January 14, 1741 Birth of a Traitor Benedict Arnold was born in
Connecticut on January 14, 1741. He rose from captain to general
during the Revolutionary War. After he death of his first wife,
he married the daughter of a Loyalis sympathizer. Before long he
was spying for the British and plotting to hand over West Point.
His plans discovered, he managed to escape capture and began
fighting openly for the British. After the British surrendered,
Arnold and his family went to England. Today, Benedict Arnold is
synonymous with the word traitor.