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View Full Version : MSM: Stop Smearing Benedict Arnold -- TIME, etc., So Ignorant of History!



Tesla_WTC_Solution
26th September 2013, 18:25
Disclaimer: I am not a US history buff. That aside, I am one of those persons to whom strange and surprising discoveries are meaningful. I love sharing them, hoping there is at least one person out there who will also smile. However, this morning, the media's treatment of our nation's history shamed my sensibilities so greatly that I felt forced to say something about it.

When it comes to fine details, a lot gets lost in translation. Many people don't know that the United States of America was actually formed on July 2 (in a courtroom), whereas the Declaration of Independence was presented and signed two days later. We allow ourselves today and our kids to believe that our country's borders were determined by the people on a given date, and not by some judge in a closed courtroom -- but reality says otherwise than belief.

As it would happen, the book that yielded up to me that juicy detail about the invention of America as a nation also mentioned a few of its earliest celebrities. Benedict Arnold was one of those people. And there are so many folks in this country who have remained ignorant and disdainful of the enormous courage that man possessed, and demonstrated, both when he was fighting for the States and also when he made the decision to fight again for the British Crown.

The birth of a nation is a bloody thing indeed. And unlike the noble surgery room or the hopeful birthing chamber, the place this birth occurs is not, by rule, full of people who want to help for the sake of helping. In fact many are there solely for their respective pound of flesh, and it was this mentality that caused Benedict Arnold to abandon his loyalty to America -- but not because of his own desires. People all around him were clamouring for their pound of flesh, and America be damned to them.

How many people learned in traditional schooling that among the Revolutionary Generals of America, some were out to put as many knives as possible in the backs of one another, rather than sacrifice a single drop of blood for his fellow man? Did you know that their ranks, the lines of our leadership, were rife with the aristocratic principles under which we suffer today? The concept of the equality of mankind had not quite set in with the ambitions harbored by at least half of the men who were supposed to be helping General Washington at the time of America's conception. Do they teach that in school? That there may have been less famous Washington prayers, like "God protect me from mutiny and subversion", or "get me through tonight so I can face the true enemy tomorrow"?

There were lots of turncoats in early America. General Schuyler and General Gates were among the gross malingerers whose plotting and whispering destroyed the careers of General Arnold (descendant of a fine American governor) and General Montgomery (valiant Scottish revolutionary), and threatened to undo Washington himself? How many of you have heard of the Whispering Congress or the Conway Cabal?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conway_Cabal

The Conway Cabal refers to a series of events in late 1777 and early 1778 suggesting that George Washington be replaced as commander of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. It was named after Brigadier General Thomas Conway, whose letters criticizing Washington were forwarded to the Second Continental Congress. When these suggestions (which were often little more than criticisms and expressions of discontent with either Washington or the general course of the war) were made public, supporters of Washington mobilized to assist him politically. Conway ended up resigning from the army, and General Horatio Gates, a leading candidate to replace Washington, issued an apology for his role in the events.

No formal requests were ever made asking for Washington's removal as commander in chief. There was no sign of any formal conspiracy amongst the various malcontents, although Washington was concerned that there might be one. It was the only major political threat to Washington's command during the war.

In the fall of 1777 forces of the British Army successfully captured Philadelphia, the seat of the Second Continental Congress, which was forced to relocate to York, Pennsylvania. The series of military setbacks (principally the losses at Brandywine in September and Germantown in October) caused many in the Continental Army and Congress to question George Washington's leadership of the war effort. In contrast, the northern army of General Horatio Gates had won a signal victory over John Burgoyne's forces, compelling Burgoyne to surrender his entire army after the Battles of Saratoga. In addition to claiming credit for the victory at Saratoga (which some historians feel was due more to the actions of Benedict Arnold), Gates was politically well connected to Congress.


How many of you know that Montgomery, Arnold, and Washington alike were all sent on suicide missions by their high-ranking fellows, those unworthy watchers in the dark who like snakes, dared not creep into the grass of the unknown until nobler creatures forged a passage for them? Montgomery lost his life at the ill-fated Storming of Quebec. The cowardly Horatio Gates, one of the conspirators against Washington, tried to steal Montgomery's widow, but she wisely refused him.

Gates also did his best to discredit and destroy the livelihood of Benedict Arnold, whose injury in earlier conflict complicated his participation in later battles. The pain and dishonor Arnold received as payment for loyal service prompted him to leave the relatively unstable political ground of the new United States and return to pastures he knew better. To Arnold, it seemed that the American Revolution was beginning to destroy everything his family had worked for on these shores for generations. And he was right -- remove morality from the table and all you've got left is a pack of fighting animals.

