Lieutenant General Daniel Webb (died 11 November 1773) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

general made famous for his actions during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the st ...

. He purchased a commission as ensign on 20 March 1720. He was promoted to major of the Eighth Horse, in 1742, and served at the

Battle of Dettingen The Battle of Dettingen (german: Schlacht bei Dettingen) took place on 27 June 1743 during the War of the Austrian Succession at Dettingen in the Electorate of Mainz, Holy Roman Empire (now Karlstein am Main in Bavaria). It was fought between a ...

in 1743. In April 1745 he was promoted lieutenant colonel of the regiment, and served at the

Battle of Fontenoy The Battle of Fontenoy was a major engagement of the War of the Austrian Succession, fought on 11 May 1745 near Tournai in modern Belgium. A French army of 50,000 under Marshal Saxe defeated a Pragmatic Army of roughly the same size, led by t ...

. He was promoted to colonel of the

48th Regiment of Foot The 48th (Northamptonshire) Regiment of Foot was a regiment of the British Army, raised in 1741. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 58th (Rutlandshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Northamptonshire Regiment in 1881. History Early ...

in 1755.

Seven Years War

Webb sailed to North America as a subordinate of

Lord Loudoun General John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun (5 May 1705 – 27 April 1782) was a Scottish nobleman and British army officer. Early career Born in Scotland two years before the creation of the Kingdom of Great Britain, in which his father Hugh ...

who was travelling to become commander-in-chief of Britain's American colonies. Webb is best remembered for his role in the operations around Lake George in 1757, which culminated in the

Battle of Fort William Henry The siege of Fort William Henry (3–9 August 1757, french: Bataille de Fort William Henry) was conducted by a French and Indian force led by Louis-Joseph de Montcalm against the British-held Fort William Henry. The fort, located at the souther ...

. Believing a French prisoner report that the

French army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...

of General

Louis-Joseph de Montcalm Louis-Joseph de Montcalm-Grozon, Marquis de Montcalm de Saint-Veran (28 February 1712 – 14 September 1759) was a French soldier best known as the commander of the forces in North America during the Seven Years' War (whose North American t ...

was 11,000 men strong,Nester, pp. 57–58 Webb refused to send any of his estimated 1,600 men north to relieve the besieged garrison at Fort William Henry, since they were all that stood between the French and Albany. General Webb was recalled because of his actions; the influential British Indian agent William Johnson later wrote that Webb was "the only Englishman ever knew who was a coward."Starbuck, p. 14 In

James Fenimore Cooper James Fenimore Cooper (September 15, 1789 – September 14, 1851) was an American writer of the first half of the 19th century, whose historical romances depicting colonist and Indigenous characters from the 17th to the 19th centuries brought h ...

's novel ''

The Last of the Mohicans ''The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757'' is a historical romance written by James Fenimore Cooper in 1826. It is the second book of the '' Leatherstocking Tales'' pentalogy and the best known to contemporary audiences. '' The Pathfind ...

'', Webb is portrayed as a minor character most noteworthy for declining to send adequate support to Fort William Henry. In the

1992 film Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 ''Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since the ...

he is portrayed by Mac Andrews. He obtained the rank of major-general in 1759 and lieutenant-general in 1761. He died in 1773. His daughter and heiress, Mary, married

Henry Theophilus Clements Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

Notes

References

* * British Army generals 1773 deaths British Army personnel of the War of the Austrian Succession British Army personnel of the French and Indian War 48th Regiment of Foot officers Year of birth unknown 14th King's Hussars officers King's Regiment (Liverpool) officers {{UK-army-bio-stub