredibly fed up with the situation he wrote to Washington begging for a reassignment. Washington offered him a post in the field, but Arnold refused demanding to take command at the fort at West Point in August 1780. Partially incapacitated, Arnold had used his leg injuries to secure a position as head of the fort at West Point. In September he negotiated with Clinton to hand over the American fort to the British for 20,000 sterling. His plans were discovered when his courier, Major André, was captured on September 23, with documents that incriminated Arnold.
Arnold fled to the British who made him a Brigadier General, but never really trusted him although he saw some command in the American theater. In December under orders from Clinton, Arnold led a force of 1,600 troops into Virginia and succeeded in capturing Richmond and cutting off the major artery of material to the southern patriot effort. In the Southern theater Lord Cornwallis was able to march northwards towards Yorktown which he moved into in May 1781. Arnold meanwhile had been sent north to capture the town of New London Connecticut in hopes that it would divert Washington away from Cornwallis. While in Connecticut his force captured Fort Griswold and murdered dozens of captured rebel soldiers on September 8. In December Arnold was recalled to England with various other officers as the crown deemphasized the American theater over more probable wins in others.
Arnold’s goal in England was to convince Imperial leaders to not give up the fight inspite the loss of Cornwallis at Yorktown. While in London he met with various cabinet officers and King George III to try and convince them to carry on the war effort. He was like at Quebec too late, the Crown was already sending peace feelers out to end the American conflict. Arnold distraught moved to Canada with Peggy in an attempt to reestablish his maritime successes of earlier. He loaned out great amounts of money to various loyalist families that had relocated from the colonies, but when he ran into financial hardship no one would pay him back. He was forced to move back to London with Peggy and their four sons in 1792. Arnold spent his time in London attempting to make a successful go at West Indies trade, and with the coming of the French Revolution a command. Despite having backing from Clinton and Cornwallis, Arnold lacked the social connections to make a command a reality. He died on June 14 1801 a pauper and with almost no fanfare. While on his deathbed it is said that he asked God for his forgiveness in betraying the Patriot cause, he was dressed in his Continental uniform and buried in the crypt of St. Mary's Church, Battersea, London.
Legacy
Arnold attempted to justify his actions in an open letter entitled "To the Inhabitants of America". In a letter to his former friend Washington, he stated, "love to my country actuates my present conduct, however it may appear inconsistent to the world, who very seldom judge right of any man's actions."
Benedict Arnold is a paradoxical figure in American history. While there can be no doubt as to his venality and treason, neither can there be doubt as to his crucial role in the Battle of Saratoga, and thus the Revolution. It was Saratoga which persuaded the French, who had been skeptical of the colonists' effectiveness as a military force, to intervene in the war on the American side. This alliance tipped the balance of arms and ensured the ultimate American victory.
External links
- Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online
- Some details from ushistory.org
- Biographical profile of Arnold written in the 1880s
- Another biography - with more ancestry details
- Biographical sketch by a contemporary, reflecting American sentiment towards Arnold
Benedict Arnold ORIGINAL
- For other people of the same name, see Benedict Arnold (disambiguation).
Benedict Arnold V (January 14, 1741–June 14, 1801) was a general in the Continental Army who defected to the British side during the American Revolutionary War. Serving with the American Patriots he became well known for leading successful campaigns and winning battles, but he gradually became disgruntled. This began with his not receiving what he felt was due credit in a raid on Fort Ticonderoga. Some five years later, in 1780, he plotted with the British to take control of the fort at West Point, New York, which would have given the British control of the Hudson River and split the colonies in half. The plot was thwarted, but Arnold successfully avoided capture by Continental forces. Shortly thereafter, he was given a commission in the British Army, and was eventually elevated to the rank of general. His name is a colloquial synonym for "traitor" in the United States, much like Quisling in Norway, or Pétain in France.
Pre-Revolutionary War life
Arnold was born to Benedict Arnold IV and Hannah Waterman King in Norwich, Connecticut and named after his great-grandfather, who was an early colonial governor of Rhode Island. He was born the second of six children. Only Arnold and his sister Hannah survived to adulthood, the others having succumed to outbreaks of yellow fever. Arnold grew up in a well to do Norwich family, due mostly to his mother's family and contacts. The family was financially sound untill Arnold's father made several bad business deals which caused the family to become in debt. Arnold's father turned to alcohol to solve his problems, and after two years of alcoholism and lack of income Arndold was withdrawn from school at age fourteen because the family could no longer afford the cost. Arnold was being prepared for college most likely at Yale College.
