The Boot Monument is an American Revolutionary War memorial located in Saratoga National Historical Park, New York. Erected in 1887 by John Watts de Peyster, it commemorates Major General Benedict Arnold's service at the Battles of Saratoga in the Continental Army, but does not mention him on the monument because Arnold later betrayed the Continental Army for the British Army. Instead, it commemorates Arnold as the "most brilliant soldier of the Continental Army". The monument was sculpted by George Edwin Bissell.
![]() Monument to Benedict Arnold's injured foot at Saratoga National Historical Park | |
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43°0′30.2″N 73°38′21.7″W / 43.008389°N 73.639361°W | |
Location | Saratoga National Historical Park[1] |
---|---|
Designer | George Edwin Bissell[2][3] |
Dedicated to | Benedict Arnold, although it does not mention his name[1] |
While fighting at the Battle of Bemis Heights, Arnold was severely wounded after being shot in his leg. His horse, who was shot as well, fell on Arnold's leg and shattered it. After this, Arnold continued to grow ever more bitter towards the Continental Army when he was passed over for promotion, lost his business, and was court-martialed for abusing his power as military commander of Philadelphia. He later attempted to help the British capture the fortification of West Point but was discovered and fled to the British army.
Background
editAmerican Major General Benedict Arnold had contributed to both Battles of Saratoga, although the extent of his contributions to the first battle, the Battle of Freeman's Farm, are disputed.[4][5] However, in the second conflict, the Battle of Bemis Heights on 7 October 1777, General Arnold unexpectedly joined the fighting[6][7] even after disagreements between him and Major General Horatio Gates resulted in Arnold's command being removed and given to Major General Benjamin Lincoln.[8] Gates attempted to send Arnold back to camp, but Gates's orders did not reach Arnold until the battle was over. Arnold led the American Continental Army in taking a redoubt commanded by Lord Balcarres.[9] However, at the end of the conflict, Arnold's leg and horse were shot. When the horse fell, Arnold's leg shattered.[4]
Gates did not make much mention of Arnold's contributions in his report of the aftermath of the battle,[10] which contributed to Arnold's bitterness, along with his combat wounds, business troubles, Congress having promoted some rival and younger generals ahead of him, and a court martial after being convicted of two minor charges of using his role as military commander of Philadelphia to make a profit.[11] This, along with the fact that his wife, Peggy Shippen, came from a family of Loyalists, caused Arnold to start making communications with the British army, with Sir Henry Clinton finally offering Arnold £20,000 for the capture of West Point,[12] a fortification that was important to the control of the Hudson River.[13] Arnold met with British Major John André so he could pass on information on how to best attack West Point. André was captured on his way back to New York and the plans for the West Point attack were discovered.[12] Arnold fled to the British army, and remained as a general there until the war ended.[14][15]
History
editIn a Saratoga Monument Association (SMA) meeting in July of 1882, there was an announcement by Ellen Harden Walworth, chairman of the Committee of Tablets, that the spot where Arnold injured his leg was marked by a stake. There were no objections to the stake.[2]
John Watts de Peyster, a former major general for the New York State Militia during the American Civil War,[16] writer of several military histories about the Battle of Saratoga, and a vice president of the SMA,[2] wanted to commemorate Arnold's contribution to the Continental Army's victory over the British[1] and was unsatisfied with the Saratoga Battle Monument, where the niche where a statue of Arnold should have gone would remain empty.[17] De Peyster considered Arnold a traitor, but still recognized his contributions at Saratoga. He wanted to "honor some of Arnold's deeds without honoring the man"[1] but thought that simply a slab of granite to commemorate Arnold "would not do."[2]
De Peyster decided on a boot for the monument because he had heard of a story where Arnold asked an American he met in London what the Americans thought of him, to which the American said that they would make a monument out of Arnold's leg and hang the rest of his body in effigy.[18][19] Historian Michael L. Lear said that he decided on Arnold's boot as a suitable monument because "the leg was the only part of Arnold not to later turn traitor and since it was sacrificed in winning the battle of Saratoga, it should be commemorated."[1] He commissioned George Edwin Bissell,[2][3] who had designed other statues that Peyster had erected,[1] to sculpt a marker in white marble.[2] The monument was then erected in 1887.[1] It is the only monument to Arnold in the United States[20] and the only monument in Saratoga National Park that does not say the name of its honoree.[3]
The toe of the Boot Monument was stolen by college boys on a trip[21][22] and they were only discovered when an anonymous informer (described as "a graduate of a New York State educational institution") told the battlefield official that the toe was stolen.[23] The monument underwent restoration after Adolph S. Ochs, publisher of The New York Times, financed it.[24][25]
The monument was originally located at the top of the hill at the Breymann Redoubt site, but was later moved after further research as to where Arnold injured his leg, which was the more southern end of the main redoubt line.[26] The time at which this happened is disputed with some sources saying 1975,[3][27] while others say 1972. However, the monument was still at the Breymann Redoubt before the time of its move, and is still at the southern end of the redoubt.[1][28][29]
Appearance
editThe inscription on the monument reads:
Erected 1887 By
JOHN WATTS de PEYSTER
Brev: Maj: Gen: S.N.Y.
