Augustus Magee
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Augustus William Magee (also McGee); (1789 – February 6, 1813) was a U.S. Army
lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...
and later a military
filibuster A filibuster is a political procedure in which one or more members of a legislative body prolong debate on proposed legislation so as to delay or entirely prevent a decision. It is sometimes referred to as "talking a bill to death" or "talking ...
who led the
Gutiérrez–Magee Expedition The Gutiérrez–Magee Expedition or Texan Revolt of 1812–1813 was a joint filibustering expedition by Mexico and the United States against Spanish Texas during the early years of the Mexican War of Independence. Background In 1810, Father ...
into
Spanish Texas Spanish Texas was one of the interior provinces of the colonial Viceroyalty of New Spain from 1519 until 1821. Spain claimed ownership of the region in 1519. Slave raids by Spaniards into what became Texas began in the 16th century and created ...
in 1812.


Early life and military career

Augustus Magee was born in
Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
, the son of James Magee and Margaret (Elliot) Magee. His father, a native of County Down, Ireland, settled in New York before moving to Boston and was a privateer captain in the American Revolution and, following independence, a leading merchant in the China trade. Young Magee attended
Phillips Exeter Academy Phillips Exeter Academy (often called Exeter or PEA) is an Independent school, independent, co-educational, college-preparatory school in Exeter, New Hampshire. Established in 1781, it is America's sixth-oldest boarding school and educates an es ...
in
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. He then attended
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and graduated in January 1808. He served as an artillery officer under then-lieutenant colonel
Zebulon Pike Zebulon Montgomery Pike (January 5, 1779 – April 27, 1813) was an American brigadier general and explorer for whom Pikes Peak in Colorado is named. As a U.S. Army officer he led two expeditions through the Louisiana Purchase territory, first ...
at
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, and then at Fort Claiborne in
Natchitoches, Louisiana Natchitoches ( ; , ), officially the City of Natchitoches, is a small city in, and the parish seat of, Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, United States. At the 2020 United States census, the city's population was ...
. He was effective but harsh in his treatment of settlers and outlaws, in the disputed Neutral Ground between the Arroyo Hondo and the Sabine River. Magee was recommended for promotion to a higher rank, but his promotion was denied, likely due to his connection with his uncle, Thomas H. Perkins, a political opponent of the Madison Administration. Magee resigned his commission on June 22, 1812, and joined
Bernardo Gutiérrez de Lara José Bernardo Maximiliano Gutiérrez de Lara (August 20, 1774 – May 13, 1841) was an advocate and organizer of Mexican independence and the first constitutional governor of the state of Tamaulipas, and a native of Revilla, today Nueva Ciudad ...
's effort to support the
Mexican War of Independence The Mexican War of Independence (, 16 September 1810 – 27 September 1821) was an armed conflict and political process resulting in Mexico's independence from the Spanish Empire. It was not a single, coherent event, but local and regional ...
by invading
Spanish Texas Spanish Texas was one of the interior provinces of the colonial Viceroyalty of New Spain from 1519 until 1821. Spain claimed ownership of the region in 1519. Slave raids by Spaniards into what became Texas began in the 16th century and created ...
from American soil, even though this action violated the
Neutrality Act of 1794 The Neutrality Act of 1794 was a Law of the United States#Federal law, United States law which made it illegal for a United States citizen to wage war against any country at peace with the United States. The Act declares in part: If any person ...
. The Gutiérrez-Magee Expedition, which followed, was recruited from mostly American frontiersmen and French creoles of Louisiana. Some participants had been among the Neutral Ground "bandits" whom Magee had punished in 1810 and early in 1812. Magee took the rank of colonel alongside Gutiérrez.


Filibuster

Leaving Natchitoches with 130 men on August 2, 1812, the group crossed the Sabine six days later, officially restarting the revolution in Texas which had begun with a revolt in San Antonio a year before under Juan Bautista de las Casas. On August 11th, the force entered
Nacogdoches, Texas Nacogdoches ( ) is a city in East Texas and the county seat of Nacogdoches County, Texas, United States. The 2020 U.S. census recorded the city's population at 32,147. Stephen F. Austin State University is located in Nacogdoches and special ...
. The army, now swollen to about 300 soldiers, occupied Santísima Trinidad de Salcedo (now Trinidad, Texas) on the Trinity River in mid-September. It was here that Magee became ill, likely from
consumption Consumption may refer to: * Eating *Resource consumption *Tuberculosis, an infectious disease, historically known as consumption * Consumer (food chain), receipt of energy by consuming other organisms * Consumption (economics), the purchasing of n ...
. The papers of Mirabeau Lamar preserve a rumor that Magee was poisoned by his own men, many of whom were among those he had previously mistreated during his former command, but the length of his illness makes this unlikely. The army next moved on San Antonio, but after Magee learned of a planned Spanish ambush along the Guadalupe River, he moved his force southeastward and seized the Presidio Nuestra Señora de Loreto de la Bahía in what is now Goliad, Texas. Here, his force was besieged by the Spanish army. Magee, believing the rebel cause was untenable, sought to parlay with the Spaniards. The terms they provided - that the Americans retreat, but leave native Mexican rebels to the Spaniards' punishment - were disavowed by his troops. Magee then retreated to his quarters and, because of his worsening illness, never again commanded the army; he died on February 6, 1812. Magee was succeeded in command of the expedition by Samuel Kemper, who successfully ended the siege by the Royalists the following month.Bernsen, James Aalan. “The Lost War for Texas: Mexican Rebels, American Burrites, and the Texas Revolution of 1811, p. 228, Texas A&M University Press, College Station, Texas, 2024.


See also

* Casas Revolt


References


Sources

* Bernsen, James Aalan “Magee, Augustus William,” ''Handbook of Texas Online'', accessed May 23, 2024, https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/magee-augustus-william. * Bernsen, James Aalan “The Lost War for Texas: Mexican Rebels, American Burrites, and the Texas Revolution of 1811, Texas A&M University Press, College Station, Texas, 2024. * Davis, William C. ''The Pirates Laffite and The Treacherous World of the Corsairs of the Gulf''. New York: Harcourt, 2005. p. 141. * Lamar, Mirabeau
"Information from Capt. Gaines."
1835. Retrieved 13 February 2010. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Magee, Augustus 1789 births 1813 deaths People of Spanish Texas American filibusters (military)