91 Facts About Benedict Arnold

Benedict Arnold fought with distinction for the American Continental Army and rose to the rank of major general before defecting to the British side of the conflict in 1780.

Benedict Arnold 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.

Benedict Arnold joined the growing American army outside of Boston, and distinguished himself by acts that demonstrated intelligence and bravery: In 1775, he captured Fort Ticonderoga.

Benedict Arnold performed operations that provided the Americans with relief during the Siege of Fort Stanwix, and key actions during the pivotal 1777 Battles of Saratoga, in which he sustained leg injuries that put him out of combat career for several years.

Benedict Arnold repeatedly claimed that he was being passed over for promotion by the Continental Congress, and that other officers were being given credit for some of his accomplishments.

Benedict Arnold mingled with Loyalist sympathizers in Philadelphia and married into a Loyalist family when he wedded Peggy Shippen.

Benedict Arnold was a close friend of British major John Andre and kept in contact with him when he became head of the British espionage system in New York.

Benedict Arnold was well received by King George III and the Tories but frowned upon by the Whigs and most Army officers.

Benedict Arnold was extremely unpopular there and returned to London permanently in 1791, where he died ten years later.

Benedict Arnold's siblings were, in order of birth: Benedict, Hannah, Mary, Absolom, and Elizabeth.

Benedict Arnold's father was a successful businessman, and the family moved in the upper levels of Norwich society.

Benedict Arnold was enrolled in a private school in nearby Canterbury, Connecticut, when he was 10, with the expectation that he would eventually attend Yale College.

Benedict Arnold was very close to his mother, who died in 1759.

Benedict Arnold's father was arrested on several occasions for public drunkenness, was refused communion by his church, and died in 1761.

In 1755, Benedict Arnold was attracted by the sound of a drummer and attempted to enlist in the provincial militia for service in the French and Indian War, but his mother refused permission.

Benedict Arnold established himself in business in 1762 as a pharmacist and bookseller in New Haven, Connecticut, with the help of the Lathrops.

Benedict Arnold was hardworking and successful, and was able to rapidly expand his business.

Benedict Arnold traveled extensively in the course of his business throughout New England and from Quebec to the West Indies, often in command of one of his own ships.

The captain was wounded in the first exchange of gunfire, and he apologized when Benedict Arnold threatened to aim to kill on the second.

The Stamp Act prompted Benedict Arnold to join the chorus of voices in opposition, and led to his joining the Sons of Liberty, a secret organization which advocated resistance to those and other restrictive Parliamentary measures.

Benedict Arnold initially took no part in any public demonstrations but, like many merchants, continued to do business openly in defiance of the Parliamentary Acts, which legally amounted to smuggling.

Benedict Arnold was convicted of disorderly conduct and fined the relatively small amount of 50 shillings; publicity of the case and widespread sympathy for his views probably contributed to the light sentence.

Benedict Arnold is buried in the crypt of the Center Church on New Haven Green.

Benedict Arnold benefited from his relationship with Mansfield, who became a partner in his business and used his position as sheriff to shield him from creditors.

Benedict Arnold proposed an action to the Massachusetts Committee of Safety to seize Fort Ticonderoga in upstate New York, which he knew was poorly defended.

Benedict Arnold followed up that action with a bold raid on Fort Saint-Jean on the Richelieu River north of Lake Champlain.

Benedict Arnold then went to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and suggested to George Washington a second expedition to attack Quebec City via a wilderness route through Maine.

Benedict Arnold 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.

Benedict Arnold had disagreements with John Brown and James Easton, two lower-level officers with political connections that resulted in ongoing suggestions of improprieties on his part.

Brown was particularly vicious, publishing a handbill which claimed of Benedict Arnold, "Money is this man's God, and to get enough of it he would sacrifice his country".

Benedict Arnold took the opportunity to visit his children while near his home in New Haven, and he spent much of the winter socializing in Boston, where he unsuccessfully courted a young belle named Betsy Deblois.

Benedict Arnold organized the militia response, along with David Wooster and Connecticut militia General Gold Selleck Silliman.

Benedict Arnold 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.

Benedict Arnold then continued on to Philadelphia where he met with members of Congress about his rank.

Benedict Arnold sent an Indian messenger into the camp of British Brigadier General Barry St Leger with news that the approaching force was much larger and closer than it actually was; this convinced St Leger's Indian allies to abandon him, forcing him to give up the effort.

Benedict Arnold returned to the Hudson where General Gates had taken over command of the American army, which had retreated to a camp south of Stillwater.

Benedict Arnold then distinguished himself in both Battles of Saratoga, even though General Gates removed him from field command after the first battle, following a series of escalating disagreements and disputes that culminated in a shouting match.

Benedict Arnold was again severely wounded in the left leg late in the fighting.

Benedict Arnold said that it would have been better had it been in the chest instead of the leg.

Benedict Arnold had his leg crudely set, rather than allowing it to be amputated, leaving it 2 inches shorter than the right.

Benedict Arnold began planning to capitalize financially on the change in power in Philadelphia, even before the Americans reoccupied their city.

Benedict Arnold engaged in a variety of business deals designed to profit from war-related supply movements and benefiting from the protection of his authority.

Such schemes were not uncommon among American officers, but Benedict Arnold's schemes were sometimes frustrated by powerful local politicians such as Joseph Reed, who eventually amassed enough evidence to publicly air charges against him.