It was truly, in my opinion, an act of God that protected General Washington from the backstabbers on US shores. I don't know why God didn't protect Benedict Arnold's reputation and career in the same way that Washington was protected. But perhaps the example of this heinously mistreated soldier was supposed to live on, for our education today, in our dealings with malicious media outlets and snake-hearted politicians who continue their efforts to unravel the gift Washington gave to us.

Those who fight for our rights, for the rights of all people and not just the privileged few, include men like Arnold. They include men like Ed Snowden, who was forced to defect in order to escape the unConstitutional tendrils of the NSA. They include men like Bradley Manning, who made a bravely conscious choice to sacrifice his own best interests for ours.

There will likely never be a suitable monument built to commemorate the heroism of Arnold, Snowden, or Manning. But rest assured, that from within the gloom of the ancient grave of our greatest father, there are wise eyes that mark our progress and a brave heart that beats to the tempo of joyous freedom. Those eyes will never be put out, and that rhythm will never be stilled.

Freedom is wakeful and innocent, able to think clearly and plan well -- it is the conspirators in the deathlike embrace of darkness, those who sleep in their own lies, who should worry -- those who would lead us from the shores of freedom into the oceans of death, like so many souls of Roanoke.

We will no go silently into that terrible sleep.
Just like a fellow Avalonian shared this week,
the Buddha says:

The fool sleeps as if he were already dead, but the master is awake and he lives forever. He watches. He is clear.

dpwishy
26th September 2013, 18:46
I have a history degree from a well known college. Pretty useless when you come to realize that history is a weapon and is hardly ever true. The "winners" are the ones that write history. Now I have a useless piece of paper, 80 grand in student loans and I own/run a successful painting company and do not use my degree in the slightest. Go figure.... ;)

It felt wrong to become a teacher like I once planned and perpetuate the lies of history.


In divine friendship,
your brother,
-wishy

Tesla_WTC_Solution
26th September 2013, 19:58
I have a history degree from a well known college. Pretty useless when you come to realize that history is a weapon and is hardly ever true. The "winners" are the ones that write history. Now I have a useless piece of paper, 80 grand in student loans and I own/run a successful painting company and do not use my degree in the slightest. Go figure.... ;)

It felt wrong to become a teacher like I once planned and perpetuate the lies of history.


In divine friendship,
your brother,
-wishy

I think you would be a great teacher... the best teacher gives the student time to form his own thoughts and make his own statements.
The great teacher is an impartial judge. He sets an example of hard work and thoughtfulness.

The worst teachers are those with a clear agenda, those who stifle creativity when it opposes rigid thinking, he who has abandoned the wreckage of his own tower to kick back into the dirt the efforts of children.

:)

It's never too late to become a teacher -- my great grandmother didn't finish her certificate until she was about 60 years old!

Teachers simply need to establish a process in the students, the process of self-directed learning, but they are not obligated to oversee that process ad nauseum.

To remind the child of our times of his own independence is itself quite a shock to the child.
Sometimes this is all that is required in order to start his process of learning.

Robin
27th September 2013, 03:07
It's great to see somebody who sees the Founding of America for what it truly is! I do consider myself to be an American Revolution history buff. I find it fascinating that they accomplished what they did, but find it even more so that it has been so romanticized through time.

George Washington is by far the most romanticized. In reality, he was a proud, rather pompous, and temperamental individual who glorified in his position of power. I'm not knocking him, but he was a human just like the rest of us...with his faults.

When he was brought a British spy, Washington decided to hang him instead of giving him a noble soldier's death. He wanted to set an example to those who would oppose him:

http://www.mountvernon.org/educational-resources/encyclopedia/john-andr%C3%A9

marlowe
27th September 2013, 03:29
Washington couldn't afford to lose a big battle and a lot of men..Because then he wouldn't have an army to fight the British with ......He was waiting for the French to show up and help ....So he basically played a waiting game in hopes of wearing the British down....Washington won the war by retreating and winning small victories based on suprise attacks ....

The Revolutionary War lasted 7 years.[ 1775-1782 ] The Hessian Mercenaries were deserting in droves which is why there are so many Germans in the USA.....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolutionary_War

Tesla_WTC_Solution
27th September 2013, 23:01
I thought someone told me once that GW turned down an offer of dictatorship for life -- that he supported the whole idea of elected presidents?

I agree he might have let wealth get to his head in some regards, but was he really such a bad person?

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1786658/posts

The Man Who Would Not Be King (George Washington)
Heritage Foundation ^ | 2/5/07 | Matthew Spalding

"..From 1775 onward, when the Continental Congress appointed him military commander of continental forces, Washington personified the American Revolution and was the de-facto leader of the colonial struggle. For eight years, Gen. Washington led his small army through the rigors of war, from the defeats in New York and the risky crossing of the Delaware River to the hardships of Valley Forge and the ultimate triumph at Yorktown.

