Benedict Arnold is one of the few people from American history whose name has become an adjective. If you call someone “Benedict Arnold,” you are calling them a traitor.

Arnold joined the Continental Army when war broke out in 1775. After five years of fighting, with some Patriot victories, the war was still not going well for Americans. By 1780, it looked to many that the British might win and put down the rebellion.

Yet, Patriots continued risking life and fortune fighting for America’s independence. But not General Benedict Arnold. Believing the British would eventually put down the revolt and angry that there was no money to pay him for his military service, on September 21, 1780, Arnold met with British Adjutant General John André, who oversaw the British Secret Intelligence. Arnold was the commander of West Point (located on New York’s Hudson River and then called Fortress West Point). He offered to give the fort to Great Britain in exchange for money and a high position in the British army.

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Fortunately, the plot was discovered, but it devastated George Washington, who was Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army and had always trusted Arnold. Escaping to Great........

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