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Turncoat Generals – Commanders From History Who Switched Sides

Khalid Elhassan April 3, 2025 17 min

Turncoat - Benedict Arnold — Benedict Arnold. Smithsonian Magazine

10. Brilliant Success that Aroused Jealousy

Turncoat - Benedict Arnold on a white horse, left, at the Battle of Saratoga — Benedict Arnold on a white horse, left, at the Battle of Saratoga. Pinterest

The Quebec Expedition ultimately failed. However, to even get his men to the outskirts of Quebec exhibited great leadership on Benedict Arnold’s part. In 1776, he demonstrated his enterprise when he constructed a fleet from scratch at Lake Champlain. With it, the Patriots defeated a vastly superior British fleet. While lionized as a hero by the public, Arnold’s successes, rash courage, and driving style aroused the jealousy and resentment of other officers, who backbit and schemed against him. When Congress created five new major generals in 1777, Arnold was stung when he was bypassed in favor of some of his juniors. Only George Washington’s personal entreaties prevented his resignation. Soon thereafter, Arnold successfully beat back a British attack in Connecticut, and was finally promoted to major general. However, his seniority was not restored – another slight that ate at him.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.