His father's ill health prevented him from training his son in the family mercantile business. Fortunately for the young Benedict his mother's family connections secured for him an apprenticeship with two of her cousins who were brothers, Daniel Lathrop and Joshua Lathrop who were both graduates of Yale. The two ran a successful apothecary and general merchandise trade in New Haven. Arnold spent the years between 1756 to 1760 as an apprentice.
Sources are not clear, but Arnold may have joined the Norwich militia in August of 1757 during the French and Indian War. The unit that Arnold was assigned to retreated back to Norwich and disbanded after a battle near the British held Fort William Henry which was captured by a French force under the command of the Canadian governor Louis Joseph Marquis de Montcalm.
The remaining years of Arnold's apprenticeship had interruptions. His mother who he was especially close to died in 1759 and although not living in Norwich took over the responsibilities of looking after his sick father and younger sister. His father's alchoholism became worse after the death of his wife and he was arrested on several occasions for public drunkeness and refused communion by his church. His father died in 1761 and with his death the then twenty-one year old Benedict Arnold was given the resolve to return his family name back to the elevated status it once enjoyed.
The Lathrops were not new to establishing family members as protégés and in 1761 they financed Arnold to open his own apothecary in New Haven. The gave him key connections in the New England trading network and added him and his business into their growing mercantile network.
Arnold knew how to run a business and his open stances against Britain led New Havenites to reward him with their business. He often allowed his customers to buy on credit when pressed for cash and was known to keep close relations with his clintele. Arnold became bored with running his business and looked for ways to expand his trading network. In 1763 he bought back his family homstead which his father had sold when deeply in debt, but changed his mind and sold it for a substantial profit in 1764. In 1764 he formed a partnership with Adam Babcock another young New Haven merchant. He used the money from selling his homestead and together the two bought three trading ships and by 1765 through West Indies trade the two were raking in huge profits. It was at this time that he brought his sister Hannah to New Haven to run his apothecary for him.
The Stamp Act of 1765 brought mercantile trade in the colonies to a screeching halt. Arnold did not participate in an public demonstrations, but like many merchants did by 1766 conducted trade as if the Stamp Act was no in effect. on January 31 of 1767 Arnold was arrested for an incident where he and his crew roughed up a smuggling informant. He was fined fifty shillings for disturbing the peace. Arnold participated in demonstrations on the night of the 31st in New Haven and gave a rousing speech denouncing the various acts of the British Parliament and participated in the burning of effigies of local crown officials.
Over the following years the various acts of parliament forced many New England merchants out of business. Arnold came near to personal ruin being in debt of 15,000 pound sterling by the end of 1766. Arnold continued his anti-act activities which led him into contact with his future father-in-law Samuel Mansfield. Arnold met and quickly fell in love with Margaret Mansfield who he married on February 27 1767. He like his father married into a richer more elite family than his own.
Arnold developed a profitable trading venture in the West Indies with Samuel Mansfield. Margaret died an untimely death in 1775 of an unknown illness, but bore Arnold three sons before her death. Margaret worked closely with Arnold's sister Hannah in running the mercantile business while Benedict was at sea. During their marriage Arnold was rarely home, he spent much of their marriage trading between Quebec and the West Indies.
Arnold was involved in a duel in the West Indies with a captain Croskie who he met in the Bay of Honduras. Arnold was invited to a social gathering of Croskie's, but could not attend. Arnold apologized to Croskie the next day and explained his circumstances. Croskie would not accept the apology and called Arnold a "dammed Yankee, destitute of good manners or those of a gentleman". Arnold was shocked by the rudeness and challanged Croskie to a duel. The captain missed and Arnold wounded the captain slightly. A second duel was challaned, but Croskie refused and apologized to Arnold, a handshake ended the affair.
Arnold was in the West Indies when the Boston Massacre occured on March 15 1770, but later wrote that he was "very much shocked" and wrote "good God; are the Americans all asleep and tamely giving up their liberties, or are they all turned philosophers, that they don't take immeadiate vengeance on such miscreants". He was himself very much aware of the growing British presence in the colonies. The statement of his shows his original sentiment as an American patriot and unwillingess to allow the mother country to meddle in American affairs.
