John André John André ( 2 May 1750 – 2 October 1780 ) was a British Army officer hanged as a spy by the Continental Army during the American War of Independence . This was due to an incident in which he attempted to assist Benedict Arnold ' s attempted surrender of the fort at West Point , New York to the British . Early life . André was born on 2 May 1750 in London to wealthy Huguenot parents , Antoine André , a merchant from Geneva , Switzerland , and Marie Louise Girardot , from Paris , France . He was educated at St Paul ' s School , at Westminster School and in Geneva . At age 20 , he entered the British Army and joined his regiment , the 7th Royal Fusiliers , in Canada in 1774 as a lieutenant . He was captured at Fort Saint - Jean by General Richard Montgomery in November 1775 , and held a prisoner at Lancaster , Pennsylvania . He lived in the home of Caleb Cope , enjoying the freedom of the town as he had given his word not to escape . In December 1776 , he was freed in a prisoner exchange . He was promoted to captain in the 26th Foot on 18 January 1777 , and to major in 1778 . He was a great favorite in colonial society , both in Philadelphia and New York , during their occupation by the British Army . He had a lively and pleasant manner and could draw , paint and cut silhouette pictures , as well as sing and write verse . He was a fluent writer who carried on much of General Clinton ' s correspondence . He was fluent in English , French , German , and Italian . He also wrote many comic verses . He planned the Mischianza when General Howe resigned and was about to return to England . During his nearly nine months in Philadelphia , André occupied Benjamin Franklin ' s house , where it has been claimed that , on the orders of Major - General Lord Charles Grey he took several valuable items from Franklin ' s home , including an oil portrait of Franklin , when the British left Philadelphia . Grey ' s descendants returned Franklin ' s portrait to the United States in the early half of the 20th century . Intelligence work , capture and execution . Intelligence officer . In 1779 André became adjutant - general of the British Army in America with the rank of major . In April of that year he took charge of British secret intelligence . By the next year ( 1780 ) he had begun to plot with American General Benedict Arnold . Arnold ' s Loyalist wife , Peggy Shippen , was a close friend of André , and possibly a paramour ; the two had courted in Philadelphia prior to Shippen ' s marriage to Arnold . She was one of the go - betweens in the correspondence . Arnold , who commanded West Point , had agreed to surrender it to the British for £20 , 000 ( approximately $ 1 . 1 million in 2008 dollars ) — a move that would have enabled the British to cut New England off from the rest of the rebellious colonies . André went up the Hudson River on the British sloop - of - war " Vulture " on Wednesday , 20 September 1780 , to visit Arnold . On the following night a small boat , furnished by Arnold , was steered to the " Vulture " by Joshua Hett Smith . At the oars were two brothers , tenants of Smith ' s , who reluctantly rowed the boat six miles on the river , to the sloop . Despite Arnold ' s assurances , the two oarsmen sensed something was wrong . None of these men knew Arnold ' s purpose , or suspected his treason ; all were told that the purpose was to do good for the patriot cause . Only Smith was told anything specific , and that was the lie that it was to secure vital intelligence for the American cause . The brothers finally agreed to row after threats by Arnold to arrest them . They picked up André , and placed him on shore . The others left and Arnold came to André on horseback , leading an extra horse for André ' s use . The two men conferred in the woods below Stony Point until near dawn , after which André accompanied Arnold several miles to the Joshua Hett Smith House ( Treason House ) in West Haverstraw , New York , owned by Thomas Smith and occupied by his brother Joshua . Soon thereafter , on the morning of 22 September , American troops commanded by Col . James Livingston , guarding Verplanck ' s Point across the river , began firing on the " Vulture " , which received many hits and was forced to retire down river without André . Taken into custody . To aid André ' s escape through American lines , Arnold provided him with civilian clothes and a passport and he traveled under the name John Anderson . Hidden in his stocking , he bore six papers written in Arnold ' s hand that showed the British how to take the fort . This was unnecessary , since Clinton already knew the fort ' s layout . In another unwise move , Joshua Hett Smith , who was accompanying him , left him just before he was captured . André rode on in safety until 9 a . m . on 23 September , when he came near Tarrytown , New York , where armed militiamen John Paulding , Isaac Van Wart and David Williams stopped him . " Gentlemen , " said André , who thought they were Tories because one was wearing a Hessian soldier ' s overcoat , " I hope you belong to our party . " " What party ? " asked one of the men . " The lower party , " replied André , meaning the British . " We do , " was the answer . André then told them he was a British officer who must not be detained , when , to his surprise , they said they were Americans , and that he was their prisoner . He then told them that he was an American officer , and showed them his passport . But the suspicions of his captors were now aroused . They searched him and found Arnold ' s papers in his stocking . Only Paulding could read them , and for some time , Arnold was not suspected . André offered them his horse and watch , if they would let him go , but they did not accept the bribe . André testified