The Enslaved Spy
James Armistead stood beforeLafayette in tattered work clothes and a ragged jacket. Months earlier, he hadoffered his services to the Continental Army and became a spy in the traitorousBenedict Arnold’s camp. His secret reports enabled Lafayette to wage abrilliant campaign to check, if not repulse, the renegade Arnold, now a BrevetBrigadier General in British employ.

“Is spying on Lord Cornwallis thesame as spying on Arnold?”
Armistead’s coal-black eyesflashed. “It’s always more satisfying to deceive a deceiver, sir.”
Lafayette smiled mischievously.“Well put, Monsieur Armistead.”
“Sir, it’s better if you justcall me Junius.” His eyes shifted left and right. “You know, just in case.”
The comment impressed Lafayette,and he nodded in agreement. He eyed the papers Armistead had drawn up. Thespy’s reports were always concise and precise. “Are you sure of this, Junius?”
“Indeed, sir. If you move forcesto that position at that time, you will deny General Cornwallis his last chanceof reinforcement and, more importantly, replenishment. His men also suffermiserably from lack of food and other vitals. Even their officers mumble aboutit.”
Lafayette nodded. “How fitting,as the Americans have gone all these years of struggle on empty bellies andwearing….” He paused as he eyed the rags on Armistead’s back. “Insufficientclothing.”
“It will be dark soon. I mustreturn as soon as I have the cover of the night.”
Lafayette eyed the man withwonder. “You have risked your neck for many months. That is commendable enoughfor any man, but for a slave, it is a thing of wonder.”
“I believe in the cause and thatI will justly earn my liberty.”
Lafayette’s head moved slowlyfrom side to side. “I truly hope so.”
Enslaved SpyThe above excerpt from my novel, TheLafayette Circle, is a fictionalized event. Still, it portrays the actualderring-do of a man whose commitment and courage transcended his race, hiswelfare, and his bondage. Just who was this man? James Armistead was a slaveowned by one Wallace Armistead of New Kent County, Virginia. Born on hismaster’s plantation, little is known of Armistead’s early years. Even his birthyear is debated—estimates range anywhere between 1746 and 1760.

In 1781, the Marquis de Lafayettewas leading American forces near Yorktown, where the British commander, MajorGeneral Charles Cornwallis, and his Army had dug in. The Franco-American forceswere enroute. It was Lafayette’s task to prevent Cornwallis from escaping thecauldron he was soon to be in. When young James Armistead received permissionfrom Wallace to join the American Army, it was with the proviso he would remaina slave after his service.
Lafayette’s AgentLafayette, a champion ofemancipation, might have had other ideas, but he needed the services of theyoung man who knew the area—he needed a spy. Since the British emancipatedescaped slaves, that became Armistead’s cover story when he entered the Britishcamp as Juniper, the runaway. His task initially was to courier intelligencefrom spies behind British lines. When they learned he belonged to a localplanter, the British took no heed of the young black man.

Armistead’s race and status as anenslaved person were perfect—his lowly position enabled him to slip in and outof both sides' camps without drawing attention. His knowledge of the land helpedhim to avoid detection when needed and find the best routes to travel. Theunsuspecting British paid him no heed as he ambled through the camp, listening toconversations.

Slipping out of camp, he wouldbring Lafayette details on British plans, capabilities, and, most of all, thestate of their morale. The British trusted him. At one point, the traitor Benedict Arnold tasked Armistead togather information directly from Lafayette’s headquarters. By the height of theYorktown campaign, Arnold had gone back to New York. Cornwallis was holed up inthe port on the York River, hoping for reinforcements from General HenryClinton, the British commander-in-chief.
Double AgentAs the stakes grew higher,Cornwallis grew desperate and decided to use him to spy on the Americans,tasking him to bring back information on American troop strength and movements.Armistead was now a double agent, playing the dangerous game in the espionagebusiness. Of course, he reported right to Lafayette, who decided to use theopportunity to deceive his opponent—a classic use of a double agent.

Lafayette scribbled a letter toAmerican general Daniel Morgan, citing completely bogus units. After crumplingit up and rubbing some dirt on it, Armistead tucked it in his jacket and tookoff. Once in the British camp, he told the officers questioning him that he hadobserved American regiments marching and was returning with the “intelligence”when he found the paper on the road. Explaining he could not read it but tookit just in case it might prove of value. Upon reading the note, the Britishwere impressed with the intel coup.

Armistead’s daring had helpedLafayette pull off a high-stakes deception—the appearance of new units keptthem on the defensive. The British would soon face the combined Franco-Americanforces and capitulate at Yorktown on 19 October 1781.

An unlikely postscript writtenyears later (in the 19th century, in fact) puts Armitage at apost-surrender dinner where General Washington hosted Cornwallis. Thevanquished British general is said to have remarked. “Ah, you rogue, you havebeen playing me a trick all this time!”
Struggle for FreedomJames Armistead’s post-war fatewas a sad reminder of the cruelty of slavery and the law. The VirginiaEmancipation Act of 1783 granted manumission to slaves who renderedconsiderable military service to the cause. In a cruel twist of fate,Armistead’s service as a spy was not deemed military service, and thus, heremained the property of Wallace. As egregious as this seems, one needs to remember that a spy was considered contemptible and spying dishonorable to theeighteenth-century mind.

However, the good angels finallyintervened when General Lafayette endorsed James Armistead’s petition forfreedom to the Virginia Assembly, which they granted in 1787. To honor the manwho came to his aid, James, on manumission, officially changed his name toJames Armistead Lafayette.

Freedom and Friendship
The freeman James ArmisteadLafayette purchased land in New Kent County. Eventually, he married and hadchildren. Like so many other veterans of war, he fought a long-standing battleto gain a pension, which he finally received in 1819. When General Lafayettemade his celebrated tour of America in 1824, he acknowledged Armistead at theYorktown commemoration. Before the assembled crowd, the spymaster embraced thespy—a unique event and a fitting recognition for the former slave’s bravery andresourceful service to the Glorious Cause.
