"The General is Much Mortified:" Orderly Book of General Tannehill's Brigade of Pennsylvania Militia, October to December, 1812

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John C. Fredriksen

Abstract

Of all the middle Atlantic states, none was more adept at articulating political support for the War of 1812 than Pennsylvania. When war was declared in June, 1812, her sixteen Congressional votes constituted not only the largest single bloc in favor of conflict, but also the highest percentage of any of the larger delegations. Four months later, state Republicans rallied to a beleaguered James Madison and defeated DeWitt Clinton’s attempt to usurp the presidential nomination. But perhaps the best gauge of martial enthusiasm
can be measured in the sheer number of men responding to the call to arms. Under the aegis of Governor Simon Snyder, a vocal proponent of the war, over 100,000 were drafted or volunteered for state service. Additionally, Pennsylvania contributed three regiments to the regular army establishment, the 5th, 16th and 22nd Infantries, all of whom fought with distinction in Canada. Furthermore, a number of federalized volunteer units were raised for service beyond state borders. Two of these, the Pittsburgh Blues and Fenton’s Pennsylvania Volunteers, acquired enviable military records and demonstrated that the best citizen-soldiery was not
exclusively from western states like Kentucky and Tennessee. But while Pennsylvania’s contributions to the War of 1812 were numerous and celebrated, it too had its share of reverses. In fact, the federal-state militia system was singularly ineffectual in discharging its obligations to national defense. Because Pennsylvania’s successes in this war are so well-known, the purpose of this article is to shed light upon a significant failure by troops of the Keystone State.

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Author Biography

John C. Fredriksen

John C. Fredriksen holds a master’s degree in American History from the University of Michigan and a MLIS in library science from the University of Rhode Island. He has written extensively on the War of 1812.