at his trial that the men searched his boots for the purpose of robbing him . Paulding however realized he was a spy and took him to Continental Army headquarters in Sands Hill . The prisoner was at first detained at Sands Mill in Armonk , New York , before being taken to the headquarters of the American Army at Tappan , and was held at the tavern The Old ' 76 House . There he admitted who he really was . At first all went well for André since the post commandant Lieutenant Colonel John Jameson decided to send him to Arnold , never suspecting that a high - ranking hero of the Revolution could be a turncoat , but then Major Benjamin Tallmadge , head of Continental Army Intelligence , arrived and persuaded Jameson to bring the prisoner back . He had intelligence showing that a high - ranking officer was planning to defect to the British but was unaware of who it was . Curiously , though unwilling to believe Arnold could be guilty of treason , Jameson did have the six sheets of paper carried by André sent , not to Arnold , but to General Washington . However , Jameson also insisted on sending a note to Arnold informing him of the entire situation . Jameson did not want his army career to be wrecked later for having wrongly believed his general was a traitor . Arnold received Jameson ' s note while at breakfast with his officers , made an excuse to leave the room and was not seen again . The note gave Arnold time to escape to the British . An hour or so later , Washington arrived at West Point with his party and was disturbed to see the stronghold ' s fortifications in such bad apparent " neglect " ( which of course was part of the plan to weaken West Point defenses ) ; and was further irritated to find that Arnold had breached protocol by not being about to greet him . Some hours later , Washington received the explanatory information from Maj . Tallmadge and immediately sent men to arrest Arnold , but it was too late . According to Tallmadge ' s account of the events , he and André conversed during the latter ' s captivity and transport . André wanted to know how he would be treated by Washington . Tallmadge , who had been a classmate of Nathan Hale while both were at Yale , described the capture of Hale . When André asked whether Tallmadge thought the situations similar , he replied " Yes , precisely similar , and similar shall be your fate " — a reference to Hale ' s hanging as a spy by the British . Trial and execution . General George Washington convened a board of senior officers to investigate the matter . The trial contrasted with Sir William Howe ' s treatment of Hale some four years earlier . The board consisted of Major General s Nathanael Greene ( the presiding officer ) , Lord Stirling , Arthur St . Clair , Lafayette , Robert Howe , Steuben , Brigadier General s Samuel H . Parsons , James Clinton , Henry Knox , John Glover , John Paterson , Edward Hand , Jedediah Huntington , John Stark , and Judge - Advocate - General John Laurance . André ' s defense was that he was suborning an enemy officer , " an advantage taken in war " ( his words ) . However , he did not attempt to pass the blame onto Arnold . André told the court that he had neither desired nor planned to be behind . He also asserted that as a prisoner of war , he had the right to escape in civilian clothes . On 29 September 1780 , the board found André guilty of being behind American lines " under a feigned name and in a disguised habit " and ordered that " Major André , Adjutant - General to the British Army , ought to be considered as a Spy from the enemy , and that agreeable to the law and usage of nations , it is their opinion , he ought to suffer death . " Later , Glover was officer of the day at André ' s execution . Sir Henry Clinton , the British commander in New York , did all he could to save André , his favourite aide , but refused to surrender Arnold in exchange for André even though he despised Arnold . André appealed to George Washington to be executed by firing squad but by the rules of war , he was hanged as a spy at Tappan , New York on 2 October 1780 . A religious poem , written two days before his execution , was found in his pocket after his execution . While a prisoner , he endeared himself to American officers who lamented his death as much as the British . Alexander Hamilton wrote of him : " Never perhaps did any man suffer death with more justice , or deserve it less . " The day before André ' s hanging he drew , with pen and ink , a likeness of himself , which is now owned by Yale College . In fact André , according to witnesses , refused the blindfold and placed the noose around his own neck . Eyewitness account . An eyewitness account of the last day of Major André can be found in the book " The American Revolution : From the Commencement to the Disbanding of the American Army Given in the Form of a Daily Journal , with the Exact Dates of all the Important Events ; Also , a Biographical Sketch of the Most Prominent Generals " by James Thacher , M . D . , a surgeon in the American Revolutionary Army : " October 2d . - - Major André is no more among the living . I have just witnessed his exit . It was a tragical scene of the deepest interest . During his confinement and trial , he exhibited those proud and elevated sensibilities which designate greatness and dignity of mind . Not a murmur or a sigh ever escaped him , and the civilities and attentions bestowed on him were politely acknowledged . Having left a mother and two sisters in England , he was heard to mention them in terms of the tenderest affection , and in his letter to Sir Henry Clinton , he recommended them to his particular attention . The principal guard officer , who was constantly in the room with the prisoner , relates that when the hour of