The War Hero New York Forgot by Steven Malanga, City Journal Autumn 2013

City Journal has a great article on Winfield Scott.  This blogger first met Scott’s acquaintance years ago, in Jeff Shaara’s book, Gone For Soldiers.  The Niles Register has an interesting account of the Battle of Queenstown (during the War of 1812) in which Scott is listed as one of the captured.  As the article linked below points out, Scott had a very long and successful career, but has largely been forgotten.  Old Fuss and Feathers, as he was endearingly called in his later years, deserves better.

Winfield Scott was one of America’s greatest generals—a war hero many times over and a man whose struggle to professionalize the United States Army shaped much of the nation’s early history. His achievements were considerable and his tenure long: he served 14 presidents. But he had the misfortune to serve in two conflicts—the War of 1812 and the controversial Mexican-American War—bracketed by the far more significant American Revolution and Civil War. Since his death, Scott has faded into the background of American history.

Read the rest here:  The War Hero New York Forgot by Steven Malanga, City Journal Autumn 2013.