Benedict Arnold was a Hero

In the South, it’s all about the Civil War.  In New England, it’s all about the Revolutionary War.  A key battle was fought in Saratoga New York and Bennington Vermont in 1777 that was a turning point for the Americans.  It was the first time that the British surrendered in a battle.  Soon afterward, France, Netherlands, and Spain also began to fight the British.  That left the British too busy to really continue the fight in America.  It took six years until the Treaty in Paris was signed, but this was the point we started winning.

 

There’s a big difference about what you learn (or at least remember) about history in school versus what you learn afterward.  I thought George Washington was perfect (well, not really, but that’s all I’ve heard).  I thought Benedict Arnold was completely bad.  It turns out that’s not true either.  Benedict Arnold was the major hero of several battles in this area.  The stories sound like an exaggeration but he braved crossfire to rally the troops to overtake the British.  He disagreed with his superiors to fight the British instead of a less aggressive approach.  The problem seemed to be that he was ignored by “upper management”.   He was young and wanted to be famous.  He didn’t get the recognition he felt he should get.  Several years after these battles, he tried to surrender West Point to the British and then switched sides when the plan was discovered.  For this he was branded a traitor..

The forts along the Gulf coast are made of millions of bricks.  So, it’s was a surprise to see Fort Stanwix, a large fort made of wood.  And not from little trees like Fort Necessity, but immense trees.  There had to be a lot of work going into lifting this wood, let alone cutting it and transporting it here.

Interesting fact.  Soldiers were told to sleep sitting up since that was considered healthier.  Sleeping sitting up in a straw bed with 10-15 men doesn’t sound healthy to me.  At first I was amused by the things considered healthy in the past.  But, given that eggs are first healthy, then bad for you, and then healthy again, I guess we can’t talk.