Through force of character and great leadership, Washington transformed an underfunded militia into a capable force that, although never able to take the British army head-on, outwitted and defeated the mightiest military power in the world. Washington lost many more battles than he won, but his defensive strategy achieved his political objective: an independent and unified nation.

After the war, Washington was the central hub of correspondence among the most thoughtful men of the day, leading the effort in nation-building. He was instrumental in bringing about the Constitutional Convention, and his widely publicized participation gave the resulting document a credibility and legitimacy it would otherwise have lacked. Having been immediately and unanimously elected president of the convention, he worked actively throughout the proceedings to create the new Constitution. "Be assured," James Monroe once reminded Thomas Jefferson, "his influence carried this government."

As our first president, he set the precedents that define what it means to be a constitutional executive: strong and energetic, aware of the limits of authority but guarding the prerogatives of office. The vast powers of the presidency, as one Convention delegate wrote, would not have been made as great "had not many of the members cast their eyes towards General Washington as president; and shaped their ideas of the powers to be given to a president by their opinions of his virtue."

And the key ingredient in all of these things was moral character, something that Washington took very seriously and which gave to his decision-making a deeply prudential quality and to his authority an unmatched magnanimity. "His integrity was pure, his justice the most inflexible I have ever known, no motives of interest or consanguinity, of friendship or hatred, being able to bias his decision," Jefferson later observed. "He was, indeed, in every sense of the words, a wise, a good, and a great man."

It is no coincidence, then, that Washington's most important legacy comes during moments of temptation, when the lure of power was before him. Twice during the Revolution, in 1776 and again in 1777 when Congress was forced to abandon Philadelphia in the face of advancing British troops, Gen. Washington was granted virtually unlimited powers to maintain the war effort and preserve civil society, powers not unlike those assumed in an earlier era by Roman dictators. He shouldered the responsibility but gave the authority back as soon as possible.

After the war, there were calls for Washington to claim formal political power. Indeed, seven months after the victory at Yorktown, one of his officers suggested what many thought only reasonable in the context of the 18th century: that America should establish a monarchy and that Washington should become king. A shocked Washington immediately rejected the offer out of hand as both inappropriate and dishonorable, and demanded the topic never be raised again..."

http://www.amazon.com/Two-Crowns-America-Katherine-Kurtz/dp/0553762486

Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Blending historical detail and supernatural fantasy, as in her Deryni series and Lammas Night, Kurtz depicts a believable alternate American Revolution driven by the occult machinations of an age-old Master as well as destiny and Masonic solidarity. Kurtz, however, rightly emphasizes the more human characters, likable and three-dimensional in their political and personal struggles as she fleshes out historical figures from George Washington and Benjamin Franklin to the exiled Jacobites who want Prince Charles (Bonnie Prince Charlie of the Stuart dynasty) to assume a throne in America. The Wallace family?Jacobite Andrew; his son Simon; Simon's wife, Arabella; and Arabella's brother, Justin Carmichael?provide viewpoints for most of the important action. Sometimes detail threatens the story (descriptions of costume or Freemason ritual, or exposition of the Revolutionary War's battles), but the blend is usually seamless and well proportioned. Readers are also left with some provocative questions about our national values.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Booklist
Kurtz turns her exploration of possible occult (especially Masonic) influences in history to the American Revolution. She takes two acknowledged facts--the existence of a large number of Jacobites (supporters of the Stuart claimants to the British throne) among the original American patriots and the equally large number of founding fathers who were Masons--and on them builds an engrossing and elegant tale. It begins with George Washington, unconscious after a fall from his horse, having a compelling dream of being crowned and proceeds through the whole course of the war. Masonic and Jacobite influences are continually brought to bear in favor of American independence, even when in the process they sometimes conflict with one another. Vivid portrayals of Washington and Charles Edward Stuart ("Bonnie Prince Charlie" ) are at the core of the book, which is otherwise well up to Kurtz's historically well-informed standards. Highly recommended. Roland Green --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Robin
28th September 2013, 00:12
I thought someone told me once that GW turned down an offer of dictatorship for life -- that he supported the whole idea of elected presidents?

I agree he might have let wealth get to his head in some regards, but was he really such a bad person?]

George Washington, whom some called George IV as a joke, was indeed a great man. I hope that my reply about his demeanor did not come across as implying that he was a bad man.

