Benedict Arnold, Mystery Man Danielle Ozanich Berkley Public Schools Berkley, Michigan Grade Level- 5th Grade Unit of Study- The American War for Independence Michigan Grade Level Content Expectations- 5 U3.2.1 Describe the advantages and disadvantages of each side during the American Revolution with respect to military leadership, geography, types of resources, and incentives. (National Geography Standard 4, p. 150, E) 5 U3.2.2 Describe the importance of Valley Forge, Battle of Saratoga, and Battle of Yorktown in the American Revolution. Common Core State Standards- CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.1 Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.4 Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 5 topic or subject area. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.10 By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 4-5 text complexity band independently and proficiently. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.9 Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.6 Describe how a narrator's or speaker's point of view influences how events are described. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.5.1 Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons and information. Summary and Historical Context- Students have recently studied the early days of the American Revolution including events leading to the American Revolution and the Battles of Lexington and Concord. They have studied many of the important contributions of patriots such as John Adams, Joseph Warren, and Samuel Adams. They have also learned about the First Continental Congress. In this lesson students explore the contributions of Benedict Arnold between 1775 and 1780 and are introduced to the Northern Campaign. Students are divided into groups and each group will analyze an event Benedict Arnold participated in during the Northern Campaign. After they participate in brainstorming discussions, each group of students will choose a character trait to describe Benedict Arnold and support their choice with primary and secondary source evidence.
Objectives- Students will be able to differentiate between primary and secondary sources. Students will be able to explain what happened during the event they explored and how Benedict Arnold (their Mystery Man) was involved. Students will be able to choose a character trait to describe their Mystery Man and support their choices with evidence from the primary and secondary sources they explored. Materials- Supplementary materials to support lesson are located at the end of this document. 5 cigar or shirt sized boxes Butcher Paper and Markers Advanced Preparation Print out the supplementary materials and place the appropriate documents in its own container/box. 1. Capture of Fort Ticonderoga Box Source 1a- Written description of Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen taking over Fort Ticonderoga. Source 1b-Letter from Benedict Arnold to the Massachusetts Committee of Safety Source 1c- John Steeple Davis print Source 1d- Crown Point personal photo Source 1e- Fort Ticonderoga personal photo Source 1f- Map of the Country between Crown Point and Fort Edward 2. Battle of Quebec Box Source 2a- Battle of Quebec map Source 2b- Jeffreys painting Source 2c-French map of Quebec Source 2d- Map of Quebec Source 2e- Written description of the Battle of Quebec 3. Battle of Valcour Island Source 3a- Written description of the Battle of Valcour Island Source 3b- Water color painting of the battle Source 3c- Map of the battle Source 3d- Photo of the Philadelphia Source 3e- Letter from Philip Schuyler 4. The Battles of Saratoga Source 4a- Painting of Benedict Arnold Source 4b- Military journal describing Benedict Arnold injury Source 4c- Silhouetted Source 4d- Written description Source 4e- Monument photos Source 4f- Map of British and American positions Source 4g- Map of British and German positions
5. West Point Source 5a- Letter and transcription Source 5b- Map of West Point Source 5c- Written account of Benedict Arnold s Treason Day 1 1. Review some of the events recently studied that led American colonists closer to independence. The Battles of Lexington and Concord have just occurred. Can war be avoided at this point? 2. Ask the students to think of what they would do next to secure freedom for our country. 3. Explain that there are several events that happened between the Battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775 and when we made peace with the British in 1783. Explain that the war took place all over the map and on several fronts. The first front we will talk about is the Northern Front, also called the Northern Theater or the Northern Campaign. 4. Divide students into five groups. Explain that each group will receive a box about a different event during the Northern Campaign. Inside their box are clues to tell them about the event and an important person involved in that event. Remind them that historians are like detectives: they look for clues. What do the clues tell them about the Mystery Man involved in the event? 5. Review the differences between primary and secondary source documents. 6. Pass out a copy of the Mystery Man graphic organizer and read the directions. This will help students organize their ideas about the man involved. 7. Allow students 15 minutes to analyze the sources and fill out their organizer. 8. Students then talk with their groups about the event and what type of person their Mystery Man was. 9. Pass out a piece of chart paper to each group. Each group will write the name of their group s event on the paper and the words they used to describe their Mystery Man. They will also provide the evidence supporting their word choice. 10. Have students share what they learned and hang the chart in a prominent place. 11. Explain that they will learn about all these events and the Mystery Man they wrote about over the next few lessons. Their goal is to try to figure out who the man is as we study each of the events. We will disclose our findings after the last lesson. Day 2 (This will occur several weeks later, after Arnold s betrayal has been taught) Students will share who they think their Mystery Man is. Once they all share that the man they wrote about is Benedict Arnold, discuss his accomplishments and his fall from grace. Show the photo of the Saratoga monument. Why is his name not included? Should it be? Optional Writing Assignment: Should Benedict Arnold s name be included on the Saratoga Monument? Use evidence you learned during this unit to support your thoughts.
