Benedict Arnold Was America’s Greatest Hero Before He Became Its Worst Villain

History Unplugged Podcast

History Unplugged

Society & Culture, History

4.2 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 28 December 2023

⏱️ 40 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Benedict Arnold committed treason— for more than two centuries, that’s all that most Americans have known about him.

Yet Arnold was much more than a turncoat—his achievements during the early years of the Revolutionary War defined him as the most successful soldier of the era.

Today’s guest is Jack Kelly, author of “God Save Benedict Arnold: The True Story of America’s Most Hated Man.” We look at Arnold’s rush of audacious feats—his capture of Fort Ticonderoga, his Maine mountain expedition to attack Quebec, the famous artillery brawl at Valcour Island, the turning-point battle at Saratoga—that laid the groundwork for our independence.

Arnold was a superb leader, a brilliant tactician, a supremely courageous military officer. He was also imperfect, disloyal, villainous. One of the most paradoxical characters in American history, and one of the most interesting.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Scott here with another episode of the History Unplugged Podcast.
0:07.0	Other than Brutus or Judus Iscariot, nobody is better remembered as being a traitor than Benedict
0:12.0	Arnold.
0:12.6	Benjamin Franklin wrote that Judas sold only one man, Arnold 3 millions,
0:16.4	and Alexander Scimilly described his actions as black as hell.
0:19.6	But Arnold was much more than a turncoat.
0:21.7	He was an extremely ambitious soldier in the French and Indian War,
0:25.0	a successful merchant and a heroic leader in the Continental Army, where he had a unique ability to lead men through horrific settings,
0:31.5	playing pivotal roles at Fort Ticonderoga in the Quebec
0:34.4	campaign before achieving his most famous victory at the Battle of Saratoga, which is widely thought
0:38.8	to be the turning point of the Revolutionary War.
0:41.1	Today's guest is Jack Kelly, author of God Save Benedict Arnold, the true story of America's
0:45.6	most hated man.
0:46.6	We look at all of his positive qualities as a superb leader, a brilliant tactician, a courageous
0:51.0	military officer, but how his greed, crippling insecurity, and desire for recognition led to the betrayal of his troops, his homeland, and his downfall.
0:59.0	I think he's one of the most interesting and paradoxical people in American history, and I hope you enjoy this discussion with Jack Kelly.
1:04.0	And one more thing before we get started with this episode,
1:08.7	a quick break for word from our sponsors. Before this interview I was looking at the different ways that he was so-called
1:24.3	commemorated. One interesting thing I found is that after the revolution when Guy
1:29.6	Fox night was still being celebrated in America where on the 5th of November people
1:34.4	burn an effigy, Guy Fox who was a plotter who tried to blow up the House of Lords.
1:38.8	They replaced Fox with Benedict Arnold and the event was renamed Benedict Arnold Day and eventually
	...

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