Wartime career
In late 1774 sixty-five New Haven residents including Arnold furnished themselves with weapons and hired a military expert to direct their training. They trained through the winter and in March 1775 Connecticut officials made the group the Governor’s 2nd Company of Guards. They were authorized to elect their own officers and Arnold was chosen as their captain. He was chosen for his firm beliefs in American liberty despite his inexperience. He treated his captainship as if he were preparing for war, continuing their training and exercises. When news reached New Haven on Friday, April 21 of the battles at Lexington and Concord, Arnold called a meeting of his company and voted to leave for Massachusetts the next morning, after admitting a few Yale students into the guard to boost their numbers.
The company assembled on New Haven Green the next morning to a crowd of several hundred citizens cheering, but many members lacked powder and weapons. The town fathers had refused to grant access to the New Haven magazine, but through some intimidation by Arnold and his company received the keys. The company quickly set off to Massachusetts among hurrahs and cheers from the New Haven populace. On the road Arnold ran into Colonel Samuel Holden Parsons who told Arnold of the shortage of cannons and other weapons the American camp near Boston Massachusetts and the two of them noted the number of brass cannons in the dilapidated Fort Ticonderoga. They parted way, Parsons quickly made his way to Hartford where he a handful of provincial leaders took money from the treasury to establish a force to take the fort under the command of Captain Edward Mott who was to link up with Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys.
When Arnold arrived in Cambridge he convinced the Massachusetts officials to fund an expedition to take the fort. They made him a Colonel in the Massachusetts militia and gave him among other things ten horses and several captains under his command to ride across Massachusetts and raise an army to take the fort. The same day that Arnold and his captains rode off the forces of Mott and Allen met up in Bennington. As his captains mustered troops, Arnold rode north to find Allen to try to take command of the operation citing his official Colonelship. He met Allen and Allen agreed to allow Arnold to head the column citing his commission.
Arnold led his men to Ticonderoga and they assaulted the fortress on May 10 1775 in the early hours of morning. By all accounts the assault lasted approximately ten minutes and ended with a confrontation between the commanding officer Captain Delaplace, Allen and Arnold. The fort was taken in a bloodless fight, but as soon as the battle was over Allen usurped Arnold and took control of the force leaving Arnold with nothing for the time being as Allen and his men controlled the fort, but soon the men began to drift off back to their farmlands. Before the desertions, fifty Green Mountain Boys had seized the fort at Crown Point.
Crown Point and Ticonderoga yielded together 201 cannons, 100 of which were useable and sent back to George Washington who positioned them on the Dorchester Heights overlooking Boston. The presence of these weapons even though they lacked powder and ammunition forced the British army under General Thomas Gage to evacuate Boston. The force retreated by sea to Nova Scotia in March 1776.
By May 14, Arnold wrote to the Massachusetts commission that he had sufficient volunteers to claim ownership of both forts. Allen’s men had been decreasing by the day and this only cemented Arnold’s hold as more Massachusetts volunteers arrived daily. He also wrote that the force should take further steps to secure Lake Champlain, because the British could easily bring a force down from Canada. He outlined a plan to take Fort St. Johns twenty-five miles into Canada; Arnold’s luck appeared when a friend, Captain Oswald appeared at Ticonderoga with a captured British sloop which he later christened Enterprise. He set off with a sloop he christened Liberty and two smaller vessels, to capture a seventy ton schooner at Fort St. Johns . Arnold was able to capture the ship and five smaller vessels with no casualties. In the process he relieved his force of the Crown Point and Ticonderoga prisoners before setting off back across Lake Champlain, where he lost no time in repairing the forts, taking inventory of armaments and training crews for his two new warships. Arnold maintained this command and rebuilding process over the next several months until he resigned in protest the appointment of a superior officer to the Crown Point and Ticonderoga forts.
Shortly after his resignation Arnold learned of the plans for a Canadian invasion led by Philip Schuyler, which disappointed Arnold because he was not given the command. On July 4 1775 Arnold rode for Albany with the hopes of reaching Schuyler and convincing him to allow Arnold a command in his force. Unbeknown to Arnold, Schuyler had formed a positive impression of Arnold based on reports of Arnold compatriots, and a former business partner of Arnold’s who was a good friend of Schuyler. As Arnold neared Albany he had no idea how Schuyler would receive him, and was lucky that he was already an Arnold advocate. Just before he left he learned of the death of Margaret and was forced to make a stop in New Haven to ensure the welfare of his children, asking Hannah to serve as a surrogate mother which she accepted. Arnold met up with Schuyler who immediately used his contacts in Massachusetts politics to rally support for Arnold while the two were in Watertown.
