On the night of September 22, 1780, a British officer came ashore on the Hudson River for a secret meeting with one of America’s most celebrated generals. The next day, British Major John André was stopped by militiamen. He was out of uniform and carrying the plans of West Point, which Henry Knox would later call “the key to America.” American General Benedict Arnold, the hero of Saratoga, escaped to a British warship. André was left behind to hang in his place.
Join our curator and Dr. Ricardo Herrera as we open the Gilder Lehrman Collection to tell the story through the people who lived it:
- André’s own letter from June 1780, asking a contact to keep watch on “Arnold the Rebel General,” three months before the plot came apart
- The note sent to André on the morning of his death: “His Excellency Genl. Washington has fixed the Hour at 12 o Clock this Day”
- A Continental officer’s letter written the day after the hanging, condemning Arnold for leaving André “to pay the forfeiture that should have fallen on the traitor”
- An eyewitness’s account of why André’s last request, to be shot instead of hanged, was refused
How did an audacious, brilliant commander become America’s most famous traitor? And why did the Americans who executed André as a spy also mourn him? Alexander Hamilton wrote that he “united a peculiar elegance of mind and manners.”
Dr. Ricardo A. Herrera is senior historian at the George Washington Leadership Institute, George Washington Presidential Library, and a professor (ret.) at the US Army War College. His most recent book is The New York Campaign, 1776 (2026).
This event is for teachers, students, and their families — and everyone with an interest in history! Everyone who registers will be sent a Zoom meeting link and instructions in the confirmation email. PD certificates will be sent to all who attend the entirety of the program. Please add the Gilder Lehrman Institute to your email safe sender list.
For more information, please contact us at collectionprograms@gilderlehrman.org.