Winfield Scott is one of the most important military leader in the United States from the time of the War of 1812 until the opening days of the Civil War. He came from a wealthy family in Virginia, and his father was a veteran of the Revolutionary War. He studied at the College of William and Mary and practiced as a lawyer until 1807 when he joined the military. Over time, he gained fame as a hero of the War of 1812 and rose in the ranks. In 1832, he helped avoid the outbreak of war during the Nullification Crisis in South Carolina. In 1840, he was named Commander of the United States Army. As commander, he led American forces to victory in several key battles during the Mexican-American War. His popularity allowed him to run as the Whig Party candidate for President in 1852, but he lost to Franklin Pierce. Scott returned to the military and when the Secession Crisis emerged in 1860, he urged President James Buchanan to prepare for war. After Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1861 and the Civil War broke out, Scott devised the Anaconda Plan. Under his plan, the Union would use the navy to blockade Southern ports. Not long after Union forces were embarrassed at the First Battle of Bull Run, Scott retired from the army and moved to West Point, New York. He continued to provide advice to President Lincoln, and when the Union finally implemented the Anaconda Plan it helped win the war. Scott passed away not long after the war ended. He was buried next to his wife of 45 years, Maria, in the cemetery at the United States Military Academy at West Point.