Sympathy for the devil: A good book about Benedict Arnold — and Washington

I’ve recently finished reading George Washington and Benedict Arnold, by retired Lt. Gen. Dave R. Palmer. I come away from it with much more sympathy for Arnold than I expected.

As Palmer tells it, Arnold was the single most prominent “fighting general” in the first years of the Revolution, repeatedly posting victories while others dithered. He also pitched in his own money, even setting fire to a ship he owned in an attempt to hit British ships in Canada.

In return, he got disrespect, personal slanders, and undercutting moves from Horatio Gates, Charles Lee, and others. He was a fragile man psychologically, deeply invested in a sense of personal honor, without the ability to law low. This barrage finally brought him down.

By contrast, Palmer emphasizes that one of Washington’s key qualities was his resiliency. Where Arnold met his internal foes with fire, Washington was able to use ice. In this way, Washington brings to mind Eisenhower in World War II. And both went on to become fine presidents.

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