Mystery Man Box #1 The Capture of Fort Ticonderoga Source #1a After the battles of Lexington and Concord, many Americans were worried about being able to defend their property and homes. This was true in Connecticut, too! They were horrified by the acts of the British army and knew they needed a stronger way to defend themselves. Our Mystery Man had a great idea. He came up with a plan to take over Fort Ticonderoga and capture its cannons. Even though he was from Connecticut, he convinced the Massachusetts Committee of Safety to fund an expedition to take over the fort. He was named a colonel in the Massachusetts militia. When he arrived with his troops, he was surprised to find out another man had the same idea. His name was Ethan Allen and he was not happy that our Mystery Man was sent to capture the fort! Our Mystery Man was not happy Ethan Allen was there with his Green Mountain Boys. He wanted to do it on his own. Even though they both wanted to be in charge, the two men decided they had to work together. On May 10, 1775, our Mystery Man and Ethan Allen took over the fort with ease. They also took over Fort George to the south and Crown Point to the north. These captures provided a lot of cannons to the American Army. Our Mystery Man did not receive much credit for taking over the fort. In fact, many history books only give credit to Ethan Allen. On top of that, the Continental Congress sent someone to replace him after the fort was taken. Our Mystery Man felt under appreciated.
Source #1b Ticonderoga, May 11, 1775 Gentlemen: I wrote you yesterday that arriving in the vicinity of this place, I found one hundred and fifty men collected at the instance of some gentlemen from Connecticut (designed on the same errand on which I came) headed by Colonel Ethan Allen, and that I had joined them, not thinking proper to wait the arrival of the Troops I had engaged on the road, but to attempt the Fort by surprise; that we had taken the Fort at four o clock yesterday morning without opposition, and made prisoners, one Captain, one Lieutenant, and forty odd privates and subalterns, and that we found the Fort in a most ruinous condition and not worth repairing.... On and before our taking possession here, I had agreed with Colonel Allen to issue further orders jointly, until I could raise a sufficient number of men to relieve his people, on which plan we proceeded... since which, Colonel Allen, finding he had the ascendancy over his people, positively insisted I should have no command, as I had forbid the soldiers plundering and destroying private property. The power is now taken out of my hands and I am no longer consulted, nor have I a voice in any matters. There is here at present near one hundred men, who are in the greatest confusion and anarchy, destroying and plundering private property, committing every enormity, and paying no attention to publick service.... Colonel Allen is a proper man to head his own wild people, but entirely unacquainted with military service; and as I am the only person who has been legally authorized to take possession of this place, I am determined to insist on my right, and I think it my duty to remain here against all opposition, until I have further orders. I have the honour to be, gentlemen, your most obedient humble servant, Mystery Man American Archives, http://amarch.lib.niu.edu/
Source #1C 1875 print by John Steeple Davis, New York Public Library http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/
Source #1d Crown Point, Personal Photo
Source #1e View from Mount Defiance, Personal Photo
Source #1f Fort Ticonderoga Teacher Materials
Source #2a Battle of Quebec Mystery Man Box #2 Battle of Quebec www.mountvernon.org
Source #2b British and Canadian forces attacking our Mystery Man's column in the Sault-au-Matelot painting by C. W. Jefferys Cover art for The father of British Canada: a chronicle of Carleton, Volume 12 by William Wood
Source #2c Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/gm71000969/
Source #2d Mystery Man s http://www.britishbattles.com/battle-of-quebec-1775.htm
Source #2e A lot of people think the Revolutionary War started when the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence in 1776. The truth is the Americans had been at war with the British since the first battles at Lexington and Concord. Boston was under siege and he Continental Congress was hoping the town of Quebec would surrender without much of a fight. They thought the Canadians would not want to fight for the British and would join the American side. The Battle of Quebec took place December 31, 1775. Our Mystery Man was there. The Americans had a good strategy. They would send out two armies. On August 27, General Montgomery set out for Canada with a small army. His plan was to capture Montreal and then to march on to Quebec. In the