The meeting between Arnold and André in 1780 was a long time coming and the nail in the coffin for André. André was born May 2, 1750 in London to wealthy parents who sent him to school in Geneva. At the age of 20, he joined the British Army and was sent to the New World to fight in the American Revolutionary War. In November 1775, André was captured by the Continental Army and held as a prisoner of war until December 1776 when he was released in a prisoner exchange. By 1778, he was promoted to Major.
With his promotion, he became head of British secret intelligence in America. When the British occupied Philadelphia (1777-1778), André lived in Benjamin Franklin's house and became friends with Peggy Shippen, the daughter of a prominent loyalist. After the British left Philadelphia, Shippen and André remained in contact.
During the reoccupation of Philadelphia by the Continental Army, Benedict Arnold, then the military commander of the city, became romantically involved with Shippen and they were married in 1779. Shippen's correspondence with André allowed Benedict Arnold to work with the secret intelligence officer to betray the Continental Army.
The conspirators came up with a plan for Arnold, by then in command of West Point, to surrender the fort in exchange for £20,000. This was a highly desirable strategy because it would allow the British to cut off New England from the rest of the colonies. On September 21 Arnold handed over to André the plans of West Point, which he himself had weakened in anticipation of a British attack.
When the two left, André was led by Joshua Hett Smith, whose help Arnold had enlisted. But Smith was a shifty character and appears to have been a double agent, for he convinced André to wear civilian clothing and led him towards American lines. André was captured and the plans of West Point were found. Since he was wearing civilian clothing instead of his uniform, André was arrested as a spy.
When word got to Arnold that John André had been arrested as a spy, he escaped to British controlled New York City. George Washington, the Commander in Chief of the Continental Army, was open to exchanging the spy for the traitor but the British had a policy of not returning Americans who had switched sides. While many British disliked Arnold, they did not renege on this policy.
Arnold continued to fight the war as a general in the British army while André was convicted of espionage and hanged. André held his head high as he went to his death while Arnold was held in suspicion by the British as a mercenary. The contrasting character of the two men, the patriotic spy and the traitor, further vilified Arnold among both the Americans and the British.
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