The subtitle of this book is “An American Warrior Reconsidered”. Martin tries to look at all of Benedict Arnold’s life, not just his service in, and eventual betrayal of, the Continental Army. Some previous biographies started with the fact of his being a traitor to the Revolution, and basically decided that he must have been a bad person from his youth. Some of these were meant to glorify the rest of the army, at Arnold’s expense. Martin makes the effort to actually look at the documents that describe this early life, and all of his contributions to the Revolution.
I didn’t know that before the war, Arnold was a trader, and made a number of journeys to West Indies. This gave him a maritime knowledge which he used to his advantage. Somehow, he also seemed to instinctively know military strategy, and had a natural streak of aggressiveness, or at least was not very risk averse. Some of the other military leaders of the time had neither the skill nor the temperament. Arnold was hampered in his military career by a couple of things. He did not have the political connections others had, and he had never learned how to “win friends and influence people”.
Arnold also had a very strong sense of honor. So did a number of other military leaders, as well as many leaders in the Continental Congress. Not only did a number of actions by various people caused Arnold to doubt the rightness of the revolution, but the various slights and insults took their toll. Plus, he had been severely injured, almost crippled, in defense of his country. George Washington thought he was a natural soldier and leader, and wanted him to be promoted. Other, more ambitious officers, resented him, and blocked recognition of his accomplishments at every turn. While Martin does not try to justify his treason, he certainly shows the rationale for it.
If this was your family, how would you research them? Did you have an ancestor who served with Arnold? He was prominent in the battles of Ticonderoga, the attack on Quebec, the defense of Lake Champlain, and Saratoga. Interestingly, while some of his commanding officers did not like him, many of the troops serving under him respected him, and thought him to be a good leader. You can learn about your ancestor’s service at Fold 3, or NARA. If your ancestor has been used by someone to join the DAR, their website has basic information on service as well.