Posted on 12/31/2017 8:20:17 PM PST by iowamark
On this day in 1775, the Battle of Quebec is fought. American General Richard Montgomery is killed. Benedict Arnold is wounded. Daniel Morgan and more than 400 others are captured.
I guess you could say that it didn’t go too well.
Readers of this page may recall that Benedict Arnold undertook a daring mission during the fall of 1775. Remember, Arnold was a hero and a Patriot for many years before he turned traitor! He was dying to undertake the mission, however dangerous it might be.
With George Washington’s blessing, Arnold led a force of about 1,000 men through the Maine wilderness. His goal was to arrive in Canada, undetected, and launch a surprise attack on Quebec. Unfortunately, the trek through Maine was much harder than anticipated. Many did not make it. The rest barely endured starvation and freezing weather. They stumbled out of the wilderness in early November. (See October 29 history post.)
Naturally, the audacious Arnold was undeterred! He attempted to attack Quebec on November 14, despite the bedraggled state of his men. The attempt stalled before it even started. Arnold decided to retreat and wait for the reinforcements that were coming with Montgomery. (See November 14 post)
Montgomery arrived with 300 men in early December. He and Arnold were stuck in a difficult situation: Americans lacked sufficient supplies for a proper siege; however, the men’s enlistments were set to expire at the end of the year. Something had to be done! Montgomery sent the British commander calls for surrender, but they went unheeded. He bombarded the city, but the British responded in kind. One of these shots from the British side killed Jemima Warner. Remember her? She was the woman who had trekked through the Maine wilderness with her husband, but had to leave him dead by a tree.
Despite all these efforts, Montgomery seemed resigned to the necessity of an attack, writing as early as November that to “the storming plan there are fewer objections; and to this we must come at last.” His Council of War concurred.
The attack came on the last day of the year, in the midst of a snowstorm.
Montgomery had his men stick white pieces of paper in their hats, enabling them to identify friendly soldiers in the thick of the fight. (Reportedly, some men scribbled “liberty or death” on their pieces of paper!)
The attack was to come from multiple directions: Arnold would attack from one side while Montgomery attacked from the other. Two smaller diversionary attacks would also be made, to confuse the British about the location of the main attack.
Almost immediately, things went awry. The signal to attack was seen by the British. Nor were they fooled by the small, diversionary attacks. Arnold was hit in the leg early on by a ricocheting bullet. He was carried away in the hopes that his life could be saved, while Daniel Morgan took command of Arnold’s troops. In the meantime, Montgomery was hit by multiple bullets during his first charge. He died instantly, and his men retreated.
The battle continued to rage for a bit, but the writing was on the wall. In the end, more than 400 Americans were captured. Others retreated.
Can you imagine what it was like to be one of those men? First, they suffered an excruciating trek through the Maine wilderness and barely survived. And what had they gotten for their efforts? Seemingly, nothing. Now they were prisoners of war.
Amazing. Very similar to many of Washington’s experiences. We can’t even conceive of the misery his men endured. Dragging themselves and their war-making materiel through biting wind and snow, up and down icy ravines and across semi-frozen rivers. Mind-boggling. Burlap and newspapers wrapped around their feet instead of shoes. Torn and ragged pants and shirts. Unimaginable.
Before he was a traitor, he was a hero, and indispensable to the American cause.
He has monuments at Saratoga and West Point that honor his deeds, but do not mention him by name.
In October, 1777, Arnold was badly wounded at the Battle of Bemis Heights, one of the most decisive American victories of the war. Had he been killed (and he later said he wished that he had been), he would have been regarded as one of America's greatest heroes. Ships, freeways, towns, cities, mountains, and maybe even a state would have been named after him.
He has monuments at Saratoga and West Point that honor his deeds, but do not mention him by name.
So very true. This is what makes Arnold's treason live on in such pathetic, surpassing infamy—his audacity, pettiness, and vindictiveness; his piss-poor judgement and error; his utter shallowness of character, and consequent fall from grace, tumbling from the pinnacle of Patriot glory. Adjectives fail the historian and the reader alike in describing Arnold's lot.
As for Saratoga, it was General Gates who—probably inadvertently—sealed Arnold's fate by shamefully omitting Arnold's genuinely heroic behavior on that day—an unforgivable and dishonorable act of vindictive hate if there ever was one during the War. This final act of brazen disrespect seems to have pushed Arnold over the edge, if he wasn't already there. Arnold's treason was virtually guaranteed at this point.
Arnold led British raids in Virginia, capturing Richmond and Petersburg.
He reportedly asked one Virginian what they would do if they captured Benedict Arnold.
The Virginian replied that they would amputate the leg wounded at Saratoga and bury it with full honors.
The rest they would hang.
Arnold’s second wife was Peggy Shippen, daughter of a prominent loyalist.
One must wonder if he would have turned coat without her prompting.
One of those great “what if” questions of history.
The selfless and even the selfish acts of the Men and Women involved in America’s History shaped the Country we know and love.
I was watching a series about the Revolutionary War. A British Sniper had General Washington in his sights, but he didn’t shoot him because Washington was riding away and he thought is was not Honorable to shoot someone in the Back.
Imagine where we might be if that one Man made a different decision. Imagine what the world might be.
The American People, after being brainwashed and processed through our Liberal Education System and modern Media have no idea of the bravery of the Americans that came before.
The effect of the Liberal Education System and modern media was evident a few years ago when Sean Hannity sent a young female reporter out into the streets of New York City to ask passersby what event we celebrate on July 4. Almost none of the people in the street knew the correct answer--and the reporter herself didn't know, either,
Arnold’s troops crossed the Saint Lawrence on November 13 and 14 in an attempt to take fortified Quebec City, but suffered defeat. They maintained a partial siege of the city until the next April, then Arnold went on to Montreal where he served as military commander of the city until the British Army retook it.
Benedict Arnold’s actions temporarily delayed the British advance against Ticonderoga, and he was rewarded with a promotion to brigadier general, but his political enemies orchestrated a court-martial. Arnold deserted to the British in September, 1780, and his command at Valley Forge was assumed by Col. Nathaniel Wade.
Note: this topic is from . Thanks iowamark.
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