In the middle of August Arnold left Watertown and made his way to Cambridge with the intention of meeting General Washington who was the newly appointed commander of the Continental army. Washington was well aware of Arnold’s impressive, but notorious performance in the Champlain region, and particularly Arnold’s outspoken calls for an invasion of Canada. In Cambridge Arnold was able to make a favorable impression of him based on a report on the armaments situation in the Northern Theater in a letter to congress which had swayed congress to give Washington the funds to improve the situation of the army. Arnold presented a solid argument for himself to lead a second force in unison with Schuyler’s, to descend on Quebec City from Maine. On September 5 1775 Washington called for volunteers for this expedition, and the next day Arnold found himself overwhelmed by the number of patriots ready to fight. Arnold was able to select from this body the men he found most suitable for use numbering approximately 1,050. More importantly Washington secured for Arnold a Colonels commission in the Continental army, which of course carried a great amount of weight compared to his Massachusetts militia commission.
The force left Cambridge on September 15 1775 after having been quickly assembled and put on fifteen schooners to set sail for Maine. Arnold himself rode by horseback to Salem to procure for his force 270 blankets and 200 pounds of ginger before proceeding to Newburyport where he met up with the flotilla carrying his troops and continued the journey by sea to Gardinerston Maine and would arrive on September 22. Meanwhile at Colburn carpenters hastily built 200 flat bottomed bateaux, which would be transported via the Kennebec and then Chaudiere rivers to Quebec City and used after the capture of the city to travel down the St. Lawrence River to meet up with Schuyler’s force attacking Montreal. Arnold met Samuel Goodwin who knew the Maine wilderness that Arnold would have to travel through and arranged for him to be the guide.
The expedition finally reached the St. Lawrence and on November 9 after an arduous journey made more difficult by a rare late season hurricane and food shortages. In the process Arnold’s force lost over 150 bateaux and was reduced to 650 men. The British had been warned of Arnold’s approach and destroyed every serviceable watercraft on the southern shore and had both warships in the vicinity on constant patrol; the frigate Lizard (twenty-six guns) and the sloop of war Hunter (sixteen guns). Arnold sent his officers into the riverside communities to procure canoes of which they collected twenty-six and later found twenty craft which the British had missed. Late on November 11 the force was able to cross the river and make a move towards the city. Arnold’s intention was the keep the defending force reasonably restricted until his counterpart force led by Schuyler’s subordinate Montgomery could meet up with him at the city. Arnold let Montgomery know of his plans through several messages all but one intercepted by the British unbeknownst to Arnold. In the meantime Schuyler’s force captured Montreal and immediately sent off Montgomery and his column to assist Arnold. Arnold held his position and Montgomery finally arrived on December 1 1775, the two forces combined amounting to 1,325 soldiers versus a mounting number of Québécois defenders numbering approximately 2,100. Arnold on December 15 attempted negotiations with Governor Carelton of the city and the commanding General Cramahé for their surrender guaranteeing safe passage back to England, they refused to accept any meeting with Arnold. Meanwhile Arnold moved his force into the unfortified section of the city and had two methods of weakening the defenders other than an assault. He had his riflemen position themselves in buildings surrounding the fortified section to snipe off soldiers on the ramparts, which they were quite effective at doing. The civilians stayed in the city, and thus the defenders of the fort would not shell the rebels holding the unfortified sections. The second method was a section of two artillery batteries which Arnold positioned north of the city to shell the fort; it is unknown where he acquired the pieces approximately twenty-four in number. The battery was short lived as the British inside the fort were able to use their heavier artillery against the poorly dug in position.
The force continued to maintain the partial siege of the city and prepared to assault on December 31. Arnold was fortunate that several hundred reinforcements arrived from the New York militia arrived days before the scheduled assault boosting the moral of the troops that had been on constant campaign for nearly four months. The attack began at 4 a.m. amid a heavy snowstorm and high winds, but the rebels received little resistance at first. Arnold leading a column towards the fort suddenly came under fire from a hail of musket balls, one slicing through his lower left leg. Arnold was overcome with faintness and carried off to a field hospital worried that he would die never knowing the outcome of the battle. Arnold learned of the unfortunate death of Montgomery as the patriots slowly pushed their way forward, he was killed when struck by a cannon ball never knowing that the Continental Congress just promoted him to major general. Also on December 31, not knowing of the debacle unfolding the continental congress promoted Arnold to brigadier general.
