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Benedict Arnold betrayed the American cause by secretly negotiating with Britain and attempting to surrender West Point in 1780. He had previously been a celebrated Continental general and, in 1778, had sworn that the United States were “Free, Independent and Sovereign States.” Arnold later insisted that he had fought for a redress of grievances, not permanent independence, and that Britain’s willingness to offer redress justified changing sides. That explanation was a defense, not an established account of his sole motive. His grievances, damaged reputation, political conflicts, social frustrations and financial pressures all remain part of the historical argument.
A patriot for whom?
“Patriot” was not a neutral identity during the American Revolution. It usually meant support for resistance to British authority and, increasingly, support for an independent United States. “Loyalist” generally described people who remained attached to the British Crown, but Loyalists were not a single organization or a uniform political bloc. They differed over reform, the war, local politics and the future relationship between Britain and its American colonies.
Arnold’s case exposes the danger of treating those labels as simple moral categories. He did not begin the war as a British agent. He fought for the revolutionary side, became a major general in the Continental Army and took an oath recognizing American sovereignty. His later conduct was also more specific than merely “changing political opinions”: he secretly negotiated with British representatives and sought to deliver a strategic American post. The question is therefore twofold: what did Arnold say he believed, and what did he actually do?
Arnold’s record before the defection
Arnold’s reputation was built on active service, not passive sympathy. He was one of the Continental Army’s most aggressive commanders and was celebrated for battlefield leadership before his relationship with American political authorities deteriorated. Whatever his later complaints, the documentary record shows him publicly committed to the revolutionary government years after the fighting began.
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The May 30, 1778 oath
At Valley Forge, Arnold swore allegiance to the United States. The National Archives transcript records his words:
“I Benedict Arnold Major General do acknowledge the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA to be Free, Independent and Sovereign States, and declare that the people thereof owe no allegiance or obedience to George the Third, King of Great-Britain.”
The oath is important because it is a direct statement made before the West Point conspiracy and before Arnold’s public defense of his conduct. It does not prove that his private opinions never changed, but it establishes that he formally renounced allegiance to George III and pledged himself to the United States.
How the West Point plot developed
Arnold’s move toward Britain was not a sudden public announcement. According to the Museum of the American Revolution, he had become disillusioned and was secretly approaching the British by May 1779. The negotiations continued over months while he remained outwardly connected to the American command structure.
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Arnold’s frustrations grew in a difficult political environment. While serving in Philadelphia, he faced disputes with civilian officials, accusations concerning his conduct and conflicts over status and recognition. Historians have also examined his marriage into the Schuyler family, his relationships within Philadelphia society and the financial strain produced by wartime service. These pressures help explain why he might have been receptive to a British offer, but they do not by themselves prove which motive mattered most.
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The choice of West Point
Arnold eventually sought command of West Point, a heavily fortified post controlling the Hudson River. His plan was to surrender the position to Britain. The scheme depended on secret communication with British intelligence officer John André. In September 1780, the plot was exposed after André was captured carrying incriminating papers. Arnold escaped to the British lines; André was later executed as a spy.
Alexander Hamilton’s account, written immediately after the discovery, captured the specific nature of the operation. In a September 25, 1780 letter to Elizabeth Schuyler, Hamilton wrote: “The object was to sacrifice West Point. General Arnold had sold himself to André for this purpose.” Hamilton’s phrase reflects his contemporary understanding of the conspiracy, not a detached modern verdict, but it makes clear that the alleged act was an attempted military betrayal rather than only a change of political preference.
Arnold’s timeline from oath to defection
| Date | Event | What it establishes |
|---|---|---|
| May 30, 1778 | Arnold swears allegiance to the United States at Valley Forge. | He formally recognizes American independence and renounces allegiance to George III. |
| By May 1779 | Arnold is secretly approaching British representatives while disillusionment and political conflict intensify. | His move toward Britain develops privately over time rather than beginning with a public declaration. |
| September 1780 | The West Point conspiracy is exposed; Arnold escapes to the British. | His plan involved surrendering a strategic post and military command. |
| September 25, 1780 | Hamilton writes to Elizabeth Schuyler about the discovery and Peggy Shippen Arnold’s distress. | American leaders viewed the episode as an immediate personal and military crisis. |
| October 7, 1780 | Arnold issues “To the Inhabitants of America.” | He publicly explains his change of allegiance in his own terms. |
What Arnold said after he changed sides
Arnold’s public address of October 7, 1780 presented his decision as a matter of political principle. He claimed that he had entered the war to defend American rights, not to create an independent nation permanently separated from Britain:
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He then described his intended conduct in unusually direct language:
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“I affect no disguise, and therefore Frankly declare that in these Principles, I had determined to retain my arms and Command for an opportunity to surrender them to Great Britain.”
Arnold blamed the continuation of the war and the French alliance for moving the revolution beyond what he considered its original purpose. In his account, Britain had offered a path to redress, while the American leadership had pursued independence and cooperation with France. That is Arnold’s argument for himself. It should not be presented as a settled description of the political situation.