meantime, our Mystery Man set out for Canada by traveling through Maine. He was in command of 1,000 volunteers. Our Mystery Man s route was terrible. He and his troops suffered a terrible journey. As they left Massachusetts in September, they quickly encountered freezing weather and snowstorms. They were traveling through the wilderness and soon found they were short supplies. Many of the soldiers grew sick with various illnesses. Nearly half of the soldiers died on the journey! When our Mystery Man arrived in Quebec, he quickly learned that the British had been warned of their coming. He waited or General Montgomery and then they attacked. The American forces lost badly. General Montgomery was killed, and our Mystery Man was badly wounded in the leg. The Americans were forced to surrender. Adapted from https://www.landofthebrave.info/battle-of-quebec.htm
Mystery Man Box #3 Battle of Valcour Island October 11, 1776 Source #3a On this day in 1776, a British fleet under Sir Guy Carleton defeats 15 American gunboats under the command of Brigadier General Benedict Arnold at the Battle of Valcour Island on Lake Champlain, in what is now Clinton County, New York. Although nearly all of Arnold s ships were destroyed, it took more than two days for the British to subdue the Patriot naval force, delaying Carleton s campaign and giving the Patriot ground forces adequate time to prepare a crucial defense of New York. http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history
Source #3b Watercolor painting (circa 1925) of the 1776 Battle of Valcour Island. Source: National Archives of Canada Journal of the American Revolution https://allthingsliberty.com/2014/01/battle-valcour-island/ Source #3c Journal of the American Revolution https://allthingsliberty.com/2014/01/battle-valcour-island/ Source #3d
The Gunboat Philadelphia Smithsonian Institute http://www.si.edu/exhibitions/details/gunboat-philadelphia-160 Source #3e From Major General Philip Schuyler Saratoga [N.Y.] Octo. 16. 1776 Six oclock Afternoon Dr Sir Inclosed you have Copies of Letters from Generals Gates and Arnold, announcing the total Destruction of our Fleet on Lake Champlain.1 I shall write to every State nearest me to march up their Militia to support our Army as the Enemy will doubtless very soon attack it, and do every thing in my Power to prevent their penutrating into the Country, should our Army be obliged to give way which I have good Hopes will not be the Case. I am Dr Sir Your Excellency s most obedt hum. Servt Ph: Schuyler The National Archives http://founders.archives.gov/?q=schuyler%20to%20washington%20author%3a%22schuyler%2 C%20Philip%22&s=1111311111&sa=&r=82&sr=
Mystery Man Box #4 Battles of Saratoga Library of Congress https://www.loc.gov/item/2004668503/
Source #4b MILITARY JOURNAL, DURING THE AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR FROM 1776 TO 1783; DESCRIBING The Events and Transactions of this Period WITH NUMEROUS HISTORICAL FACTS AND ANECDOTES. TO WHICH IS ADDED, AN APPENDIX, CONTAINING BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF SEVERAL GENERAL OFFICERS. BY JAMES THACHER, M.D. LATE SURGEON IN THE AMERICAN ARMY. October 12th,-The wounded officers and soldiers of our army, and those of the enemy who have fallen into our hands, are crowding into our hospital, and require our constant attention. The last night I watched with the celebrated General Arnold, whose leg was badly fractured by a musket-ball while in the engagement with the enemy on the 7th instant. He is very peevish, and impatient under his misfortunes, but I devoted all hour in writing a letter to a friend in Boston, detailing the particulars of the late battle. http://www.americanrevolution.org/t1777.php
Source #4c said it would have been better had it been in the chest instead of the leg. Randall, Willard Sterne (1990). Benedict Arnold: Patriot and Traitor. William Morrow and Inc. http://colonialsense.com/how-to_guides/crafts/silhouettes.php Source #4d Battles of Saratoga Definition: Turning point of the Revolutionary War in that it convinced France to enter the war on the side of the Americans. British General John Burgoyne came up with a brilliant plan to take all of New York away from the Americans. His three-pronged attack called for a meeting of three forces at Saratoga. Burgoyne would advance south from Canada and plan to meet at Albany with Generals Barry St. Leger and William Howe. St. Leger was to move east from Fort Oswego, on Lake Ontario; and Howe was to march north from Virginia. This was a brilliant plan, Burgoyne thought, and he hoped to crush the American Northern Army. Trouble was, it didn't work. Howe went to Philadelphia instead. Burgoyne himself was stopped by American General Benedict Arnold at Saratoga. St. Leger made it to Albany and had it all to himself. At the Battle of Saratoga (which was really a handful of battles), Burgoyne surrendered almost his entire army to General Horatio Gates on October 17, 1777. The American victory convinced France that America really did have a chance of winning. Soon thereafter, French money and supplies (and eventually, troops and ships) were making their way to America. The end had begun. http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/wwww/us/saratogadef.htm
