Rewards
You’ve probably heard the name of General Marquis de Lafayette (one of George Washington’s famous generals who fought in the American Revolution) but maybe you have not heard of a man named James Armistead Lafayette?
James was a slave on a plantation in Virginia who got permission from his master to join the colonial army during the revolutionary war.
During the war, the British granted freedom to slaves of rebels who escaped into British custody and so James was able to infiltrate the British camps posing as a runaway slave. He gained the trust of Benedict Arnold the infamous American general who defected to the British and even the trust of General Cornwallis himself. British officers spoke openly about strategy in front of him and James would write reports and give them to other American spies who would put them in the hands of General Lafayette. James was able to send information to...