Zachary Taylor

The History of Mobile Artillery

By Arnold Blumberg

“It is with artillery that one makes war.” So declared Napoleon Bonaparte, one of the Great Captains of military history and a born gunner himself. Read more

Zachary Taylor

The Dade Battle: Ambush in Florida

By Donald J. Roberts II

The road that stretched through the pine and palmetto woodlands of central Florida was void of the usual animal chitter-chatter on the cool morning of December 28, 1835. Read more

Zachary Taylor

John Taylor Wood, Hero of the Confederate Navy

By James M. Powles

The epic battle between the Virginia (Merrimack) and Monitor might never have taken place because, as strange as it may seem, the Confederates did not have enough experienced men to man their ship. Read more

Zachary Taylor

The Pen & the Sword: A Brief History of War Correspondents

By Roy Morris Jr.

Men have been reporting their wars almost as long as they have fighting them. The first prehistoric cave drawings depicted hunters bringing down wild animals, and spoken accounts of battles, large and small, formed the starting point for the oral tradition of history. Read more

Zachary Taylor

Border Dispute Sparks the Mexican-American War

By R.L. Healy

When Texas entered the Union in 1845, after nine uneasy years as an independent republic, the mutual grievances between Mexico and the United States threatened to erupt into open hostilities. Read more

Zachary Taylor

The Battle of Buena Vista: Old Rough and Ready in Mexico

By Mike Haskew

It was the spring of 1846, roughly nine months before the Battle of Buena Vista. It had become apparent to everyone at this point that a Mexican-American War was inevitable, and diplomatic efforts between the two countries had failed. Read more

Zachary Taylor

Bushrod Johnson: Yankee Quaker, Confederate General

By Roy Morris Jr.

Of all the unlikely heroes of the Civil War, none was more unlikely than Bushrod Johnson, Ohio-born Quaker turned Confederate general. Read more

Zachary Taylor

Storming the “Splendid City”

By Eric Niderost

U.S. General Winfield Scott’s army climbed through the mountains of central Mexico, an arduous trek that included blistering hot days and bitterly cold, rain-drenched nights. Read more

Zachary Taylor

The Disastrous Red River Campaign

By Michael E. Haskew

Nathaniel Banks was a political creature, and with his country in the throes of civil war, he now held the politically obtained rank of major general in the Union Army. Read more

Zachary Taylor

Opening Moves on the Rio Grande: The Relief of Fort Texas

By David A. Norris

The hot days at Fort Texas were about to get a lot hotter. For days, the men of the 7th U.S. Read more

Zachary Taylor

Moses Yale Beach: Polk’s Secret Emissary to Mexico

By Peter Kross

The use of individuals unaffiliated with any intelligence organization is commonplace in the annals of espionage. Governments often use people who have certain skills or expertise to establish contact with other individuals who are believed to have influence with the nation they represent. Read more

Zachary Taylor

Old Rough and Ready at Monterrey

By Chris Dishman

On the morning of September 19, 1846, General Zachary Taylor and his advance party could see little through the mist that shrouded the city of Monterrey, Mexico, Taylor’s next objective in his ongoing northern campaign. Read more

Zachary Taylor

Controversial Civil War Commanders: Gideon Pillow

By Roy Morris Jr.

Few Mexican War generals fought more battles than Tennessee-born Gideon Pillow—the problem was that many of those battles were with his own superiors. Read more

Zachary Taylor

The Curse of the Whig Party

By Roy Morris, Jr.

The short-lived Whig Party had a fair degree of success electing candidates for president, winning two of the five presidential elections in which it fielded a candidate. Read more