2nd V. Pres't Saratoga Mon't Ass't'n:
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.
The monument never mentions Arnold by name because of Arnold's defection to the British army (see damnatio memoriae),[4][31][32] and De Peyster was worried that the monument would be defaced if it mentioned Arnold directly.[33][22] It features a howitzer barrel, with a left-footed horseman's riding boot[4][31][32] and a two-star epaulette for a major general on top of the barrel.[34][35] A laurel leaf wreath sits atop the howitzer.[36] As a sign of dishonor, the howitzer barrel is pointed downwards.[37] One error in the inscription was that Arnold did not earn the rank of Major General after, and because of, Saratoga, but he did regain his seniority.[1] The inscription was edited after its erection to say "erected 1887 by" before De Peyster's name to make it clear that he is not the honoree of the boot.[38] The monument faces the battlefield.[39]
Similarly to how Arnold's name does not appear on the Boot Monument because of his betrayal to the British side,[40][41] the Saratoga Battle Monument honors Gates, General Philip Schuyler, Arnold, and Colonel Daniel Morgan, but the place where Arnold's statue should stand in the monument is an empty niche. In an old cadet chapel at West Point, Revolutionary War generals are honored with a plaque on the wall, but Arnold's plaque does not have his name on it, and only mentions his birth and death dates.[42]
The monument is made of white marble[2][43] and is 4 feet (1.2 m) tall.[44]
See also
edit- Stonewall Jackson's arm
- Daniel Sickles's leg
- Golden Gumboot
- To the Inhabitants of America – letter by Benedict Arnold justifying his actions for switching sides
- Benedict Arnold's expedition to Quebec
- John Champe (soldier) – Continental soldier who stayed in the British Army in a failed plan to capture Arnold
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i Murphy 2007, pp. 2, 3, 235.
- ^ a b c d e f g Strange 2015, pp. 194–221.
- ^ a b c d Holmes & Smith-Holmes 2012, p. 38.
- ^ a b c d Martin 1997, pp. 378–381, 514.
- ^ Ketchum 1997, p. 515.
- ^ Luzader 2008, p. 285.
- ^ Frothingham & Nickerson 1928, p. 362.
- ^ Ketchum 1997, pp. 284–285.
- ^ Frothingham & Nickerson 1928, p. 365.
- ^ Palmer 2006, pp. 254–255.
- ^ Philbrick 2016, pp. 321–326.
- ^ a b Randall 1990, pp. 448–540.
- ^ Philbrick 2016, pp. 267–269.
- ^ Brandt 1993, p. 252.
- ^ Randall 1990, p. 589.
- ^ Leopold, Robert. A Guide to Early African Collections in the Smithsonian Institution Archived 23 February 2024 at the Wayback Machine. p. 62. Smithsonian Institution, August 1994.
- ^ a b Watson, Elmo Scott (31 January 1941). "Time Softens the Harsh Verdict of His Contemporaries on an American Military Genius who was Born Just 200 Years Ago". The Pentwater News. p. 2. Archived from the original on 4 May 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Arnold's Toe Stolen". Lawrence Journal-World. 28 July 1931. p. 5. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Find Clue to Missing Monument". The Telegraph (Nashua, New Hampshire). 28 July 1931. p. 6. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ Tonsetic 2013, p. 144.
- ^ "General's Boot Lured Students". The Spokesman-Review. 29 July 1931. p. 2. Archived from the original on 4 May 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
- ^ a b "Nameless Monument For Benedict Arnold". The Lewiston Daily Sun. 22 August 1927. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Find Clue to Missing Monument". The Telegraph. 28 July 1931. p. 6. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "At Last! Clue to Last Part of Monument to a Man's Leg". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 31 July 1931. p. 24. Archived from the original on 4 May 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
- ^ "May Find Toe of Only Statue to a Left Leg". Telegraph-Herald and Times-Journal. 28 July 1931. p. 11. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ Griswold & Linebaugh 2016, pp. 30, 94, 101.
- ^ Gruse, Doug (11 August 2015). "Famed traitor gets a leg up". The Post-Star. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ Thompson, Bob. "Revolutionary Saratoga Springs: Details". Boca Raton News. p. 32. Archived from the original on 3 March 2024. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
- ^ "Tour Stop 7: The Decisive Moment (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ "Digital Collections : Still Image : Monument dedicated by John Watts de Peyster, Brev: Maj. Gen. S.N.Y. [NYSA_14297-87_3626]". digitalcollections.archives.nysed.gov. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
- ^ a b Middleton, Drew (8 October 1977). "Oct. 7,1777: The Beginning of the End at Saratoga". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 9 March 2024. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
- ^ a b Coe, Alexis (14 July 2020). "Yes, take down the Confederate statues. But the founders are different". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 5 October 2020. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Not Quite Forgotten". The Evening Tribune (Hornell). 28 August 1927. p. 9. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
- ^ Duling 2021, p. 166.
