Wesley Merritt
Wesley Merritt (June 16, 1836 – December 3, 1910)[1] was an American major general who served in the cavalry of the United States Army during the American Civil War, American Indian Wars, and Spanish–American War. Following the latter war, he became the first American Military Governor of the Philippines.
Wesley Merritt
Diego de los Ríos
(as Spanish Governor-General of the Philippines)
June 16, 1836
New York City, New York, U.S.
December 3, 1910 (aged 74)
Natural Bridge, Virginia, U.S.
Caroline Warren Merritt (1849 – June 12, 1893); Laura Williams Merritt
1860–1900
-
- American Civil War
- Great Sioux War of 1876
- Spanish–American War
- Pacific Theater
Early life[edit]
Merritt was born in New York City. He graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1860 and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 2nd Dragoons, serving initially in Utah under John Buford. He became the adjutant for the unit when it was renamed the 2nd Cavalry Regiment.
Frontier duty and West Point[edit]
After the war's end, Merritt continued to serve in the cavalry along the frontier. He was appointed lieutenant colonel of the newly raised U.S. 9th Cavalry on July 28, 1866, and in July 1867 was sent to command Fort Davis, Texas, garrisoned by six of the regiment's companies. He was made colonel of the 5th Cavalry on July 1, 1876, which he commanded in the Battle of Slim Buttes during the American Indian Wars.
As colonel of the 5th Cavalry, Merritt was a member of the court of inquiry which first sat on January 13, 1879, presided over by Colonel John H. King of the 9th Infantry, which was convened to consider the behavior of Major Marcus A. Reno of the 7th Cavalry at the Battle of the Little Bighorn (June 25 to 26, 1876); which resulted in the death of General George Armstrong Custer and over 200 men of the 7th Cavalry.
He served on the frontier until being appointed superintendent of West Point, a post he filled from 1882 to 1887. In 1887, he was appointed brigadier general in the Regular Army. He was promoted to major general in the U.S. Army in 1895.
Merritt was a companion of the Illinois Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States.
Spanish–American War[edit]
After Commodore Dewey's Asiatic Squadron destroyed Rear Admiral Patricio Montojo's Spanish Pacific Squadron at the Battle of Manila Bay on May 1, 1898, the United States began to organize ground forces to attack and capture the city of Manila. Merritt was placed in command of the newly created Eighth Army Corps. In June 1898, Merritt and the available troops of the corps departed from San Francisco for the Philippines.
When Merritt arrived in Manila, he and Dewey made preparations for the attack on the city. The two intentionally kept Emilio Aguinaldo in the dark about the plans for the attack because the Americans did not want Aguinaldo's forces to end up in control of the city. Merritt and Dewey made arrangements with Governor General Fermín Jáudenes, commander of the Spanish garrison, to surrender the city to the American forces after the latter put up a token resistance. The city fell to the Americans on August 13, 1898, and Merritt became the first American military governor of the Philippines. Merritt was relieved by Major General Elwell Stephen Otis on August 30 to advise the United States delegation in the peace negotiations leading to the Treaty of Paris.
Based on his Spanish–American War service, Merritt became a member of the Pennsylvania Commandery of the Military Order of Foreign Wars.[4]
Family and death[edit]
Merritt was married twice. His first wife was Caroline Warren Merritt, who died on June 12, 1893, at the age of 44. She is buried at West Point Cemetery. Merritt's second wife was Laura Williams Caton, daughter of John D. Caton,[1] whom he met in the late 1890s, when she was in her mid-twenties. General Merritt and Laura Williams were married in London on October 24, 1898.
General Merritt retired from the Army in 1900 and died from complications of arteriosclerosis in Natural Bridge, Virginia, at the age of 74, on December 3, 1910. He is buried at West Point Cemetery.