[41], Arnold was on his way to Philadelphia to discuss his future when he was alerted that a British force was marching toward a supply depot in Danbury, Connecticut. The house where Arnold lived at 62 Gloucester Place in central London bears a plaque describing him as an "American Patriot". He then presented the attack of Fort Ticonderoga. Arnold had the power to act, to defy the stresses of business and the dangers of the battlefield; but Peggy had the power to endure. While Benedict Arnold escaped to British-occupied New York, where he was protected from punishment. "No," he replied, and after a few moments of silence, noticing my surprise, he added, "I am perhaps the only American who cannot give you letters for his own country all the relations I had there are now broken I must never return to the States." For several years before he . What happened to Benedict Arnold after he betrayed the Continental Army to the British? Peggy came from a loyalist family in Philadelphia; she had many ties to the British. It just doesn't respect it", "Letter, Benedict Arnold to George Washington pleading for mercy for his wife", "Benedict Arnold: The Aftermath of Treason", "Saratoga National Historical Park Activities", "Saratoga National Historical Park Tour Stop 7", links to primary sources about Benedict Arnold before and after his treason, Arnold, Benedict (17411801), army officer | Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness, Washington's crossing of the Delaware River, African Americans in the Revolutionary War, Intelligence in the American Revolutionary War, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Benedict_Arnold&oldid=1139478021, 18th-century American non-fiction writers, American expatriates in the United Kingdom, British Army personnel of the American Revolutionary War, British people of the French Revolutionary Wars, British spies during the American Revolution, Businesspeople from New Haven, Connecticut, Connecticut militiamen in the American Revolution, Continental Army officers from Connecticut, Continental Army personnel who were court-martialed, Military personnel from Norwich, Connecticut, People of Connecticut in the French and Indian War, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2019, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia pages semi-protected against vandalism, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2020, All articles with broken links to citations, Pages using Sister project links with hidden wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Benedict Arnold (17681795) (Captain, British Army in Jamaica), Henry Arnold (17721826) (Lieutenant, American Legion cavalry), Edward Shippen Arnold (17801813) (Lieutenant, British Army in India; see, James Robertson Arnold (17811854) (Lieutenant General, Royal Engineers), George Arnold (17871828) (Lieutenant Colonel, 2nd (or 7th) Bengal Cavalry). [35], During these actions, Arnold made a number of friends and a larger number of enemies within the army power structure and in Congress. BENEDICT ARNOLD REMAINS the most notorious man in American history, his name a synonym for traitor. 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. Born in 1867 in Hanley, Staffordshire (part of the famous 'Potteries' and now a district of Stoke-on-Trent), Enoch Arnold Bennett was named after his father, a solicitor. [48] However, he interpreted the manner in which they did so as an act of sympathy for his wounds, and not an apology or recognition that they were righting a wrong. [148] He was buried at St Mary's Church, Battersea, England which has a commemorative stained glass window. [6] With the outbreak of the French Revolution, Arnold outfitted a privateer, while continuing to do business in the West Indies, even though the hostilities increased the risk. After organizing an assemblage of volunteers, he seized munitions from the New Haven arsenal and led his group northward to fight the British. Arnold commanded the army only until May 20, when Lord Cornwallis arrived with the southern army and took over. The band played a funeral march. The fort was finally captured by the British in 1759. [8] His siblings were, in order of birth: Benedict (17381739), Hannah (17421803), Mary (17451753), Absolom (17471750), and Elizabeth (17491755). Their friendship became the foundation for the treason for which Peggy's. 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. This monument was erected under the patronage of the State of Connecticut in the 55th year of the Independence of the U.S.A. in memory of the brave patriots massacred at Fort Griswold near this spot on the 6th of Sept. [89] Eventually, a meeting was set for September 11 near Dobb's Ferry. By early July, he was back in Philadelphia, where he wrote another secret message to Clinton on July 7 which implied that his appointment to West Point was assured and that he might even provide a "drawing of the works by which you might take [West Point] without loss". 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. He also provided information on a proposed French-American invasion of Quebec that was to go up the Connecticut River (Arnold did not know that this proposed invasion was a ruse intended to divert British resources). He was a general that preferred to lead in the front then the back, always riding his horse into battle alongside his men. Later he became infamous for being a traitor, fighting for the British. His chaplain Rev. [88], On August 30, Arnold sent a letter accepting Clinton's terms and proposing a meeting to Andr through yet another intermediary: William Heron, a member of the Connecticut Assembly whom he thought he could trust. [133] George Canning Hill authored a series of moralistic biographies in the mid-19th century and began his 1865 biography of Arnold: "Benedict, the Traitor, was born". 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. attended Canterbury for a while, but when the family's money was lost in some bad business dealings, he had to leave school. In his martial success, he became the target of jealous mediocrities. [141] Historian Barry Wilson points out that Arnold's descendants established deep roots in Canada, becoming leading settlers in Upper Canada and Saskatchewan. 1.Saint Benedict was a teenager when he became a monk. [127] His funeral procession boasted "seven mourning coaches and four state carriages";[103] the funeral was without military honors. She was a close friend of British major John Andr and kept in contact with him when he became head of the British espionage system in New York. AD 1781, when the British, under the command of the Traitor Benedict Arnold, burnt the towns of New London and Groton and spread desolation and woe throughout the region. Needed repairs were never ordered on the chain across the Hudson. [31], Arnold was in the West Indies when the Boston Massacre took place on March 5, 1770. He led the British army in battle against the soldiers whom he had once commanded, after which his name became, and has remained, synonymous with treason and betrayal in the United States.[2]. [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. His first name was actually Enoch. Benedict Arnold Is America's Most Famous Traitor. He would be an apprentice in the mercantile trade for seven years. In 1775, when the war began, he was a merchant operating ships in the Atlantic Ocean. By the time that he was 14, there was no money for private education. His difficult time in New Brunswick led historians to summarize it as full of "controversy, resentment, and legal entanglements" and to conclude that he was disliked by both Americans and Loyalists living there. Benedict Arnold was unhappy with his position in the Continental Army by the time he betrayed the cause of the American Revolution to the British. [103] Legend has it that, when he was on his deathbed, he said, "Let me die in this old uniform in which I fought my battles. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. [114] His reputation also came under criticism in the British press, especially when compared to Major Andr who was celebrated for his patriotism. One colonel wrote to Clinton concerning Arnold: "There are many officers who must wish some other general in command. He wrote that he was "very much shocked" and wondered "good God, are the Americans all asleep and tamely giving up their liberties, or are they all turned philosophers, that they don't take immediate vengeance on such miscreants? Because of the constant agony of two battlefield wounds in an already gout-ridden leg? The British withdrew from Philadelphia in June 1778, and Washington appointed Arnold military commander of the city. John Andr was executed for spying. The first major biography of his life was The Life and Treason of Benedict Arnold, published in 1832 by historian Jared Sparks; it was particularly harsh in showing how Arnold's treacherous character was formed out of childhood experiences. [3] Arnold was buried at St. Mary's Church in Battersea, England. [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. 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. 5. He joined the growing American army outside of Boston, and distinguished himself by acts that demonstrated intelligence and bravery: In 1775, he captured Fort Ticonderoga. Unable to find a new military or. He had his leg crudely set, rather than allowing it to be amputated, leaving it 2 inches (5cm) shorter than the right. Arnold and his men went towards Boston. 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