After watching him perform so valiantly as an officer in the Mexican-American War, General Winfield Scott would publicly declare Robert E. Lee to be “the very best soldier that I ever saw in the field.” This is the story of what Lee accomplished as a middle-aged scout and engineer in the Mexican campaign. From his role in securing victory during Winfield Scott’s Veracruz campaign by perfectly siting and building batteries to helping scout and lead assaults at Cerro Gordo, Contreras, Churubusco, and Chapultepec, Lee’s Mexican War record is one of heroics, immense skill, and indefatigable energy. We discuss all his heroics, and how what he learned during the Mexican-American War shaped his Civil War generalship, from his audacious assaults with split-up forces to his reliance on talented scouts and improvised field works. We also cover Lee’s heroic feats in depth, from when he hid under a log as Mexican soldiers sat nearby in the Cerro Gordo, to when he crossed the deadly Pedregal thrice in a night to save 3500 Americans, a feat Gen. Scott called “the greatest feat of physical and moral courage performed by any individual, to my knowledge, pending the campaign.”
As a reminder, these history episodes are provided ad-free to paid subscribers. If you would like to watch it in full without subscribing, you can listen on YouTube or Spotify! If you would like to read it, the (rough) transcript, with timestamps, is provided below the paywall.
Check out our sponsor, the Classical Society, here, and tell them that Will sent you:
https://theclassicalsociety.com/
Get our mug of Gen. Lee here: https://wbsapparel.shop/product/general-lee-coffee-mug/
0:00 Lee’s Mexican War Baptism in Leadership
3:41 Lee Gets The Call to War
8:01 The Texas Coast Landing
11:18 The Sheep Scout
18:03 Scott’s Veracruz Gamble
30:25 Into the Mountain Pass: Cerro Gordo Heroics
39:08 The Pedregal Crossings
48:13 Chapultepec Assault
55:29 Occupied Mexico City
58:49 Home to Arlington
1:01:27 What Robert E Lee Learned in Mexico
Sources Referenced in this Episode:
I am an Amazon Affiliate. If you would like to support the show at no added cost to yourself, you can do so by using the links below to order and read the sources I used to create this episode. Thanks!
Armes, Ethel, Stratford Hall: The Great House of the Lees, https://amzn.to/4wxAAfl
Cole, Ryan, Light-Horse Harry Lee: The Rise and Fall of a Revolutionary Hero, https://amzn.to/4wiZOy3
Crocker, H. W., III, Robert E. Lee on Leadership: Executive Lessons in Management, https://amzn.to/4gvXpds
Dowdey, Clifford, Lee: A Biography, https://amzn.to/46lDf14
Flood, Charles Bracelen, Lee: The Last Years, https://amzn.to/4gDcA4I
Freeman, Douglas Southall, R. E. Lee: A Biography, https://amzn.to/4gkaqrx
Hendrick, Burton J., The Lees of Virginia, https://amzn.to/4xshjNe
Lee, Cazenove Gardner, Jr., Lee Chronicle: Studies of the Early Generations of the Lees, https://amzn.to/4q7GiTI
Nagel, Paul C., The Lees of Virginia: Seven Generations of an American Family, https://amzn.to/4wUxkfi
Nichols, James L., General Fitzhugh Lee: A Biography, https://amzn.to/4qeURoz
Royster, Charles, Light-Horse Harry Lee and the Legacy of the American Revolution, https://amzn.to/3TKWspX
Sanborn, Margaret, Robert E. Lee: A Portrait, https://amzn.to/3SA6EkN
Thomas, Emory M., Robert E. Lee: A Biography, https://amzn.to/46qVL8c
Marie-Lan Taÿ Pamart, CC BY 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Transcript
