Essay Example on Benedict Arnold ultimately renounced his loyalty to America

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Benedict Arnold ultimately renounced his loyalty to America because he had no support and he was slighted and overlooked too many times He executed the tragic action in hopes for a better life in England and he specifically wanted a commision in the British armed forces to have a chance to show his native country what a mistake they have made He unfortunately did not have the foresight to know that Britain would never fully trust a traitor and he just sort of faded away after his new life began never capturing respect and recognition from his new country either Arnold realized this and it was the inspiration for this unverifiable deathbed quote in 1801 Let me die in this old uniform in which I fought my battles May God forgive me for ever having put on another Though the underappreciation of his efforts may have been the leading cause of his want to desert it was certainly a combination of all the uncertainty in his life that pushed him over the edge Having to supply for five kids and his new wife who was so demanding forced him to take the easy way out and leave his debt behind Not to mention this was his loyalist wife who had known John Andre and was also influential in Arnolds final decision to turn over West Point She helped in the exchange of the letters between them 



If they did not meet would Arnold have made the most memorable betrayal in United States history There's a possibility but probably not But that's not to say the unappreciation of him wasn t the major factor because it was Because of Arnold s pride and ego if he would have been praised and promoted as he thought he should be throughout his entire career there is no way he would ever leave that As Arnold was surrounded by people who not only underappreciated his efforts but also by people who were accusing him left and right a switch in loyalty to England could free him from all his debts charges and rough relationships What were some of the legal problems that plagued him during his military career One was the charge of thievery Even when Arnold was well respected he still had legal difficulties He lead the unsuccessful but moral boosting assault on Quebec in 1775 He was then accused by his own soldiers of stealing during the mission Although these accusations were untrue and Arnold was acquitted they still tarnished his reputation and left psychological wounds Arnold described the frustration by saying it was extremely cruel when I have sacrificed my ease health and a great part of my private property in the cause of my country to be calumniated as a robber and thief Krawczynski 15 



The next charge in 1779 was similar and dealt with a mishandling of funds by Arnold Because of his high rank it was found out that he had used military money for personal purchases Congress subsequently court martialed him for trying to leech off of the government instead of dealing with his debt personally When he could not provide proof of all the spending he did by showing them the receipts he was censured by Congress This angered Arnold because in the past he provided food and other necessities for his soldiers on his own dime and was never repaid for the deed Then years later they decided to keep track he takes one misguided step with funds supplied by Congress and he's in the dog house After the trial he was finished he was charged with that and two other misdemeanors permitting a vessel an illegal pass and misappropriating public wagons Randall This lead to Arnold being extensively rebuked and the only person who ever stood up for him General Washington had to publicly reprimand him His comment was that all the illegal things Arnold had done were peculiarly reprehensible Randall Unbeknownst to Washington he sort of played a hand in this happening 



He did Arnold a favor by assigning him to be military command of Philadelphia when he was still too physically incapacitated for other jobs from his previous injuries he sustained by defending his country Martin 426 This proved to be both a blessing and a curse In Philadelphia he would meet his next wife Peggy but also have constant interaction and conflict with members of Congress in a politically hostile environment Krawczynski 11 There he would also cross paths with Joseph Reed Congressman and President governor in modern day terms of Pennsylvania who was one of the people that had it out for Arnold and ever so slightly pushed him away Reed was a patriotic radical who harshly punished suspected loyalists didn t trust Congress or any other state and disliked higher up officials in the army Philbrick His authoritative positions in Pennsylvania made him one of the most powerful people in the country and he seeked to flex his state's political muscle by court martialing Benedict Arnold Philbrick In Benedict Arnold's career he was at the center of so many allegations many were fabricated and some were based in truth The truthful ones set his career back somewhat gave him legal trouble and made him accumulate more debt The false charges most made by soldiers he led into battle damaged his reputation and made him question the ultimate cause he was fighting for


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