Arnold on January 2 1776 finally learned the fate of his column; his entire force he had brought from Maine was killed or captured. All that now remained under his command were what was left of Montgomery’s troops, the 250 New Yorkers and 100 Canadian volunteers. Arnold decided that retreat was the least favorable option because of the trust that Schuyler and Washington had put in him and his Quebec plan. He decided for the time being to maintain his partial siege as best as possible. Arnold informed the garrison at Montreal of the situation and they sent off 200 men to join Arnold’s force, in addition the congress after having heard of the disaster and Arnold’s plans to hold on were convinced by an outspoken Samuel Adams backed up by General Washington to raise a sizeable force to relieve Arnold and take Quebec. Reinforcements began showing up daily to join the force raising Arnold’s force by mid March to 1,794, and by the end of March the force number 2,505, but 786 were unfit for duty due to smallpox, but the Quebec defenders were suffering more heavily. General Wooster arrived from Montreal on April 1 and informed Arnold that he was taking command of the theater, allowing Arnold to retire back to Montreal seeing no more use for himself in Quebec.
Arnold’s time spent at Montreal was largely uneventful other than a visit by Benjamin Franklin on April 29 to determine the amount of money needed to maintain and strengthen the Montreal Theater. Arnold left Montreal on May 12 for Sorel where he would assist in the assemblage of volunteers. His force amounted to 450 men by May 24 when a combined British and Native American force arrived, but Arnold and his officers decided to remain on the defensive behind entrenchments. The British force then proceeded to negotiate with Arnold for a prisoner exchange which he accepted, the British force then turning back towards Quebec. Arnold left for Montreal to acquire arms for his newly liberated prisoners and arrived back on June 13, just as a British force arrived on the northern bank of the St. Lawrence. Arnold ordered a retreat back to Fort St. Johns and the British sought an active pursuit in hopes of engaging the patriot force in open battle where their outstanding training would pay off, though they would never receive their wish.
Arnold spent the remaining months of the summer at Fort St. Johns writing regular reports back to Albany and the Congress on the situation in his theater. He spent that time reinforcing the fort and building new fortifications and constantly requesting more men, money and artillery from congress. It is during this time that Arnold began construction of the Lake Champlain squadron, not knowing the size or strength of the British naval force massing for an eventual land-naval combined operation. By September 1 Arnold had moved his flotilla into the northernmost part of the lake to take up a defensive position ten miles south of the mouth of the Richelieu River. The river was the main artery into British controlled territory, there they would wait for the as of yet unprepared British fleet. During this period several more ships arrived from various points on the lake to join Arnold’s flotilla. By September 6, the British fleet commanded by Cramahé had assemble a fleet capable of crushing the Americans, including a ship that was enormous compared to other inland waterway craft, the Inflexible mounting 18 12-pounders. C ramahé finally made his move on October 4, moving down the river to engage Arnold’s flotilla which he encountered on October 11. Arnold ordered his fleet forward led by his flagship The Congress, the wind favored him and he was able to rush forward with his most powerful four ships and cause the British fleet to scatter in all directions. The British entered the situation with a great deal of overconfidence which proved to Arnold’s benefit once the British fleet scattered and he moved the rest of his fleet in. The schooner Royal Savage ran aground and Cramahé’s ships moved in to pound it without mercy effectively destroying the ship. This only spurred the British on and they attempted to move in, but the wind was highly unfavorable, they managed however to turn exposing their full broadside to the American lines. At the height of the battle an American shot broke the spring line of the Carleton the British flag ship and the bow began to drift into the American lines, Arnold quickly ordered all fire onto the vessel and a hail of iron tore through the ship which began to list as if it might keel over. Cramahé ordered the ship to evacuate, but nothing happened at first; the captain Dacres being unconscious and his second officer having lost an arm. Finally two small schooners moved in and were able to pull the ship away from the American lines. The battle continued till 5p.m. when both sides moved back to a distance of approximately 700 yards. The battle has been called a draw and the American fleet retreated back to Crown Point by cover of darkness to replace the dead and wounded, repair ships and restock supplies.
