Winfield Scott, Youngest General in the U.S. Army, Issues Order in War of 1812

From his headquarters in Buffalo, New York, Brigadier General Winfield Scott orders his wagon-master-general to send an express wagon to Cambria, a town in Niagara County, New York, twenty miles north of Buffalo.

[WAR OF 1812.] Winfield Scott, Manuscript Document Signed, to Captain Camp, May 11, 1814, Buffalo, New York. 1 p., 8" x 5". Tear on fold, slightly affecting signature; general toning; very good.

Complete Transcript
Head Quarters
Buffalo May 11th 1814
Sir,
You will furnish an express to Cambria without delay
W. Scott / B. Genl Comg.
Cap Camp
A.D WM Genl

Historical Background
After successfully drilling his 2nd Regiment of Artillery in the summer of 1812 in Philadelphia, Scott joined a brigade in northwestern New York making preparations for an invasion of Canada. In the Battle of Queenston Heights on October 13, 1812, Scott led the expeditionary force across the Niagara River after his commanding officer was wounded. Because of disagreements among his superiors, he was not properly reinforced and had to surrender to save his troops from a massacre. He was exchanged as a prisoner later that year and promoted in March 1813 for his actions in the battle.

In May 1813, Scott led the first brigade in the Battle of Fort George on the Niagara Peninsula. Although he routed the British and could have captured them, two orders from his superior forced him to halt the attack. He then participated in the planned attack on Montreal, which because of poor planning on the part of General James Wilkinson turned from a sure victory into a humiliating failure for the American army. When Scott returned to Washington, D.C., to report, Secretary of War John Armstrong promoted him to brigadier general on March 19, 1814. He was placed in command of the 1st Brigade of General Jacob Brown's Left Division in Buffalo, New York.

Scott immediately set up a camp of instruction and drilled and disciplined his brigade using a modern translation of a French drill manual. Through Scott's efforts, the American soldiers who met the British at the Battle of Chippawa on July 5, 1814, were unlike those the British had encountered before. Fighting on an open plain in lines, Scott decisively defeated the British forces in a European-style battle. Perhaps overconfident, he advanced further into Canada and attacked fortified British positions at Lundy's Lane on July 25. The American troops again performed well, but casualties were so high on both sides, including Scott and both British and American commanders, that the Americans retreated but the exhausted British were unable to follow. It was a tactical stalemate but a strategic British victory in ending the American advance.

After he recovered from his wounds, Scott commanded the 10th military district at Baltimore, where he oversaw courts-martial and wrote a new drill manual, the first to be endorsed by the U.S. military since the Revolutionary War.

Winfield Scott (1786-1866) was born in Virginia and attended the College of William & Mary but left to study law. He was admitted to the bar in 1806 and served as a corporal of cavalry in the Virginia militia in 1807. In 1808, he received a commission as captain in the newly expanded U.S. Army. He raised a regiment from the Petersburg and Richmond area and traveled with them to New Orleans to join their regiment. He soon clashed with General James Wilkinson and was court-martialed for disrespectful comments and poor record-keeping. His commission was suspended for one year, and he returned to Virginia, where he practiced law and studied military strategy and tactics. He rejoined the army after his suspension and led forces in three invasions of Canada, receiving a battlefield wound, promotion to brevet major general, and a Congressional Gold Medal. He was one of four brigadier generals in the demobilized U.S. Army after the War of 1812. He led forces in a variety of minor wars and near-wars over the next two decades. By the late 1830s, he was discussed as a possible presidential candidate for the Whig Party. In 1841, he became the Commanding General of the United States Army. During the Mexican War, Scott presided over the expansion and equipping of the army, while Zachary Taylor led troops into northern Mexico. In 1847, Scott led the army in the successful siege of Veracruz, in cooperation with Commodore David Conner of the U.S. Navy. Scott then marched his army to Mexico City, winning victories at the Battles of Cerro Gordo, Contreras, and Churubusco, and culminating with the capture of Mexico City in September. This victory forced Mexican leaders to negotiate the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which ended the war in February 1848. As the army's senior general, Scott supported the Compromise of 1850, and the Whigs nominated him for president in 1852. Scott suffered the worst defeat of any Whig candidate for president, winning only four states and losing the election to Democrat Franklin Pierce. In 1855, Scott was promoted to brevet lieutenant general, the first to hold the title since George Washington. During the Civil War, Scott strongly supported the Lincoln administration and developed the Anaconda Plan strategy for capturing the Mississippi River and blockading southern ports to end the rebellion without major loss of life. Frustrated by Lincoln's failure to seek his counsel, Scott resigned in October 1861. After a trip to Europe, he retired to New York and wrote his memoirs.

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