James Winchester
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James Winchester (February 26, 1752-July 26, 1826) was a Brigadier General during the War of 1812 and commanding officer of American forces during the River Raisin massacre. He was an important (if undistinguished) military figure in the War of 1812.
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[edit] Early life
Born in Carroll County, Maryland, Winchester enlisted in the Maryland militia, serving with Gen. Hugh Mercer's Flying Camp battalion during the early months of the American Revolution. He was captured by British forces during Gen. John Sullivan's failed attempt to take Staten Island on August 22, 1777. Winchester was later released in a prisoner exchange and was commissioned a lieutenant in the 3rd Maryland Regiment in May 1778. Taken prisoner a second time at the surrender of Charlestown, South Carolina on May 12, 1780, Winchester was exchanged in December. Promoted to captain, he served the remainder of the war under Gen. Nathanael Greene.
[edit] Life in Tennessee
In 1785, Winchester moved to what is now central Tennessee, then a frontier district of North Carolina. He joined the local militia and eventually was promoted to brigadier general. He was elected to Tennessee's first State Legislature following the establishment of the state's government in 1796 and would remain one of the state's most politically and economically influential statesmen over the next decade. In 1802, construction was completed on his home, Cragfont.
[edit] War of 1812
In March 1812, shortly before war began, Winchester was commissioned a brigadier general in the US Army. Within five months, he was in command of the Army of the Northwest, composed of several regiments camped near Cincinnati. However, conflict over command resulted in Gen. William Henry Harrison taking charge of Winchester's forces, through a militia commission from Kentucky, in an expedition against Fort Wayne. Although Winchester's seniority was confirmed by military authorities in early September, he was forced to relinquish command to Harrison several days later when Harrison was commissioned a major general in the regular army.
Later that month, Winchester commanded one wing of Harrison's advance to Fort Defiance. After engaging in several skirmishes with British and Native American forces, he camped at the Maumee Rapids (present day Toledo, Ohio) in December 1812.
[edit] River Raisin Massacre
Early in the following year, Winchester rook part in an attempt to recapture Frenchtown (present day Monroe, Michigan). His men were attacked on January 22, 1813 by a combined British-Indian force under Col. Henry Procter in the Battle of Frenchtown. After Winchester's own capture by Indians and the loss of a large number of his soldiers during the initial assault, he agreed order to a conditional surrender of all his troops in exchange for "a pledge of protection". Despite the pledge, Indians accompanying the British slaughtered hundreds of unarmed American soldiers who had obeyed Winchester's order to surrender.
Winchester was imprisoned in Canada for over a year. He was released in a prisoner exchange and assigned to command the District of Mobile. At the war's end, he resigned his regular army commission in March 1815 and returned home to Tennessee.
[edit] Post war years
In 1819, Winchester served on the state commission to regulate the Tennessee-Missouri boundary. Along with Andrew Jackson and John Overton, he founded the city of Memphis, Tennessee on May 22, 1819.
Winchester died in Gallatin, Tennessee at the age of 74 on July 26, 1826.
[edit] References
- McHenry, Robert. Webster's American Military Biographies, Springfield, Mass.: G & C. Merriam Co., 1978.
