American Revolutionary War, 1780. An engraving showing Benedict Arnold (1741-1801) persuading Major John Andre (1750-1780) to conceal papers in his boot that would show the British how to take the fort at West Point, New York. Andre was intercepted near Tarrytown by armed militiamen and later hanged as a spy. After the plot was exposed, Benedict Arnold joined the British Army. Engraving from 1874, from a painting by C. F. Blauvelt.