Benedict Arnold: A Traitor

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Benedict Arnold was born on January 14th, 1741 in Norwich, Connecticut. His father was a businessman and anticipated that his son would be equally as successful. Three of Arnold’s siblings died from diphtheria, so his father began drinking heavily and lost his job. The family fell on hard financial times (Benedict).
In the following years, Benedict’s mother died so he proceeded to take responsibility for his remaining sister and father. His dad, at the time, had been arrested for being drunk in public many times. Following his fathers death, Benedict and his sister moved to New Haven and Arnold worked as a pharmacist and bookseller. When the Stamp Act was passed in 1764, Arnold joined the Sons of Liberty (Benedict).
By joining the Sons of Liberty, Arnold hoped to resist the British tyranny that the country was starting to feel. He did not like all the taxes and policies that King George III was beginning to push. Soon, Arnold felt the need to enlist in the army. He was one of Washington’s best Major-Generals. The fact that the troops were so poorly equipped and trained made Arnold quite frustrated, so he spent his own money trying to properly equip and train them. When he won the battle of Ticonderoga in 1775, Washington was quick to appoint him as commander of a large force of men to take on the battle of Quebec. The men marched three hundred fifty miles through “rain, snow, and ice, reduced to eating candles, dogs, and shoe leather” (Creighton).
Arnold’s nickname soon became “America’s Hannibal” due to his braveness through the troops’ march in the wilderness. During the battle of Quebec, Benedict Arnold was shot in the leg with a musket ball and was noted in the continental army for his intense braveness (Cr...

... middle of paper ...

...ts a traitor, no matter what side he is on.
When Benedict Arnold died, he was to be given a memorial, just like the other three generals that fought in the Revolution. The only problem was that Washington had given specific instructions not to give him any recognition. In the end he was only granted two pieces of information – rank and date of birth. They left off his name and date of death (Creighton).

Works Cited

"Benedict Arnold Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 07 Jan. 2014.

Creighton, Linda L. "Benedict Arnold: A Traitor, but Once a Patriot." US News. U.S.News & World Report, 27 June 2008. Web. 18 Dec. 2013.

Lomask, Milton. Beauty and the Traitor ; the Story of Mrs. Benedict Arnold. Philadelphia: Macrae Smith, 1967. Print.

Zinoman, Jason. "Was Benedict Arnold's Wife the Real Traitor?" Slate Magazine. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Dec. 2013.

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