Chapter 4: The Philadelphia Years

Ben had the reputation of being a brilliant and natural military strategist, but he was first and foremost a businessman steeped in the economics of imports and exports and of capital and profit. Thus, it was that the actual hero of Saratoga was passed over for promotion, maligned by jealous men of lessor talents, and subject to unwarranted distrust by the very government for whom he had risked his life, liberty and fortune to defend.

He was offended in the sense that he hated to see the advantage of momentum dissipate as the continental congress sat on its hands waiting for some sign from the heavens that they would succeed in their endeavor. He was even more incensed as his expenses for money he had borrowed under the credit of his businesses and name were rejected by a treasury that rewarded dubious foreign claims faster than valid vouchers from their Generals in the field.

That winter of 1777 was a mixture of both good and bad.

It would take two hundred years plus of retrospect to accord the Battle of Saratoga as the "turning point of the American Revolution" but in that winter immediately following other men took credit and Major General Benedict Arnold was much a bed nursing his trice injured leg. He was adamant that it not be amputated and even though he had a severe limp when he was able to stand once again, he still stood tall in the saddle when things got hot and heavy.

Eventually, his defensive lobbying efforts paid off and his detractors were discredited even though some stigma remained about his financial affairs. Ben built up his strength and recovered during that winter that General of the Army George Washington hunkered down in the pestilence ridden wilderness of Valley Forge.

Ben sent many dispatches advising that it would be better to attack than allow disease and desertions decimate the men waiting so patiently for orders. Often his advice fell on deaf ears or was never delivered because Washington's subordinates saw Arnold as a competitor for the position of leadership.

One of the valuable consequences of the victory at Saratoga was the entry into the war of France as an ally against the British. France and Britain were natural enemies and the French saw the American Rebellion as an opportunity for them to dismantle the military power of their greatest rival. Despite the fact that many patriots devoted to the cause of liberty were uncomfortable with the alignment with the French nation, Arnold included; the addition of the French naval power proved to be one of the primary factors for eventual victory.

While Washington sat freezing in the cold of Valley Forge, the British army sat comfortably ensconced in the city of Philadelphia being wined and dined by many of the families still "sitting on the fence" in the matter of rebellion. It was much the same in the cities of New York and Boston where support of the King and fierce devotion to liberty sat side by side at the dinner table. The British army did its best to control their troops knowing that violation of civilian rights would only add to the ranks of the anti-British sentiment. But the presence of large numbers of mercenaries like the Hessians who spoke little if any English made the colonists suspicious of the invading forces.

The British army was content to stay in a defensive posture in Philadelphia until word of Washington's surprise attack across the Delaware River made them realize how vulnerable their 15,000 troop in the City of Brotherly Love actually were. They hastily made an exit from Philadelphia leaving many of their provisions and even artillery pieces behind. They barely escaped before Major General Benedict Arnold leading a large force entered the city and took control.

George Washington against the advice of his subordinates made Arnold the Commandant of the city garrison and allowed him to institute Martial Law. The city was rife with rumors and there was a sense of "payback" against the many citizens who had opened supported the British troops and invited them into their homes. Many of the same merchants who had done business with the King's army were now openly courting General Arnold for the same preferential treatment. In many cases, there was a sense of contentiousness between the businessman turned military leader and the businessmen of Philadelphia because he saw their motivation to profit as the worse sort of treachery against the newly forming nations.

The temptation proved too great for Arnold in the long run and he took full advantage of his position to line his pockets with fees extorted from the individuals whom he suspected of collusion with the enemy. The very same lobbyists who surrounded George Washington and the leaders of the government accused him of financial impropriety yet again. The fact that most if not all of the accusers were engaged in exactly the same tactics seemed to make little difference.

During this time, Arnold was still suffering from the wounds sustained in no less than three different battles but the worse one was at Saratoga where he nearly lost both his leg and his life. His wife had passed away while he was in the service of his country and he had three young children to raise without a spouse.

The General was a romantic at heart and he courted the pretty young daughter of a prominent Patriot family with resolute determination. No doubt due to the difference in their ages, the young lady in question elected to spurn his offers of matrimony not once but twice. It was probably for the best because she was even younger than she had been presented to potential mates. Thus, it was with a noticeable limp, an ailing heart, and enough affronts to last him a lifetime that Major General Benedict Arnold assumed command of the city of Philadelphia in the waning days of summer in 1778. He was appointed on the express orders of General of the Army George Washington with full authority over the civilian populace both Patriot and Loyalist.