You have to realize that how our government feeds us our history is very much fabricated. The Heritage Foundation (based out of Washington D.C.) is also fabricated. They heavily romanticize American history, especially Washington, to give Americans the idea that we are the greatest nation in the world. Washington, as described in "The Man Who Would Not Be King," did turn down a third term of presidency. But what they say to put him on a pedestal is heavily romanticized to the point where they give Americans the viewpoint that the US is the greatest nation in the world with only the best intentions. Which of course is not true.

In the signing of the Declaration of Independence, it is often portrayed as such:

https://www.google.com/search?q=declaration+of+independence&rlz=1C1GGGE_enUS441&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hl=en&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=gh9GUv2JBam2yAHFnIG4Dw#hl=en&q=declaration+of+independence+signing&tbm=isch&um=1&facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=g6BTRkqwVnPNJM%3A%3BhoofePhLYAIAuM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.thisnation.com%252Fmedia%252Fphoto s%252Fsigningdec.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.thisnation.com%252Fmedia%252Fphotos%252Fsigningdec.htm l%3B400%3B300

In reality, the Founding Fathers ran a circus. Constant bickering about what they were trying to accomplish and the fact that they all were in different places in the forming of the Constitution (including Thomas Jefferson in France) was the reality of America's Founding. The singing of the Declaration of Independence, as you've touched on, actually took place in the course of weeks with individuals coming in and out to sing the document. :rolleyes:

Robin
28th September 2013, 00:16
In case the photo didn't show up, here's the link:

https://www.google.com/search?q=declaration+of+independence&rlz=1C1GGGE_enUS441&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hl=en&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=gh9GUv2JBam2yAHFnIG4Dw#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=LyYz0Vnzgc7FyM%3A%3BOvXAQYELE2pp1M%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.ushistory.org%252Fdeclaration%252F images%252Ftrumbull-large1.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.ushistory.org%252Fdeclaration%252Ftrumbull.htm%3B1400%3B897

Tesla_WTC_Solution
21st January 2014, 02:28
I wanted to return to this thread in order to honor our first President.
There is some stuff that most modern US citizens don't get to read very much.
They honestly don't realize we were a hair's breadth away from being ruled by the Gates dynasty.
Those "people", if people they are, since they disavow us as people, tried to discredit George Washington and steal the power legally invested in him during the first years of the Revolution.

Horatio Gates was stuck at the rank of Major in the British army. He was not going to move up any further, from what I know of the man.
In order to circumvent the common knowledge in his home country that he was a coward, a paper pushing backstabbing granny-glasses-wearing old man,
Gates went to America and got promoted to Major General, because the Americans were so desperate for trained men.
His first act after gathering his Whispering Congress friends together and the Conway Cabal garbage, was creating a "Board of War" that outlasts the president and establishes a panel of judges or commissioners who have the unconstitional power and oversight to make changes to the army and how that army is maintained without the will of the people being a factor.

See, wherever George gave power back to the people, the Gates family was standing there with an open sack and the law behind them, to take the power and put it in their family's pocket and out of reach of "we the people".

This has been going on for hundreds of years.
No one really thinks about whether the British had anything left to teach us -- many were supporting the Revolution for selfish, personal reasons, hoping to re-establish themselves in London after gaining wealth and power.

I want you guys to seriously read these Wiki paragraphs and absorb the information thoroughly before saying George Washington was corrupt or somehow at the level of these rats who tried to backstab and replace him. They destroyed Montgomery and Arnold easily enough, by sending those men into danger without cause. But Gates never willingly entered into combat, unlike the other generals, and it was Arnold the so-called turncoat who gave an honest summary of this behavior and coined the name "Granny Gates".

Board of War -- Early Precursor to World Justice Project? lol

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Board_of_War

The Board of War was created by the Second Continental Congress as a special standing committee to oversee the American Continental Army's administration and to make recommendations regarding the army to Congress. On January 24, 1776, Congressional delegate Edward Rutledge, echoing Gen. George Washington's own concerns, suggested that a war office similar to Britain's be established.[1][2] Pressure from Washington[3] and the large volume of military business led Congress to establish the Board of War and Ordnance on June 12, 1776.[4] Five delegates of Congress, initially John Adams, Roger Sherman, Benjamin Harrison, James Wilson, and Edward Rutledge, assisted by a permanent secretary, Richard Peters, composed the Board of War. They assumed the prescribed responsibilities for compiling a master roster of all Continental Army officers; monitoring returns of all troops, arms, and equipment; maintaining correspondence files; and securing prisoners of war. The Board of War began functioning on June 21, 1776.[5]

