‘God Save Benedict Arnold’

Benedict Arnold is shot in the leg while leading American troops to victory. Arnold later turned traitor and fought for the British. MPI/Getty Images

Benedict Arnold is America’s most notorious traitor, his name synonymous with treason. Ironically, Arnold, a brilliant general, was a major reason the United States now exists. He was a big part of the reason why the Continental Army didn’t lose the Revolutionary War in its opening years.

Benedict Arnold, the infamous Revolutionary War traitor, in an illustration. Public Domain

“God Save Benedict Arnold: The True Story of America’s Most Hated Man,” by Jack Kelly, presents Arnold’s career as an American patriot. Its focus is his performance as a field commander in the Continental Army.

Arnold’s Military Prowess

Arnold had an outsized effect on military activities in the war’s opening years. Mr. Kelly follows Arnold the patriot as he takes the hometown militia company he led to Boston from New Haven in April 1775. He joined the siege lines formed after the battles of Lexington and Concord. Thereafter, Arnold played an important, often critical part in the most important battles of the war’s first three years.

Such important battles included capturing Fort Ticonderoga, gaining control of Lake Champlain, leading one of the columns invading Canada in 1775, and overseeing an orderly retreat after the assault on Montreal failed. In 1776, he fought a brilliant delaying action on Lake Champlain. He delayed the British advance until autumn, forcing them to withdraw as winter fell. In 1777, he was passed over for promotion. But his efforts harrying the British during their Danbury Raid in April 1777 led to his promotion and command of one wing of the Continental Army during the Saratoga Campaign. There, he led two critical charges, which led to Britain’s defeat.

Mr. Kelly offers an excellent summation of Arnold’s brilliance during these battles and his overall military contributions. He shows that had Arnold been absent at any of them, Continental resistance would have collapsed, leading to a British victory. Yet after Saratoga, Arnold’s career began a downward spiral.

The Traitor’s Weakness

Throughout the book, Mr. Kelly reveals Arnold as abrasive, vain, and prickly about his honor, making enemies easily. George Washington cherished Arnold as a man who got things done. Fellow generals undercut Arnold and stole credit for his accomplishments. Congress repeatedly snubbed Arnold to demonstrate its superiority over Washington and his army. These events embittered Arnold and led to his committing treason against the patriot cause.

“God Save Benedict Arnold” is a fascinating portrait of a complex man. Mr. Kelly closes by analyzing Arnold’s motivations for betrayal. He shows that Arnold would have ended as a Revolutionary hero had he died at Saratoga.

"God Save Benedict Arnold: The True Story of America's Most Hated Man" by Jack Kelly.

‘God Save Benedict Arnold: The True Story of America’s Most Hated Man’ By Jack Kelly St. Martin’s Press, Dec. 5, 2023 Hardcover: 320 pages