Henry Flipper: first black West Point grad

It is the birthday of Henry O. Flipper (1856), the first black graduate of West Point and the first non-white officer to lead the Buffalo Soldiers of the U.S. Army’s 10th Cavalry. His unit fought with distinction in the Apache Wars and in the campaign against the Apache Chief Victorio. But Flipper was accused of improprieties, and after a court martial, was removed from the Army. Descendants applied for a review and Flipper’s punishment was found unjust and unduly harsh. He was pardoned in 1999.

Arnold betrayed American Revolution

It is the birthday of traitor General Benedict Arnold (1741), whose plot to surrender West Point to the British during the American Revolutionary War earned him the enmity of the fledgling nation. In the 19th century, his name became synonymous with traitor. Scholars say he was embittered against the Americans after being accused and acquitted of corruption and being passed over for promotion in the American Continental Army He was in command of fortifications at West Point, New York. His plot was revealed when American forces captured a British major who was carrying papers about Arnold’s planned defection.