Organization of the Board of War underwent several significant changes after its inception.[6] The original board could not keep pace with the volume of work, and in early April 1777 it recommended its own replacement by a permanent administrative body.[7] On October 17, 1777, Congress approved a plan that called for a Board of War consisting of three permanent members—men who were not members of Congress—plus a clerical staff.[8] Congress also expanded the board's duties. In addition to the administrative functions of its predecessor, the new board's responsibilities included supervising recruitment and producing weapons. It was to act as Congress' sole official intermediary in dealing with the Army and the states on military affairs. On November 7, 1777, Quartermaster General Thomas Mifflin, Adjutant General Timothy Pickering, and Robert Hanson Harrison, Washington's military secretary, were elected as members,[9] although Harrison promptly declined. Mifflin persuaded Congress to expand the board to five members, which it did on November 24, and recommended Richard Peters (the permanent secretary of the old board) and Maj. Gen. Horatio Gates for the new vacancies.[10] Congress appointed both men and named former Commissary General Joseph Trumbull to replace Harrison. At Mifflin's suggestion, Gates was named president of the board.[11]

Various modifications to the structure and duties of the Board of War continued to be made throughout the war. For example, on October 29, 1778, Congress again modified the membership of the Board to now include two members of Congress and three permanent commissioners,[12] and the Departments of the Quartermaster General and Commissaries General of Purchases and Issues were placed under the direction of the board on November 25, 1779.[13]


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horatio_Gates#Conway_Cabal

Horatio Lloyd Gates (July 26, 1727 – April 10, 1806) was a retired British soldier who served as an American general during the Revolutionary War. He took credit for the American victory in the Battles of Saratoga (1777) — a matter of contemporary and historical controversy — and was blamed for the defeat at the Battle of Camden (1780). Gates has been described as "one of the Revolution's most controversial military figures" because of his role in the Conway Cabal (which attempted to discredit and replace George Washington); the battle at Saratoga; and his actions during and after his defeat at Camden.[1][2]

Horatio Gates was christened on April 30, 1728, in the Parish of St Nicholas, Deptford, Greenwich borough, Kent county. His parents of record were Robert and Dorothea Gates. Evidence suggests that Dorothea was the granddaughter of John Hubbock, Sr. (d. 1692) postmaster at Fulham, and the daughter of John Hubbock, Jr., listed in 1687 sources as a vintner. She had a prior marriage, to Thomas Reeve, whose family was well-situated in the royal Customs service. Dorothea Reeve was housekeeper for the second Duke of Leeds, Peregrine Osborne (d. June 25, 1729), which in the social context of England at the time was a patronage plum. Marriage into the Reeve family opened the way for Robert Gates to get into and then up through the Customs service. So too, Dorothea Gates's appointment circa 1729 to housekeeper for the third Duke of Bolton provided Horatio Gates with otherwise off-bounds opportunities for education and social advancement. Through Dorothea Gates's associations and energetic networking, young Horace Walpole was enlisted as Horatio's godfather and namesake.[1] In 1745, Horatio Gates obtained a military commission with financial help from his parents, and political support from the Duke of Bolton. Gates served with the 20th Foot in Germany during the War of the Austrian Succession, and later was promoted to captain in the 45th Foot in 1750. He sold his commission in 1754 and purchased a captaincy in one of the New York Independent Companies. One of his mentors in his early years was Edward Cornwallis, the uncle of Charles Cornwallis, against whom the Americans would later fight. Gates served under Cornwallis when the latter was governor of Nova Scotia, and also developed a relationship[vague] with the lieutenant governor, Robert Monckton.[3]

During the French and Indian War, Gates served General Edward Braddock in America. In 1755 he accompanied the ill-fated Braddock Expedition in its attempt to control access to the Ohio Valley. This force included other future Revolutionary War leaders such as Thomas Gage, Charles Lee, Daniel Morgan, and George Washington. Gates did not see significant combat, since he was severely injured early in the action. His experience in the early years of the war was limited to commanding small companies, but he apparently became quite good at military administration. In 1759 he was made brigade major to Brigadier General John Stanwix, a position he continued when General Robert Monckton took over Stanwix's command in 1760.[4] Gates served under Monckton in the capture of Martinique in 1762, although he saw little combat. Monckton bestowed on him the honour of bringing news of the success to England, which brought him a promotion to major. The end of the war also brought an end to Gates' prospects for advancement, as the army was demobilised and he did not have the financial wherewithal to purchase commissions for higher ranks.[4]

In November 1755, Gates married Elizabeth Phillips and had a son, Robert, in 1758. Gates' military career stalled, as advancement in the British army required money or influence. Frustrated by the British class hierarchy, he sold his major's commission in 1769, and came to North America. In 1772 he reestablished contact with George Washington, and purchased a modest plantation in Virginia the following year.

