James Abercrombie (British Army general)

Sir James Abercrombie (* 1706 in Glassaugh, Banffshire, Scotland, UK, † April 28, 1781 in Stirling, Stirlingshire, Scotland, UK ) was a British general in the French and Indian War.

Life

Jack came from a wealthy Scottish family and bought in 1742 a commission as Major in the 1st Royal Scottish infantry regiment in the British Army. In 1746 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1756 and to major general.

Abercrombie commanded a brigade in 1757 with the capture of Fort Louisbourg and was commander of the British forces in America after the replacement of Loudoun in March of 1758.

In the summer of 1758 he led an expedition against Fort Ticonderoga. Abercrombie was a talent for organization, but very variable in its leadership, so that his troops called him Mrs. Nanny Cromby (Miss nanny Cromby ). He accomplished the remarkable feat to set up 15,000 troops and lead them along the associated baggage train through the wilderness. Then, however, were 2,000 of them killed or wounded on July 8, 1758 in front of Fort Ticonderoga, proving that 15,000 men can not take a man with 4,000 staffed and stocked with cannons stone fort by a frontal attack with fixed bayonets. The French were commanded by Louis -Joseph de Montcalm. Finally came Abercrombie's troops panicked and fled, and he retreated to his fortified camp south of Lake George back. This disaster led to his dismissal in 1759 by General Jeffrey Amherst and his call back to the UK.

After his return, Jack became a member of the British Parliament and supported the hard line against the American colonies.