‘Prince John’ Magruder’s military exploits in Texas, Mexico
He was called “Prince John,” but he was far from royalty. He was part of two losing wars but was popular among his troops. Gen. John Magruder, a Virginia-born Confederate general, took charge of Texas defenses from late 1862 onward, and led a series of colorful adventures along the way.
John Bankhead Magruder was born in 1807 in Port Royal, Virginia, a small port city not far from Washington, D.C. His father was a planter and attorney, but he fell into bankruptcy and lost everything by 1820. He began attending the University of Virginia in 1825 and soon received an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point.
He enrolled at West Point in 1826. Magruder was an able cadet, graduating fifteenth out of forty-two in his class in 1830. The newly commissioned lieutenant was then assigned to the 7th Infantry and soon transferred into artillery. It was a quiet time for the army, and he went from post to post. He found time to study law and became a licensed attorney. In 1845, he was transferred to General Zachary Taylor’s forces in Corpus Christi as the United States prepared for the admission of Texas into the Union and to enforce American claims on the…
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