- ^ Aryes 2008, p. 165.
- ^ Brumwell, Stephen (15 December 2023). "'God Save Benedict Arnold' Review: Hero First, Traitor Later". WSJ. Archived from the original on 29 February 2024. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
- ^ "Palance Recalls Arnold Heroism at Saratoga". Schenectady Gazette. 11 September 1985. p. 11. Archived from the original on 3 March 2024. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
- ^ Duffus, R. L. (9 November 1930). "A Monument to the Leg of a Traitor". The New York Times. p. 2. Archived from the original on 4 June 2024.
- ^ "Proposal to Honor Arnold Frowned Upon". Schenectady Gazette. 4 August 1930. p. 17. Archived from the original on 3 March 2024. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
- ^ Williams 2013, p. 1769.
- ^ MacIvor, Ivor (20 March 1954). "The Hero Who Got The Boot". The Saturday Evening Post. p. 98. ISSN 0048-9239.
- ^ Groark, Virginia (21 April 2002). "Beloved Hero and Despised Traitor". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 May 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
- ^ "Monument To Leg Honors Traitor". Kentucky New Era. 28 June 1956. p. 3. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
- ^ Ducharme & Fine 1995, pp. 1323–1324.
Works cited
edit- Aryes, Thomas (2008). A Military Miscellany: From Bunker Hill to Baghdad: Important, Uncommon, and Sometimes Forgotten Facts, Lists, and Stories from America's Military History. New York, New York: Random House Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-553-80440-9. Archived from the original on 2 March 2024. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
- Brandt, Clare (1993). The Man in the Mirror: A Life of Benedict Arnold (1st ed.). New York, New York: Random House. ISBN 978-0-679-40106-3.
- Ducharme, Lori J.; Fine, Gary Alan (June 1995). "The Construction of Nonpersonhood and Demonization: Commemorating the Traitorous Reputation of Benedict Arnold". Social Forces. 73 (4). Athens, Georgia: 23. doi:10.2307/2580449. JSTOR 2580449. Archived from the original on 4 May 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
- Duling, Ennis (29 July 2021). Thirteen Charges Against Benedict Arnold: The Accusations of Colonel John Brown Prior to the Act of Treason. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-1-4766-4360-1. Archived from the original on 7 March 2024. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
- Frothingham, Thomas G.; Nickerson, Hoffman (1928). "The Turning Point of the Revolution". The New England Quarterly. 1 (4). Boston, Massachusetts: 594. doi:10.2307/359542. ISSN 0028-4866. JSTOR 359542. Archived from the original on 17 December 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
- Griswold, William A.; Linebaugh, Donald W. (2016). The Saratoga Campaign: Uncovering an Embattled Landscape. Lebanon, New Hampshire: University Press of New England. ISBN 978-1-61168-965-5. Archived from the original on 2 March 2024. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
- Holmes, Timothy; Smith-Holmes, Libby (2012). Saratoga: America's Battlefield. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-61423-566-8. Archived from the original on 3 March 2024. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
- Ketchum, Richard M. (1997). Saratoga: Turning Point of America's Revolutionary War. New York, New York: Henry Holt and Company. ISBN 978-0-8050-6123-9.
- Luzader, John F. (2008). Saratoga: A Military History of the Decisive Campaign of the American Revolution (1st ed.). New York, New York: Savas Beatie. ISBN 978-1-932714-44-9.
- Martin, James Kirby (1997). Benedict Arnold, Revolutionary Hero: An American Warrior Reconsidered. New York, New York: New York University Press. ISBN 0814755607.
- Murphy, Jim (2007). The Real Benedict Arnold. New York, New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 978-0-395-77609-4. Archived from the original on 3 March 2024. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
- Palmer, Dave Richard (2006). George Washington and Benedict Arnold: A Tale of Two Patriots. Washington, D.C.: Regnery Publishing. ISBN 978-1-59698-020-4.
- Philbrick, Nathaniel (2016). Valiant Ambition: George Washington, Benedict Arnold, and the Fate of the American Revolution. New York, New York: Penguin Books. ISBN 9781594139710.
- Randall, Willard Sterne (1990). Benedict Arnold: Patriot and Traitor (1st ed.). New York, New York: William Morrow and Company. ISBN 978-1-55710-034-4.
- Strange, Carolyn (April 2015). "The Battlefields of Personal and Public Memory: Commemorating the Battle of Saratoga (1777) in the Late Nineteenth Century". The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. 14 (2). Cambridge, England: 194–221. doi:10.1017/S1537781414000796. S2CID 162888801.
- Tonsetic, Robert L. (19 July 2013). Special Operations in the American Revolution. Haverton, Pennsylvania and Oxford, England: Casemate Publishers. ISBN 978-1-61200-165-4. Archived from the original on 7 March 2024. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
- Williams, Marie Danielle Annette (2013). The Revolutionary War in the Adirondacks: Raids in the Wilderness. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4396-7023-1. Archived from the original on 17 December 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2023.