Benedict Arnold lived extravagantly in Philadelphia and was a prominent figure on the social scene.

Benedict Arnold had been badly wounded twice in battle and had lost his business in Connecticut, which made him profoundly bitter.

Benedict Arnold grew resentful of several rival and younger generals who had been promoted ahead of him and given honors which he thought he deserved.

Benedict Arnold was convicted of two minor charges of using his authority to make a profit.

Benedict Arnold later said in his own defense that he was loyal to his true beliefs, yet he lied at the same time by insisting that Peggy was totally innocent and ignorant of his plans.

Benedict Arnold knew that he was distrusted and disliked by senior military officers on both sides.

Washington was one of the few who genuinely liked and admired him, but Benedict Arnold thought that Washington had betrayed him.

Benedict Arnold exerted powerful influence on her husband, who is said to have been his own man but who actually was swayed by his staff and certainly by his wife.

Stansbury ignored instructions from Benedict Arnold to involve no one else in the plot, and he crossed the British lines and went to see Jonathan Odell in New York.

Letters were to be passed through the women's circle that Peggy Benedict Arnold was a part of, but only Peggy would be aware that some letters contained instructions that were to be passed on to Andre, written in both code and invisible ink, using Stansbury as the courier.

Benedict Arnold began to insist on a face-to-face meeting, and suggested to Arnold that he pursue another high-level command.

Benedict Arnold was rebuffed by Congress and by local authorities in requests for security details for himself and his in-laws.

Benedict Arnold reopened the secret channels with the British, informing them of Schuyler's proposals and including Schuyler's assessment of conditions at West Point.

Benedict Arnold provided information on a proposed French-American invasion of Quebec that was to go up the Connecticut River.

When he reached Connecticut, Benedict Arnold arranged to sell his home there and began transferring assets to London through intermediaries in New York.

Andre had spies and informers keeping track of Benedict Arnold to verify his movements.

Benedict Arnold's letters continued to detail Washington's troop movements and provide information about French reinforcements that were being organized.

Once Benedict Arnold established himself at West Point, he began systematically weakening its defenses and military strength.

Benedict Arnold then took the letter back to Connecticut, suspicious of Arnold's actions, where he delivered it to the head of the Connecticut militia.

Four days later, Benedict Arnold sent a ciphered letter with similar content into New York through the services of the wife of a prisoner of war.

Benedict Arnold wrote out passes for Andre so that he would be able to pass through the lines, and he gave him plans for West Point.

Benedict 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.

Benedict Arnold did investigate its extent, and suggested that he was willing to exchange Andre for Arnold during negotiations with Clinton concerning Andre's fate.

Benedict Arnold renewed that request when he learned of the surrender, which Clinton then granted.

In London, Benedict Arnold aligned himself with the Tories, advising Germain and King George III to renew the fight against the Americans.

Benedict Arnold then applied to accompany General Carleton, who was going to New York to replace Clinton as commander-in-chief, but the request went nowhere.

Benedict Arnold's reputation came under criticism in the British press, especially when compared to Major Andre who was celebrated for his patriotism.

Benedict Arnold purchased large tracts of land in the Maugerville area, and acquired city lots in Saint John and Fredericton.

Delivery of his first ship the Lord Sheffield was accompanied by accusations from the builder that Benedict Arnold had cheated him; Benedict Arnold claimed that he had merely deducted the contractually agreed amount when the ship was delivered late.

The family moved to Saint John in 1787, where Benedict Arnold created an uproar with a series of bad business deals and petty lawsuits.

Benedict Arnold 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.

Benedict Arnold helped organize militia forces on British-held islands, receiving praise from the landowners for his efforts on their behalf.

Benedict Arnold 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 in Upper Canada, near present-day Renfrew, Ontario.

Benedict Arnold had suffered from gout since 1775, and the condition attacked his unwounded leg to the point where he was unable to go to sea.

Benedict Arnold's physicians diagnosed him as having dropsy, and a visit to the countryside only temporarily improved his condition.

Benedict Arnold died after four days of delirium on June 14,1801, at the age of 60.

Benedict Arnold was buried at St Mary's Church in Battersea, England.

Benedict Arnold left a small estate, reduced in size by his debts, which Peggy undertook to clear.

Benedict Arnold's name became synonymous with "traitor" soon after his betrayal became public, and biblical themes were often invoked.

Benedict Arnold was aware of his reputation in his home country, and French statesman Talleyrand described meeting him in Falmouth, Cornwall in 1794:.

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.

Social historian Brian Carso notes that, as the 19th century progressed, the story of Benedict Arnold's betrayal was portrayed with near-mythical proportions as a part of the national history.

Harper's Weekly published an article in 1861 describing Confederate leaders as "a few men directing this colossal treason, by whose side Benedict Arnold shines white as a saint".

Fictional invocations of Benedict Arnold's name carry strongly negative overtones.

Historian Barry Wilson points out that Benedict Arnold's descendants established deep roots in Canada, becoming leading settlers in Upper Canada and Saskatchewan.

Benedict Arnold's descendants are spread across Canada, most of all those of John Sage, who adopted the Arnold surname.

The house where Benedict Arnold lived at 62 Gloucester Place in central London bears a plaque describing him as an "American Patriot".

Benedict Arnold was buried at St Mary's Church, Battersea, England which has a commemorative stained glass window.