When the word reached Gates of the outbreak of war in late May 1775, he rushed to Mount Vernon and offered his services to Washington. In June, the Continental Congress began organizing the Continental Army. In accepting command, Washington urged the appointment of Gates as adjutant of the army. On June 17, 1775, Congress commissioned Gates as a Brigadier General and Adjutant General of the Continental Army. He is considered to be the first Adjutant General of the United States Army.

Gates's previous wartime service in administrative posts was invaluable to the fledgling army, as he and Charles Lee were the only men with significant experience in the British regular army. As adjutant, Horatio Gates created the army's system of records and orders and helped standardize regiments from the various colonies. During the siege of Boston, he was a voice of caution, speaking in war councils against what he saw as overly risky actions.

Although his administrative skills were valuable, Gates longed for a field command. By June 1776, he had been promoted to Major General and given command of the Canadian Department to replace John Sullivan. This unit of the army was then in disorganized retreat from Quebec, following the arrival of British reinforcements at Quebec City. Furthermore, disease, especially smallpox, had taken a significant toll on the ranks, which also suffered from poor morale and dissension over pay and conditions. The retreat from Quebec to Fort Ticonderoga also brought Gates into conflict with the authority of Major General Philip Schuyler, commander of the army's Northern Department, which retained jurisdiction over Ticonderoga. During the summer of 1776, this struggle was resolved, with Schuyler given command of the department as a whole and Gates command of Ticonderoga and the defense of Lake Champlain.

Gates spent the summer of 1776 overseeing the enlargement of the American fleet that would be needed to prevent the British from taking control of Lake Champlain. Much of this work eventually fell to Benedict Arnold, who had been with the army during its retreat and was also an experienced seaman. Gates rewarded Arnold's initiative by giving him command of the fleet when it sailed to meet the British. The American fleet was defeated in the October 1776 Battle of Valcour Island, although the defense of the lake was sufficient to delay a British advance against Ticonderoga until 1777.

When it was clear that the British were not going to make an attempt on Ticonderoga in 1776, Gates marched some of the army south to join Washington's army in Pennsylvania, where it had retreated after the fall of New York City. Though his troops were with Washington at the Battle of Trenton, Gates was not. Always an advocate of defensive action, Gates argued that Washington should retreat further rather than attack. When Washington dismissed this advice, Gates claimed illness as an excuse not to join the nighttime attack and instead traveled on to Baltimore, where the Continental Congress was meeting. Gates had always maintained that he and not Washington should have commanded the Continental Army, an opinion supported by several wealthy and prominent New England delegates to the Continental Congress. Although Gates actively lobbied Congress for the appointment, Washington's stunning successes at Trenton and Princeton subsequently left no doubt as to who should be commander-in-chief. Gates was then sent back north with orders to assist Schuyler in the Northern Department.

But in 1777, Congress blamed Schuyler and St. Clair for the loss of Fort Ticonderoga, though Gates had exercised a lengthy command in the region. Congress finally gave Gates command of the Northern Department on August 4.



Surrender of General Burgoyne by John Trumbull
Gates is in the center, with arms outstretched
Gates assumed command of the Northern Department on August 19 and led the army during the defeat of British General Burgoyne's invasion in the Battles of Saratoga. While Gates and his supporters took credit for the victory, military action was directed by a cohort of field commanders led by Benedict Arnold, Enoch Poor, Benjamin Lincoln, and Daniel Morgan. Arnold in particular took the field against Gates' orders and rallied the troops in a furious attack on the British lines, suffering serious injuries to his leg. John Stark's defeat of a sizable British raiding force at the Battle of Bennington–Stark's forces killed or captured over 900 British soldiers–was also a substantial factor in the outcome at Saratoga.

Gates stands front and center in John Trumbull's painting of the Surrender of General Burgoyne at Saratoga,[5][6] which hangs in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. By Congressional resolution, a gold medal was presented to Gates to commemorate his victories over the British in the Battles of Bennington, Fort Stanwix and Saratoga. Gold and bronze replicas of that medal are still awarded by the Adjutant General's Corps Regimental Association in recognition of outstanding service.[7]

Gates followed up the victory at Saratoga with a proposal to invade Quebec, but his suggestion was rejected by Washington.[8]

Gates attempted to maximize his political return on the victory, particularly as George Washington was having no present successes with the main army. In fact, Gates insulted Washington by sending reports directly to Congress instead of to Washington, his commanding officer. At the behest of Gates's friends and the delegates from New England, Congress named Gates to head the Board of War, a post he filled while retaining his field command —an unprecedented conflict of interest: The post technically made Gates Washington's civilian superior, conflicting with his lower military rank. At this time, some members of Congress briefly considered replacing Washington with Gates as commander-in-chief, supported by military officers also in disagreement with Washington's leadership.

