David Camden de Leon or DeLeon (May 6, 1816 – September 2, 1872), known as "the fighting doctor", was born in

Camden, South Carolina Camden is the largest city in and the county seat of Kershaw County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 7,764 in the 2020 census, and the 2022 population estimate is 8,213. It is part of the Columbia, South Carolina, Metropolita ...

, of

Sephardic Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...

Jewish parents, Mordecai Hendricks de Leon, a physician and three-term mayor of

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is List of municipalities in South Carolina, the second-mo ...

, and Rebecca Lopez de Leon. Edwin de Leon and Thomas Cooper de Leon were his brothers. He received the M.D. degree from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

(where his parents had lived before moving to South Carolina) in 1836. He entered the Army in 1838 as Assistant Surgeon and "served with distinction in the Seminole war". At the beginning of the Mexican War, he went with General

Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military officer and politician who was the 12th president of the United States, serving from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States ...

to the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...

, was present at most of the battles in the campaign toward Mexico, and entered that city when it surrendered. At the

battle of Chapultepec The Battle of Chapultepec took place between U.S. troops and Mexican forces holding the strategically located Chapultepec Castle on the outskirts of Mexico City on the 13th of September, 1847 during the Mexican–American War. The castle was buil ...

he earned the sobriquet of "the Fighting Doctor," as on two occasions led a charge of cavalry after the officer commanding had been killed or wounded. For his distinguished services and for his gallantry in action he twice received the thanks of Congress. He was then assigned to frontier duty, and in 1856 he became surgeon, with the rank of major. Like most Southern officers in the regular Army, he resigned his commission at the outbreak of the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, forfeiting his opportunity to become U.S.

surgeon-general Surgeon general (: surgeons general) is a title used in several Commonwealth countries and most NATO nations to refer either to a senior military medical officer or to a senior uniformed physician commissioned by the government and entrusted with p ...

. He was appointed by

Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the only President of the Confederate States of America, president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the Unite ...

as the head of the Confederacy's medical department, and shortly thereafter acting surgeon-general of the Confederacy. At the close of the war he went with some other Confederate soldiers to Mexico, "vowing never to return to the conquered South until she was free". He soon returned "in disgust" to New Mexico, where he had been stationed for several years, and where he owned property. He continued in practice there until his death. He died in the Hermanas Hospital in

Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , literal translation, lit. "Holy Faith") is the capital city, capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Santa Fe County. With over 89,000 residents, Santa Fe is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, fourt ...

. Leon, the county seat of

Decatur County Decatur County is the name of various past and present counties in the United States, all named for Stephen Decatur Commodore (United States), Commodore Stephen Decatur Jr. (; January 5, 1779 – March 22, 1820) was a United States Navy of ...

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

, was named in his honor in 1855 by a fellow veteran of the Mexican War. Leon,

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, was subsequently named after the Iowa town.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leon, David Camden de 1816 births 1872 deaths Confederate States Army surgeons People from Santa Fe, New Mexico American expatriates in Mexico People from Kershaw County, South Carolina American military personnel of the Mexican–American War People of the Seminole Wars Confederate Jews United States Army Medical Corps officers University of Pennsylvania alumni 19th-century American Sephardic Jews Eponyms