Arnold’s fleet arrived back at Crown Point with the British close behind, but the British called off their pursuit not wanting to come within range of the heavy guns in the fortress. General Gates arrived at Crown Point on October 26 and relieved Arnold of his command ensuring him that he would receive a greater command soon, in the meantime he was sent back to Ticonderoga to maintain the fortification there. Despite Arnold’s achievements to date the opinions about him among several influential patriots were not positive. Unfortunately for Arnold there was no one present among the congressional delegates in late 1776 to shed a positive and accurate light on his achievements.
Meanwhile by late November George Washington’s army was in full retreat across New Jersey fleeing General Howe who had given Washington’s army a rather heavy thrashing, causing concern for patriots that the war may be lost. Word reached Ticonderoga and Gates immediately set sail down the Hudson river with eight regiments with the intention of joining Washington. Arnold left Ticonderoga and caught up with Gates and his force who had reached Bethlehem Pennsylvania on December 15. Gates allowed his soldier the rest for three days and Washington welcomed the first of the Ticonderoga troops into his Bucks county camp on Sunday the 21st, four days before his raid on the Hessians across the Delaware river. Arnold on his way to Washington’s camp ran into a courier who had a letter ordering Arnold to make haste for New England because the British had moved into Rhode Island. Arnold quickly made his way to see Washington and then was able to make his way back to New Haven after having been away for almost two years. He was joyfully welcomed by his three sons and his sister Hannah, where in New Haven he waited for his orders and the military situation in New England to unfold.
Arnold spent a little over a week of the new year in New Haven due to the unknown situation in Rhode Island rode off for Providence, at thirty-six he still considered himself a youthful patriot able to carry the fight on, under the command of General Spencer. On December 8 1776 a sizeable British force under General Clinton captured Newport and spent the remaining months of the winter inactive, it would be Arnold’s job to dislodge them. Arnold arrived in Providence on January 12 and immediately after gathering sufficient intelligence penned a letter to Washington informing him of Clinton’s soon departure for England and British preparations for the Rhode Island force to depart for New York possibly. Arnold was made the deputy commander of all North East Colony troops which amounted to the six colonies north of New York; unfortunately for Arnold he had only 2,000 troops in the Rhode Island vicinity versus 15,000 redcoats in Newport and all troops for the time being were slated for Washington’s army. Secondly Arnold was passed up for a promotion in January when twelve other Brigadiers were promoted, he was cautioned by George Washington to not be brash and allow time to take its course.
In mid April Arnold grew discontent with the lack of action in Providence and bid farewell to General Spencer, he rode for New Haven where he would prepare to ride for Philadelphia to see Congress. He was preparing to leave on April 26 when a courier came into New Haven with shocking news; a large British force of 2,000 under the command of General Tryon had landed in Norwalk Connecticut and was preparing to march inland, most likely to Danbury a major supply depot for the Continental Army. Arnold immediately left New Haven with several friends to ride off across Connecticut to call for volunteers. The party was only able to raise about 100 volunteers, but was joined by militia General Gold S. Silliman who had mustered a force of 500 volunteers from eastern Connecticut. The British force reached Danbury that Afternoon. Arnold and his fellow officers moved their force near Danbury so they could adequately monitor the British columns. Tryon’s intention was to destroy the ammunition depot at Danbury and then head back out to sea; it would be Arnold’s task to intercept them. By 11 a.m. on April 27 General Wooster’s column had caught up with Tryon’s rear guard in an attempt to delay the British while Arnold moved his force into their return path. The delay gave Arnold the time to situate his troops behind a series of fences and stone walls on a farm outside Ridgefield Connecticut.
Tryon’s column arrived in an organized fashion around 3 p.m. in front of Arnold’s position. Tryon ordered an immediate assault expecting the lines to break easily, his force of 2,000 was overwhelming for the patriots with 500, but much to his surprise the patriots held. Tryon then ordered outflanking parties to go forth and under withering fire from right and left flanks the patriots broke and ran. Arnold in a desperate attempt rode back and forth among his troops brandishing his sword in an attempt to rally a rear guard. Arnold’s horse suddenly collapsed having been hit by nine musket balls trapping Arnold’s leg beneath the dying horse. A nearby enemy soldier having just mounted a wall supposedly shouted to Arnold “Surrender! You are my prisoner!” Arnold’s reply was “Not yet,” and shot the soldier with his pistol and then freed himself from the dead horse. He managed to limp off into a local swamp amid musket fire able to fight another day.