Washington learned of the campaign against him by Gates's adjutant, James Wilkinson. In a letter to Gates, Wilkinson forwarded remarks of General Thomas Conway critical of Washington to General William Alexander, who passed them on to Washington. Gates (then unaware of Wilkinson's involvement) accused persons unknown of copying his mail and forwarded Conway's letter to the president of Congress, Henry Laurens. Washington's supporters in Congress and the army rallied to his side, ending the "Conway Cabal". Gates then apologized to Washington for his role in the affair, resigned from the Board of War, and took an assignment as commander of the Eastern Department in November 1778.

In May 1780, news of the fall of Charleston, South Carolina and the capture of General Benjamin Lincoln's southern army reached Congress. It voted to place Gates in command of the Southern Department. He learned of his new command at his home near Shepherdstown, Virginia (now West Virginia), and headed south to assume command of the remaining Continental forces near the Deep River in North Carolina on July 25, 1780.

Gates led Continental forces and militia south and prepared to face the British forces of Charles Cornwallis, who had advanced to Camden, South Carolina. In the Battle of Camden on August 16, Gates's army was routed, with nearly 1,000 men captured, along with the army's baggage train and artillery. Analysis of the debacle suggests that Gates significantly overestimated the capabilities of his inexperienced militia, an error magnified when he lined up those forces against the British right, traditional position of the strongest troops. He also failed to make proper arrangements for an organized retreat. Gates's principal accomplishment in the unsuccessful campaign was to cover 170 miles (270 km) in three days on horseback, heading north in retreat. His disappointment was compounded by news of his son Robert's death in combat in October. Nathanael Greene replaced Gates as commander on December 3 and Gates returned home to Virginia.

Because of the debacle at Camden, Congress passed a resolution calling for a board of inquiry, the prelude to a court martial, to look into Gates's conduct. Always one to support a court martial of other officers, particularly those with whom he was in competition for advancement, such as Benedict Arnold, Gates vehemently opposed the inquiry into his own conduct. Although he was never again placed in field command, Gates's New England supporters in Congress came to his aid in 1782, repealing the call for an inquiry. Gates then rejoined Washington's staff at Newburgh, New York. Rumors implicated some of his aides in the Newburgh conspiracy of 1783. Gates may have agreed to involve himself, though this remains unclear.

Gates' wife Elizabeth died in the summer of 1783. He retired in 1784 and again returned to his estate, Traveller's Rest, in Virginia (near present day Kearneysville, Jefferson County, West Virginia). Gates served as vice president of the Society of the Cincinnati, the organization of former Continental Army officers, and president of its Virginia chapter, and worked to rebuild his life. He proposed marriage to Janet Montgomery, the widow of General Richard Montgomery, but she refused. In 1786 he married Mary Valens, a wealthy woman from Liverpool who had come to the colonies in 1773 with her sister and Rev. Bartholomew Booth, to operate a boy's boarding school in Maryland.[9] Booth had been the curate for the "Chapel in the Woods," later to become Saint John's Church at Hagerstown, Maryland. Gates sold Traveller's Rest in 1790 and freed his slaves at the urging of his friend John Adams. The aging couple retired to an estate on northern Manhattan Island. His later support for Jefferson's presidential candidacy ended his friendship with Adams. Gates and his wife remained active in New York City society, and he was elected to a single term in the New York State Legislature in 1800.[10] He died on April 10, 1806, and was buried in the Trinity Church graveyard on Wall Street, though the exact location of his grave is unknown.[11]

Horatio Street in Manhattan's Greenwich Village, New York City, is named in Gates's honor,[12] as is Gates Avenue in Brooklyn,[13] Gates Avenue in Jersey City and Gates County, North Carolina.
The Gen. Horatio Gates House was his home during the Second Continental Congress at York, Pennsylvania.[14]

In the classic comedy film, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House,[15] the land on which the Blandingses build their new house (and the site of the 18th century house they tear down) is said to have been "the place where General Gates stopped to water his horses" during the Revolutionary War, says Blandings (played by Cary Grant). "I don't care whether General Grant stopped there for a Scotch and soda," replies Mr. Blandings's friend and lawyer, Bill Cole (played by Melvyn Douglas). "It's still a swindle."
In the films The Crossing and Benedict Arnold: A Question of Honor Gates is portrayed as being very vain and opportunistic.
In the 2000 film The Patriot, after Gates' army is beaten back in a skirmish, Benjamin Martin (Mel Gibson) contemptuously remarks "Gates is a fool. This battle was lost even before it began."

