Sympathetic biographers have attempted to justify Arnold's treason or at least soften any moral judgements posterity may render. It is true that Arnold had to endure many unfounded accusations and assaults on his reputation. It is also true that he was called upon to make great financial and physical sacrifice. But he was not the only one to make such sacrifices. The signers of the Declaration of Independence had pledged to each other their "lives," "fortunes," and "sacred honor" to establish the Republic of the United States. And many of them were called upon to do just that, as quite a few wouldn't live to see the end of the war, while others would emerge from the war penniless and destitute. Arnold was unwilling to make such sacrifices; and, in the end, it became apparent he had no "sacred honor" to bind him to the patriot cause.
Benedict Arnold lived out his last years in Britain, never able to succeed in business or obtain a regular commission in the British army. He died in 1801, and remains today the most notorious traitor in the history of the world. It is a legacy that Arnold earned for himself, and it's one accomplishment that no one can take away from him.
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The following sources contributed to this work:
James Kirby Martin, Benedict Arnold: Revolutionary Hero - An American Warrior Reconsidered
James Thomas Flexner, The Traitor and the Spy: Benedict Arnold and John André
James A. Henretta, Elliot Brownlee, David Brody, Susan Ware, and Marilynn Johnson, America's History, Third Edition
