 Hinds was commissioned as a cavalry lieutenant in October 1805, gaining promotion to major in September 1813, during the War of 1812.His forces participated with distinction in the Battle of Pensacola (1814) and the Battle of New Orleans (1814–1815), under the command of General Andrew Jackson.Late in 1815, following the death of General Ferdinand Claiborne, Hinds was promoted by President James Madison as Brigadier General of the Mississippi territorial militia.