Tryon was confident that he had destroyed all patriot opposition and could spend the night at Ridgefield burying his dead and tending to the wounded. Meanwhile Arnold lost no time in reorganizing his force throughout the night and assembled his column at a point two miles north of Norwalk between two roads, the British having to take one of them to get back to the coast. Arnold would be ready no matter which road they took to attack their flank and rear. Tryon was well informed to Arnold’s plan by local loyalists and he moved his column accordingly, breaking his column in two and moved one towards Arnold’s position and the other taking the southern road as bate for Arnold. Tryon’s intention was not to fight a pitched battle, but only to disperse the rebels waiting for him. Arnold’s force found out about the situation too late to move into a more suitable position and Tryon’s force escaped Connecticut with little harassment after Ridgefield.
Arnold left General Silliman in command and journeyed to Philadelphia to meet with congressional members arriving on May 16 to the cheers of enthusiastic citizens. Arnold’s intention was to clear his good name and tell congress all of his thoughts and plans for the New England Theater. Over the next several days he met with various delegates and stayed in the home of John Adams on the 21st. Schuyler was also in Philadelphia at this time trying to clear his name with congress over the fighting in Canada the previous year. When Schuyler left for New York this left Arnold as the ranking officer in the Philadelphia region and he quickly took command of the forces there. Congress quickly took this command away from him, appointing a junior brigadier from Pennsylvania, General Mifflin. It seemed to Arnold that no matter what he did congress didn’t want him no matter how determined he was to fight for the cause of liberty. Arnold would remain in the capitol until he became fed up with the situation and handed in his letter of resignation to the Pennsylvania State House on July 11, while at that time an urgent telegram was on its way from Washington requesting Arnold be posted to the Northern Theater upon his learning of the fall of Ticonderoga.
Arnold left Philadelphia on July 15 and joined Washington on the 17th at his southern Hudson headquarters. A large British force was moving south from Canada after the fall of Crown Point and Ticonderoga. Schuyler then in command of the Northern Theater was having trouble mustering volunteers and Washington wanted Arnold to raise an army, Arnold rode for New York at once. He arrived in Albany on July, 21st with little fanfare, but was rather well briefed by General Schuyler on the situation, including the entire troop strength in New England being only 6,359, with two serviceable artillery pieces. The British force moving down from Canada comprised nearly 3,500 troops commanded by General Burgoyne which intended to meet up with another force of 3,025 Hessians that had been sent as a diversionary force earlier under General von Riedesel.
Arnold sent out several captains to call up volunteers and by July 27 they had been successful in raising another 750 men. The patriots were gathering their force in Albany should Howe attack North instead of South towards Philadelphia. Howe had been holed up in New York for the winter and seemed to have a problem separating from the social life he encountered there. The force under Burgoyne and the troops that Howe had could prove to be very dangerous if used in combined operations. Arnold spent the remainder of July and August in Albany as Schuyler’s junior officer organizing the volunteers that arrived.
In late August Arnold moved a force out to Fort Schuyler with the eventual intention of utterly destroying Burgoyne’s force which had by this time been cut off from Canada. By September 15 Burgoyne’s force was on the move towards Albany, several Patriot deserters had informed him of the rebel disposition. The rebels by that time had been placing entrenchments eight miles south of Saratoga, which Burgoyne was privy to this information. Arnold moved out at dawn of the 16th with a column of 3,000 soldiers to asses the situation of Burgoyne’s force. His force then pulled back by evening to the Bremis Heights encampments after having fought several localized skirmishes throughout the day mostly intended to probe the strength of the British column. By this time von Riedesel met up with Burgoyne and their force numbered over 6,000. The intention was to engage in battle on the 19th and destroy the rebel force through flanking maneuvers and their superior numbers would be of great benefit, the plan was an exact copy of the successful assault on Ticonderoga.
The Battle for Freeman’s Farm commenced near 10 a.m.. On the 19th British artillery battery fired a salvo signaling to the three British columns facing the American positions to commence their attack. Arnold, commanding the left wing of the American forces, ordered Colonel Morgan to assault the British while they were still advancing in separate columns. Morgan charged into General Fraser's column and inflicted severe casualties, they were then forced back across the field. Arnold sent forward two more brigades to support Morgan and Arnold's reinforced line repulsed the British attack with severe losses. Arnold was angered at Gates for not sending in reinforcements to break the British lines. Arnold was then relieved of his command. Although they had to leave the field, the Americans had halted Burgoyne's advance and inflicted heavy losses on the British.
