The brides in question are Peggy Shippen, who married Benedict Arnold, and Lucy Flucker, who married Henry Knox. The subtitle of the book is “The Untold Story of Two Revolutionary-Era Women and the Radical Men They Married”. Of course, Knox and Arnold started out on the same side of the Revolution. And while there is no evidence that they ever met, Lucy and Peggy had a few things in common. They were both still teenagers when they married older men. Their families were wealthy, and either Loyalist or at least trying to be neutral. And neither of their families were completely enthusiastic about their choice of husband.
Peggy Shippen Arnold seems to have more information available about her, probably because of who she married. Benedict Arnold has been researched quite a bit through the years, apparently. Peggy followed him, after his treason, to England, then Canada, and back to England again. Arnold tried to either get a military post, which the British were never willing to give him, or to start up his trading business again. Sometimes, things would look good for a while, but there was always an issue at some point. He left quite a bit of debt that Peggy eventually managed to pay. She managed to raise their children, but her life was certainly not an easy one. There is still some debate over whether she encouraged Arnold to become a traitor, or if she merely supported her husband’s decision.
Lucy Flucker Knox was as devoted to her husband as Peggy was to hers. While she bemoaned their separations both during and after the War (Henry eventually became Secretary to War), at least she didn’t have to flee the county. Her parents, however, did move to England. The Knox’s faced financial difficulties at various times throughout their marriage. At first, like all other Continental soldiers, Knox did not get paid in a timely manner. After he left government service, he tended to make plans that were more profitable on paper than in reality. They did eventually manage to build a mansion on property in Maine that Lucy had inherited. They were well known for hosting visitors and parties at their home. Their major source of grief was that Lucy carried thirteen pregnancies to term, but only three of their children survived to adulthood.
If this was your family, how would you research them? In addition to research on their husbands, we have the letters written between these pairs of spouses. Both couples had stretches of separation, during and after the Revolution. Neither wife was happy about that, understandably, and neither was shy about complaining to their spouse about it. We also have letters and articles written by their children. Also, Lucy Knox was first profiled in “Women of the American Revolution”, by Elizabeth Ellett. I don’t know if that is still in print, but there are other books about her and her husband. There are probably more about the Arnolds; scandal is always interesting.