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https://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/644x678q50/839/gateslol.png

:(

Tesla_WTC_Solution
21st January 2014, 02:31
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Is_Bill_Gates_related_to_Mag_General_Horatio_Gates?#slide=2

Yes

http://ourfamilyancestry.info/histories/gates/gatesfamiliesofamerica.pdf

Montgomery Crest:

http://www.scotclans.com/img/scottish_clans/montgomery/crest_big.gif



After the victory at Saratoga, Congress appointed Gates president of
the Board of War and he was seen as a serious candidate to supplant
Washington as commander-in-chief. A group of army officers, chief
among them, General Thomas Conway, along with several members
of Congress, became involved in a plan to accomplish this objective.
While Gates may not have actively encouraged the "Conway Cabal",
Washington's supporters claimed that he had, and consequently
Washington was no longer his friend.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benedict_Arnold

When the Second Continental Congress authorized an invasion of Quebec, in part on the urging of Arnold, he was passed over for command of the expedition. Arnold then went to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and suggested to George Washington a second expedition to attack Quebec City via a wilderness route through present-day Maine. This expedition, for which Arnold received a colonel's commission in the Continental Army, left Cambridge in September 1775 with 1,100 men. After a difficult passage in which 300 men turned back and another 200 died en route, Arnold arrived before Quebec City in November. Joined by Richard Montgomery's small army, he participated in the December 31 assault on Quebec City in which Montgomery was killed and Arnold's leg was shattered. Rev. Samuel Spring, his chaplain, carried him to the makeshift hospital at the Hôtel Dieu. Arnold, who was promoted to brigadier general for his role in reaching Quebec, maintained an ineffectual siege of the city until he was replaced by Major General David Wooster in April 1776.[30]


http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/americanrevolutio1/p/American-Revolution-Major-General-Horatio-Gates.htm

Horatio Gates - Organizing an Army:

Racing to Mount Vernon, Gates offered his services to Washington who was named commander of the Continental Army in mid-June. Recognizing Gates' ability as a staff officer, Washington recommended that the Continental Congress commission him as a brigadier general and Adjutant General for the army. This request was granted and Gates assumed his new rank on June 17. Joining Washington at the Siege of Boston, he worked to organize the myriad of state regiments that composed the army as well as designed systems of orders and records. Though he excelled in this role and was promoted to major general in May 1776, Gates greatly desired a field command. Using his political skills, he obtained command of the Canadian Department the following month. Relieving Brigadier General John Sullivan, Gates inherited a battered army that was retreating south following failed campaign in Quebec.

...

Horatio Gates - Taking Command:

While Washington campaigned in New Jersey, Gates rode south to Baltimore where he lobbied the Continental Congress for command of the main army. Unwilling to make a change due to Washington's recent successes, they later gave him command of the Northern Army at Fort Ticonderoga in March. Unhappy under Schuyler, Gates lobbied his political friends in an effort to obtain his superior's post. A month later, he was told to either serve as Schuyler's second-in-command or return to his role as Washington's adjutant general. Before Washington could rule on the situation, Fort Ticonderoga was lost to the advancing forces of Major General John Burgoyne. Following the fort's loss, and with encouragement from Gates' political allies, the Continental Congress relieved Schuyler of command. On August 4, Gates was named as his replacement and took command of the army fifteen days later.

Robin
21st January 2014, 02:50
Thanks for the thread updates, Tesla! It's great to see you interested in such a diverse array of topics. :)

I have studied the American Revolution for a long time, especially from the years 1770-1815. George Washington was a Mason, but we must realize that Freemasonry was not the same back then as it is now. There is no doubt in my mind through my thorough research that Washington was the most important character of those days, and he most certainly had a deep compassion for humanity.

That being said, there is also no doubt in my mind that Alexander Hamilton, the first secretary of treasury--under Washington--was the poison that infected everything good that sprang from the revolution. Hamilton's life story was fabricated, like Obama's, and he was literally the reason why nearly everything is the way it is today. Hamilton, through his trickery and mind-control, manipulated Washington, and even attempted to manipulate John Adams. I belive, because Washingotn was old at the time of his presidency, he was easily manipulated.

My last lifetime was revealed to me as Meriwether Lewis, which left me deep in the heart of the matters of what was going on back then. I have put many of the puzzle pieces together, and all I have to say is that nothing makes sense without placing Alexander Hamilton at the root cause of the corruption of America. All roads lead back to Hamilton.

Gates, Aaron Burr, general Wilkinson, etc. were also part of the corruption, but all roads lead to Alexander Hamilton. He was a conniving, brilliant man.