Arnold although relieved of his command participated in the following battle that made up Saratoga, effectively leading troops into battle he had no authority to command. Over the next several weeks Arnold and Gates exchanged harsh language via the pen and both wrote reports back to congress lambasting the other and painting themselves as heroes. Arnold ended up in a hospital due to another horse being shot out from under him and spent much time at that location. The new year showed some improvement in his health, but he had during his hospital time begun his distrust of the congress and the patriot cause. While in Philadelphia by the end of March he met Peggy Shippen the daughter of Judge Edward Shippen. Peggy had been courted by Major John André when the British were in control of Philadelphia. Arnold and Shippen wed quickly on April 8, 1779.
By June, Arnold finally received a new command when Washington again made him the commander of the Philadelphia region. Arnold accepted his post, but with a sense of diminished liberty and service to the congress that had betrayed him before. He decided that while in Philadelphia he would no longer parlay with the congress peacefully, but at every turn attempt to undermine their authority and smear their good names. He truly felt that ingratitude for his accomplishments and the accomplishments of the so many others who had died were unnoticed by congress. It was in June when he learned of the Franco-American alliance, but felt that the French were just as much enemies as the British harking back to the Seven Years War.
Arnold was in command of Philadelphia for some time until so incredibly fed up with the situation he wrote to Washington begging for a reassignment. Washington offered him a post in the field, but Arnold refused demanding to take command at the fort at West Point in August 1780. Partially incapacitated, Arnold had used his leg injuries to secure a position as head of the fort at West Point. In September he negotiated with Clinton to hand over the American fort to the British for 20,000 sterling. His plans were discovered when his courier, Major André, was captured on September 23, with documents that incriminated Arnold.
Arnold fled to the British who made him a Brigadier General, but never really trusted him although he saw some command in the American theater. In December under orders from Clinton, Arnold led a force of 1,600 troops into Virginia and succeeded in capturing Richmond and cutting off the major artery of material to the southern patriot effort. In the Southern theater Lord Cornwallis was able to march northwards towards Yorktown which he moved into in May 1781. Arnold meanwhile had been sent north to capture the town of New London Connecticut in hopes that it would divert Washington away from Cornwallis. While in Connecticut his force captured Fort Griswold and murdered dozens of captured rebel soldiers on September 8. In December Arnold was recalled to England with various other officers as the crown deemphasized the American theater over more probable wins in others.
Arnold’s goal in England was to convince Imperial leaders to not give up the fight inspite the loss of Cornwallis at Yorktown. While in London he met with various cabinet officers and King George III to try and convince them to carry on the war effort. He was like at Quebec too late, the Crown was already sending peace feelers out to end the American conflict. Arnold distraught moved to Canada with Peggy in an attempt to reestablish his maritime successes of earlier. He loaned out great amounts of money to various loyalist families that had relocated from the colonies, but when he ran into financial hardship no one would pay him back. He was forced to move back to London with Peggy and their four sons in 1792. Arnold spent his time in London attempting to make a successful go at West Indies trade, and with the coming of the French Revolution a command. Despite having backing from Clinton and Cornwallis, Arnold lacked the social connections to make a command a reality. He died on June 14 1801 a pauper and with almost no fanfare. While on his deathbed it is said that he asked God for his forgiveness in betraying the Patriot cause, he was dressed in his Continental uniform and buried in the crypt of St. Mary's Church, Battersea, London.
Legacy
Arnold attempted to justify his actions in an open letter entitled "To the Inhabitants of America". In a letter to his former friend Washington, he stated, "love to my country actuates my present conduct, however it may appear inconsistent to the world, who very seldom judge right of any man's actions."
Benedict Arnold is a paradoxical figure in American history. While there can be no doubt as to his venality and treason, neither can there be doubt as to his crucial role in the Battle of Saratoga, and thus the Revolution. It was Saratoga which persuaded the French, who had been skeptical of the colonists' effectiveness as a military force, to intervene in the war on the American side. This alliance tipped the balance of arms and ensured the ultimate American victory.