Scott, Winfield (1786-1866), was a United States Army officer in the War of 1812 (1812-1815), the Mexican War (1846-1848), and the American Civil War (1861-1865). His troops fondly called him “Old Fuss and Feathers” because he loved colorful uniforms.
Scott was born on June 13, 1786, near Petersburg, Virginia. He attended William and Mary College and then studied law. He gave up law in 1808 to join the Army.
When the War of 1812 broke out, he became a lieutenant colonel and went to the Canadian border. The British captured Scott at the Battle of Queenston Heights, near Niagara Falls, but freed him a month later. As a colonel, Scott carried out a successful attack on Fort George, also near the falls, and took charge of that post. He became a brigadier general in March 1814 and fought at Chippewa and Lundy’s Lane, major battles near the Canadian border. British artillery shot two horses from under him at Lundy’s Lane. Scott fought on so stubbornly that his troops had to carry him from the field, severely wounded. He became a national hero, and Congress and the state of Virginia voted him a medal. He was a major general when the war ended.
In 1825, Scott prepared the first complete manual of military tactics in the U.S. Army. He enlarged Infantry Tactics (1835) and wrote his autobiography in 1864.
In 1838, Scott led an Army force that removed thousands of Cherokee Indians from their homelands in the Southeast. Scott’s troops forced the Indians into prison camps before leading them on a march to the Indian Territory in what is now Oklahoma. Thousands of Cherokee died on the journey, which became known as the Trail of Tears.
Scott became general in chief of the Army in 1841. In the Mexican War, in 1847, Scott led an army into Mexico. He won at Veracruz, Cerro Gordo, Contreras, Churubusco, Molino del Rey, and Chapultepec. His forces captured Mexico City.
Scott ran for president in 1852 on the Whig Party ticket. He lost to Democratic candidate Franklin Pierce.
Early in 1861, Scott went to Washington, D.C., where he recruited troops to defend the capital. When the Civil War began in April, Scott, a Southerner, refused to join the Southern forces because he believed in the Union. Scott retired from the Army as a lieutenant general in 1861. He died on May 29, 1866.
