dismissed for drinking in 1873. Sibley returned
to the United States, where he settled down in
Fredericksburg, Virginia, living in poverty. He
spent the last few months of his life trying to
obtain royalties arising from the government’s
purchase of his Sibley tent. Unfortunately for
him, all contractual payments had ceased the
moment he entered Confederate service. Sibley
died in Fredericksburg on August 23, 1886, one
of the South’s most ineffective military figures.
See also
Davis, Jefferson
Bibliography
Alberts, Don E. The Battle of Glorietta: Union Victory
in the West.College Station: Texas A&M University
Press, 2000; Bennett, Charles. “The Civil War in
New Mexico.” Palacio96, no. 2 (1991): 8–15; Fra-
zier, Donald S. Blood and Treasure: Confederate
Empire in the Southwest.College Station: Texas
A&M University Press, 1995; Miller, Darlis A. The
California Column in New Mexico.Albuquerque:
University of New Mexico Press, 1982; O’Brien,
Tom, and John Taylor. “Battle for the Rio Grande.”
Civil War Times Illustrated34, no. 4 (1995): 56–60,
62–68; Rudolph, Jack. “Battle in the Bayous: Fight-
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son, Jerry D. Confederate General of the West:
Henry Hopkins Sibley.College Station: Texas A&M
University Press, 1996; Thompson, Jerry D., ed.
Civil War in the South War: Recollections of the
Sibley Brigade.College Station: Texas A&M Uni-
versity Press, 2001.SIMCOE, JOHNGRAVES
Simcoe, John Graves
(February 25, 1752–October 26, 1806)
English Army Officer; Colonial Governor
H
ard-hitting Simcoe was one of the most
successful exponents of guerrilla tac-
tics during the American Revolution.
He was a well-read, highly literate military
professional with an exemplary combat
record, and his Queen’s Rangers were proba-
bly the best all-around light infantry unit of
the entire war.
John Graves Simcoe was born in Cotter-
stock, Northamptonshire, England, on Febru-
ary 25, 1752, the son of a Royal Navy captain.
His father died of illness while serving at the
siege of Quebec in 1759. Simcoe was well-
educated, having studied at Exeter, Eton, and
Oxford, and in 1771 he obtained an ensign’s
commission in the 35th Regiment of Foot.
Throughout his military career the young man
retained a scholarly bent, and he was versed
in the classic military texts of Tacitus and
Xenophon. Following the outbreak of the
American Revolution in April 1775, Simcoe
accompanied his regiment to Boston and ar-
rived two days after the Battle of Bunker Hill.
He then transferred to the 40th Foot as a cap-
tain and participated in numerous battles and
skirmishes over the next two years. Simcoe
fought conspicuously while leading his
grenadier company at Brandywine in Septem-
ber 1777 and was badly wounded. Previously,
he expressed to superiors his belief that the
British army lacked truly effective light in-
fantry that could meet the vaunted American
riflemen on equal terms. His criticism was en-
tertained by Gen. William Howe, and in Oc-
tober 1777 Simcoe gained a promotion to
major and was appointed commander of the
Queen’s Rangers. These men were skilled in
the same bush-fighting tactics as the Ameri-
cans and were distinctly attired in green uni-
forms for concealment in the forest. However,