Synopses & Reviews
Despite the limited scale of operations, both the War of 1812 and the U.S.-Mexican War profoundly shaped the United States, first permitting and then consummating vast territorial expansion that had reverberations for American politics, economics, and culture. The senior Regular Army officers of the war with Mexico were nearly all veterans of the earlier conflict with Britain and had worked diligently to reform the Army to prevent a repetition of the disasters of 1812-14. The most senior of these officers was Winfield Scott, who commanded a brigade in the Niagara campaign of 1814 and later was the Army's commanding general from 1841 until his death. He commanded what became the decisive American offensive of the war with Mexico, the invasion of central Mexico. In doing so, Scott surpassed his predecessors strategically, operationally, and tactically, engaging in the largest American siege operation to date and winning five battles on his way from Veracruz, where he commanded an amphibious landing on a scale then unprecedented in U.S. history, to Mexico City. Employing superior reconnaissance and a variety of tactical methods while advancing audaciously despite uncertain lines of communication, Scott established his reputation during the Mexican campaign as the greatest American general between George Washington and the Civil War. Samuel Watson's study examines Scott's role during the War of 1812, in which the young American army often demonstrated potential but seldom translated it into strategic and tactical success. He also addresses the interwar period, focusing on the reforms enacted and noting how Scott's experiences with peacekeeping, diplomacy, and failure in the first campaignof the Seminole War in the 1830s influenced his generalship in Mexico. Finally, he looks at the Mexican campaign and offers conclusions on the evolution of American higher command and military capability prior to the Civil War.
Synopsis
Despite the limited scale of operations, both the War of 1812 and the U. S.-Mexican War profoundly shaped the United States, first permitting and then consummating vast territorial expansion that reverberated throughout Amerian politics, the economy and culture. The senior Regular Army officers of the war with Mexico were nearly all veterans of the earlier conflict with Britain and had worked diligently to reform the Army to prevent a repetitition of the disasters of 1812 - 1814. The most senior of these officers was Winfield Scott, who commanded a brigade in the Niagra campaign of 1814, and later was the Army's commanding general from 1841 until his death. He commanded what became the decisive American offensive of the war with Mexico, the invasion of central Mexico. Employing superior reconnaissance and a variety of tactical methods while advancing audaciously despite uncertain lines of communication, Scott established his reputation during the Mexican campaign as the greatest American general since George Washington. Samuel Watson provides a concise, highly readable profile of Winfield Scott, and shows how his experiences with peacekeeping, diplomacy, and failure in the first campaign of the Seminole War in the 1830's influenced his generalship in Mexico.
Synopsis
Despite the limited scale of operations, both the War of 1812 and the U.S.-Mexican War profoundly shaped the United States, first permitting and then consummating vast territorial expansion that had reverberations for American politics, economics, and culture. The senior Regular Army officers of the war with Mexico were nearly all veterans of the earlier conflict with Britain and had worked diligently to reform the Army to prevent a repetition of the disasters of 1812-14.
Synopsis
Traces the evolution of American generalship and military professionalism from the War of 1812 to the Civil War