Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

George Scott (died 6 November 1767) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer and colonial administrator who served in

Father Le Loutre's War Father Le Loutre's War (1749–1755), also known as the Indian War, the Mi'kmaq War and the Anglo-Mi'kmaq War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the Kingdo ...

and the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

. Scott first served in the

40th Regiment of Foot The 40th (the 2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1717 in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 82nd Regiment of Foot (Prince of Wales's Volunte ...

starting in 1746 and then became captain in 1751. In 1753, he took command of

Fort Lawrence Fort Lawrence was a British fort built during Father Le Loutre's War and located on the Isthmus of Chignecto (in the modern-day community of Fort Lawrence). Father Le Loutre's War Despite the British Conquest of Acadia in 1710, Nova Scotia re ...

. He made contact with French agent

Thomas Pichon Thomas Pichon (30 March 1700 – 22 November 1781), also known as Thomas Tyrell, was a French government agent during Father Le Loutre's War. Pichon is renowned for betraying the French, Acadian and Mi’kmaq forces by providing information to t ...

, who secretly gave information about the

Acadians The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French colonial empire, French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern Americ ...

to the British. Scott relinquished command of Fort Lawrence in the autumn of 1754. Preparations were then being made for an attack on Beauséjour, and he was appointed to command one of the two battalions of Massachusetts Governor

William Shirley William Shirley (2 December 1694 – 24 March 1771) was a British colonial administrator who served as the governor of the British American colonies of Massachusetts Bay and the Bahamas. He is best known for his role in organizing the succ ...

's troops ( John Winslow was appointed to the other). He played a considerable part in the brief siege. When Lieutenant-general

Robert Monckton Lieutenant general (United Kingdom), Lieutenant-General Robert Monckton (24 June 1726 – 21 May 1782) was a British Army officer, politician and colonial administrator. He had a distinguished military and political career, being second in com ...

departed Beauséjour in November, Scott was left in command in the Chignecto area. Scott was a commander of light troops and an officer of Major General

Peregrine Hopson Peregrine Thomas Hopson (5 June 1696 – 27 February 1759) was a Kingdom of Great Britain, British army officer who commanded the 40th Regiment of Foot and saw extensive service during the eighteenth century and rose to the rank of Major General ...

's 40th Regiment of Foot, and was familiar with irregular tactics. Orders issued on 12 May 1758, stated that "the rangers, and light infantry, appointed to act as rangers, are to be commanded by Major Scott." He was to serve with distinction both during the

Siege of Louisbourg (1758) The siege of Louisbourg was a pivotal operation of the French and Indian War in 1758 that ended French colonial dominance in Atlantic Canada and led to the subsequent British campaign to capture Quebec in 1759 and the remainder of New France ...

and later with Major General

James Wolfe Major-general James Wolfe (2 January 1727 – 13 September 1759) was a British Army officer known for his training reforms and, as a major general, remembered chiefly for his victory in 1759 over the French at the Battle of the Plains of ...

Battle of the Plains of Abraham The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec (), was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War (referred to as the French and Indian War to describe the North American theatre). The battle, which took place on 13 Sept ...

. He also was employed in the Petitcodiac River Campaign and the St. John River Campaign against the

. Scott was given the rank of major in the army effective 28 December 1758. He remained on the list of the 40th Foot as a captain, and evidently was an absentee company commander in the regiment until his death. GeorgeScottc1750

Monckton appointed Scott Governor of Grenada. Scott made his will there in December 1764, just before leaving to become acting

Governor of Dominica This article lists the governors and other administrators of Dominica (where known), during its time as a colony of the Kingdom of Great Britain (1761–1778; 1784–1800), the Kingdom of France (1778–1784), and the United Kingdom (1800–1978). ...

. Scott created a will and left notice that he would be in a duel the following day. Scott was killed or mortally wounded in a duel on 6 November 1767. He left in his will property to his wife Abigail and his father, three brothers (one of whom, Joseph Scott, lived in Halifax at Scott Manor House beside

Fort Sackville During the 18th and early 19th centuries, the French, British and U.S. forces built and occupied a number of forts at Vincennes, Indiana. These outposts commanded a strategic position on the Wabash River. The names of the installations were chang ...

) and three sisters. A purported miniature of Scott is reproduced in Webster’s ''Thomas Pichon''; it portrays a sharp and rather unpleasant face.

Notes

References

*
Major George Scott and the French and Indian War
* George Scott, "Report of the Tour to Petitcodiac River", The Northcliffe Collection, p. 99; also published in Collections of the New Brunswick Historical Society, No. 13, (1930), p. 101.
Robert Monckton, "Report of the Proceedings of the Troops on the Expedition Up St. Johns River in the Bay of Fundy Under the Command of Col. Monckton", The Northcliffe Collection, p. 102; also published in Collections of the New Brunswick Historical Society, No. 5, (1904), p. 165.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, George 18th-century births 1767 deaths British Army personnel of the Seven Years' War Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) 40th Regiment of Foot officers Governors of British Grenada Governors of Dominica People of Father Le Loutre's War Duelling fatalities

See also

Notes

References