Source #4e The monument says: In memory of the "most brilliant soldier" of the Continental Army who was desperately wounded on this spot, the sally port of BURGOYNES "GREAT (WESTERN) REDOUBT" 7th October 1777 winning for his countrymen the Decisive Battle of the American Revolution and for himself the rank of Major General Personal Photo
Source #4f Mystery Man http://www.britishbattles.com/battle-saratoga.htm
Source 4g Position of the army on the 8th Octbr. 1777 Shows British and German troop positions Library of Congress https://www.loc.gov/item/gm71000660/
Mystery Man Box #5 Treason at WestPoint Source #5a Source: http://www2.si.umich.edu/spies/
#5a Transcript Inclosed in a cover addressed to M[r.] Anderson / Two days since I received a letter without date or Signature, / informing me that S[ir]. Henry ------ was obliged to me for intelligence / communicated, and that he placed a full confidence in the Sincerity / of my intentions, etc. etc. On the 13th Instant I addressed a letter / to you expressing my Sentiments and expectations, viz, that / the following Preliminaries be settled previous to cooperating. - / First, that S[ir]. Henry secure to me my property, valued at ten thou- / sand pounds Sterling, to be paid to me or my Heirs in case of / Loss; and, as soon as that happens [strike out] shall happen, ---- hundred / pounds per annum to be secured to me for life, in lieu of the / pay and emoluments I give up, for my Services as they shall / deserve - If I point out a plan of cooperation by which S[ir}. H[enry]. / shall possess himself of West Point, the Garrison, etc. etc. etc. twenty / thousand pounds Sterling I think will be a cheap purchase for / an object of so much importance. At the same time I request / thousand pounds to be paid my Agent - I expect a full / and explicit answer - The 20th I set off for West Point. A / personal interview with an officer that you can confide in / is absolutely necessary to plan matters. In the mean time / I shall communicate to our mutual Friend S[tansbur]y all the / intelligence in my power, until I have the pleasure of your answer. / Moore / July 15th [1780] / To the line of my letter of the 13th / I did not add seven.
Source #5b Source: http://clements.umich.edu/exhibits/online/spies/map-westpoint.html
Source #5c The second close call resulted from the treason of Benedict Arnold in 1780. Arnold caught Washington s eye after the Battle of Quebec in late 1775 and again after the Battle of Saratoga in October 1777. Arnold s persistence and strong leadership exemplified the qualities that Washington valued in his officers. However, Arnold grew disenchanted with the American army after being passed over for promotions. In May 1779, he became the commander of operations in the Philadelphia area but also secretly became a part of the British army, receiving 6,000 pounds and a commission in the British army in exchange for his treason. 7 After receiving command of the Hudson Highlands in June 1780, Arnold agreed to help the British capture West Point. The plot included capturing Washington while he dined with Arnold at West Point. However, the plan failed because the British ship Vulture never received the message when Washington arrived in September 1780. Arnold s plot was later discovered when his British contact, Major John André, was captured on September 23, 1780, while carrying Arnold s papers. The betrayal personally affected Washington because he had trusted Arnold. He [Arnold] seems to have been so hackneyed in villainy, and so lost to all sense of honor, Washington wrote of his former officer. http://www.mountvernon.org/digital-encyclopedia/article/west-point/
Name Mystery Man Organizer The documents in your box concern a specific person and his actions during the Revolutionary War. Think like a historian. Pick two documents to examine. As you examine these documents, ask yourself the following questions: Is this a primary or secondary source? What happened? Who was involved? When did it happen? How and why did it happen? What does this tell me about our Mystery Man? Then fill out the chart below. Source Number Primary or Secondary? What do you see, think, and wonder about the source? Use detail. What does this tell you about your group s Mystery Man? If you could think of one or two word to describe your Mystery Man, what would you choose? Support your idea with evidence from your box.