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| Document | Arnold’s stated position | Historical caution |
|---|---|---|
| Oath of allegiance, May 30, 1778 | The United States are “Free, Independent and Sovereign States,” and owe no allegiance to George III. | This is a formal pledge made two years before the West Point plot. |
| “To the Inhabitants of America,” October 7, 1780 | His original aim was redress of grievances; he had decided to preserve his command for an opportunity to surrender it to Britain. | This is a post-defection explanation and a piece of self-defense. |
The contrast does not automatically prove that Arnold’s later explanation was entirely false. People can revise their political beliefs. It does show that his public rationale must be read against an earlier oath and the documentary record of secret negotiations.
Why did Benedict Arnold betray America?
No surviving evidence reduces the decision to one certain cause. The strongest explanation treats motive as a combination of political conviction, resentment and material calculation, with the weight of each factor disputed.
His stated political principles
Arnold said the revolution had begun as a demand for rights within the British Empire and had become an independence movement supported by France. If he genuinely preferred reconciliation, his defection represented a change in the political objective for which he was willing to fight. His address is the principal evidence for this interpretation, but it was written after the plot failed, when he had an obvious reason to justify himself.
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Grievances over reputation and authority
Arnold believed that Congress and state officials had undervalued his service. He faced disputes over rank, accusations of profiteering and criticism from political rivals. Such conflicts could make British recognition, money and a new command attractive. They also help explain why an officer who had taken a formal American oath might come to regard the revolutionary government as personally hostile.
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Money and security
Wartime debts and contested expenses created practical pressure. British negotiations offered the possibility of compensation and status. Financial strain is therefore relevant, but it should not be turned into a complete explanation: the evidence does not establish that Arnold acted only for cash or that political principles were merely a cover.
The limits of the “principled defection” story
The Dictionary of Canadian Biography cautions that Arnold’s public rationale cannot simply be accepted at face value. The earlier record does not clearly show him opposing independence or the French alliance before 1780. That gap matters. His October address may describe a genuine evolution in belief, a strategic justification after the fact, or both.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Arnold was an individual conspirator, not a definition of all Loyalists
Calling Arnold a Loyalist can be useful only if the term is handled carefully. He eventually served the British, but his attempted surrender of West Point was an individual conspiracy with a specific military objective. It does not reveal how every person who favored the Crown understood the war, nor does it prove that Loyalists generally approved of his actions.
Revolutionary-era Loyalists included officeholders, merchants, clergy, enslaved people seeking British protection, refugees and people who opposed independence for different reasons. Some remained in America; others emigrated during or after the war. The primary-source anthology The American Revolution: Writings from the War of Independence 1775–1783, edited by John Rhodehamel, includes a September 1780 Loyalist satire, Anthony Allaire’s account as a Loyalist prisoner and a New York Loyalist’s account of emigration in 1783. Those varied texts demonstrate the range of Loyalist experiences, not a single consensus about Arnold.
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The immediate human reaction
The discovery of the plot was not only a strategic shock. Hamilton’s September 25 letter describes the emotional effect on Peggy Shippen Arnold, Arnold’s wife. He wrote:
“At present she almost forgets his crime in his misfortune, and her horror at the guilt of the traitor is lost in her love of the man.”
The original spelling and punctuation are retained in the letter transcript. Hamilton’s observation shows how contemporaries separated judgment of the alleged crime from sympathy for a family member. It also reminds us that “traitor” was a lived accusation, not merely a label applied by later historians.
How to judge Arnold’s defense
A disciplined reading keeps three kinds of evidence distinct.
- Formal commitment: The 1778 oath records Arnold’s public recognition of American sovereignty.
- Conduct: Secret contacts beginning by 1779 and the West Point negotiations show what he attempted to do, regardless of how he later described his principles.
- Self-explanation: The October 1780 address gives Arnold’s reasons, but it was issued after his escape and therefore had a persuasive purpose.
These categories can coexist. Arnold may have sincerely believed that the revolution had exceeded its legitimate aims, while also being driven by anger, wounded status and financial need. Conversely, a political explanation may have helped him present a calculated act as honorable. The evidence supports interpretation, not certainty.
So, was Benedict Arnold a patriot?
The answer depends on the point in time and the community being defended. Arnold was a patriot in the ordinary revolutionary sense when he fought for the Continental cause and swore allegiance to the United States. By 1780, he had adopted—or claimed to have adopted—a different definition of loyalty, one centered on reconciliation with Britain. His attempt to surrender West Point made that political shift a military betrayal.
“A patriot for whom?” is therefore the most revealing question. Arnold’s language of duty and honor did not disappear when he changed sides; he reassigned those words to a different political order. His story shows how, in a civil war, patriotism can be claimed by opposing camps and tested by concrete acts. The oath, the secret negotiations, the failed surrender and the later address all belong in the same account.
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