execution was announced to him in the morning , he received it without emotion , and while all present were affected with silent gloom , he retained a firm countenance , with calmness and composure of mind . Observing his servant enter the room in tears , he exclaimed , " Leave me till you can show yourself more manly ! " His breakfast being sent to him from the table of General Washington , which had been done every day of his confinement , he partook of it as usual , and having shaved and dressed himself , he placed his hat upon the table , and cheerfully said to the guard officers , " I am ready at any moment , gentlemen , to wait on you . " The fatal hour having arrived , a large detachment of troops was paraded , and an immense concourse of people assembled ; almost all our general and field officers , excepting his excellency and staff , were present on horseback ; melancholy and gloom pervaded all ranks , and the scene was affectingly awful . I was so near during the solemn march to the fatal spot , as to observe every movement , and participate in every emotion which the melancholy scene was calculated to produce . Major André walked from the stone house , in which he had been confined , between two of our subaltern officers , arm in arm ; the eyes of the immense multitude were fixed on him , who , rising superior to the fears of death , appeared as if conscious of the dignified deportment which he displayed . He betrayed no want of fortitude , but retained a complacent smile on his countenance , and politely bowed to several gentlemen whom he knew , which was respectfully returned . It was his earnest desire to be shot , as being the mode of death most conformable to the feelings of a military man , and he had indulged the hope that his request would be granted . At the moment , therefore , when suddenly he came in view of the gallows , he involuntarily started backward , and made a pause . " Why this emotion , sir ? " said an officer by his side . Instantly recovering his composure , he said , " I am reconciled to my death , but I detest the mode . " While waiting and standing near the gallows , I observed some degree of trepidation ; placing his foot on a stone , and rolling it over and choking in his throat , as if attempting to swallow . So soon , however , as he perceived that things were in readiness , he stepped quickly into the wagon , and at this moment he appeared to shrink , but instantly elevating his head with firmness he said , " It will be but a momentary pang , " and taking from his pocket two white handkerchiefs , the provost - marshal , with one , loosely pinioned his arms , and with the other , the victim , after taking off his hat and stock , bandaged his own eyes with perfect firmness , which melted the hearts and moistened the cheeks , not only of his servant , but of the throng of spectators . The rope being appended to the gallows , he slipped the noose over his head and adjusted it to his neck , without the assistance of the awkward executioner . Colonel Scammel now informed him that he had an opportunity to speak , if he desired it ; he raised the handkerchief from his eyes , and said , " I pray you to bear me witness that I meet my fate like a brave man . " The wagon being now removed from under him , he was suspended , and instantly expired ; it proved indeed " but a momentary pang . " He was dressed in his royal regimentals and boots , and his remains , in the same dress , were placed in an ordinary coffin , and interred at the foot of the gallows ; and the spot was consecrated by the tears of thousands . . . " Aftermath . On the day of his capture , James Rivington published André ' s poem " The Cow Chase " in his gazette in New York . In the poem , André muses on his foiling of a foraging expedition in Bergen across the Hudson from the city . Strickland , André ' s executioner , who was confined at the camp in Tappan as a dangerous Tory during André ' s trial , was granted liberty for accepting the duty of hangman and returned to his home in the Ramapo Valley or Smith ' s Clove , and nothing further of him is known . Joshua Hett Smith , who was connected with André with the attempted treason , was also brought to trial at the Reformed Church of Tappan . The trial lasted four weeks and ended in acquittal for lack of evidence . The Colquhon brothers who were commanded by Benedict Arnold to bring André from the sloop - of - war " Vulture " to shore , as well as Major Keirs , under whose supervision the boat was obtained , were exonerated from all suspicion . A pension was awarded to his mother and three sisters not long after his death , and his brother William André was made a baronet in his honour in 1781 ( see André baronets ) . In 1821 , at the behest of the Duke of York , his remains , which had been buried under the gallows , were removed to England and placed among kings and poets in Hero ' s Corner at Westminster Abbey under a marble monument depicting Britannia mourning alongside a British lion over André ' s death . On 2 October 1879 , a monument was unveiled on the place of his execution at Tappan until a member of the Order of Socialists in New York City named Hendrix blew it up three years later . Hendrix met a violent death in 1884 at the Brooklyn side of the Fulton Ferry . The names of André ' s captors were John Paulding , David Williams , and Isaac Van Wart . The United States Congress gave each of them a pension of $ 200 a year and a silver medal , known as the Fidelity Medallion . All were honoured in the names of counties in Ohio , and in 1853 a monument was erected to their memory on the place where they captured André . It was re - dedicated in 1880 and is located in Patriot ' s Park , added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 .