James Armistead Lafayette Biography

James Armistead Lafayette was an African-American slave who worked for the ‘American Continental Army’ during the American Revolutionary War as a spy. After James volunteered himself in the ‘American Continental Army’ and upon approval of his master William Armistead, he was assigned to serve the allied French forces commander Marquis de Lafayette. Lafayette designated him as a spy. He was first assigned the task to report movements of Brigadier General Benedict Arnold who was initially with the ‘American Continental Army’ but later pulled out to join the British Army. He was highly successful in his pretentious mode of a British spy, so much so that he was assigned by Arnold to guide the British armed forces through the local roads. During the ‘Siege of Yorktown’ he served as a spy under Lafayette and posed to be a fugitive slave and gained confidence of the British lord and Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis. While moving between British camps, he could easily extract information as the British officers un-hesitantly discussed their moves in his presence. He would prepare written reports with detailed information and pass them on to other American spies. Through his espionage he played an instrumental role in enabling the American forces to dominate the ‘Battle of Yorktown’.