Scott was a candidate for the Whig presidential nomination in 1840 , 1844 , and 1848 , and he finally won the Whig presidential nomination at the 1852 Whig National Convention . The Whigs were badly divided over the Compromise of 1850 , and Pierce won a decisive victory over his former commander . Nonetheless , Scott remained popular among the public , and in 1855 he received a brevet promotion to the rank of lieutenant general , becoming the first U.S. Army officer to hold that rank since George Washington . Despite being a Virginia native , Scott stayed loyal to the Union and served as an important adviser to President Abraham Lincoln during the opening stages of the Civil War . He developed a strategy known as the Anaconda Plan , but retired in late 1861 after Lincoln increasingly relied on General George B. McClellan for military advice and leadership . Scott 's military talent was highly regarded by contemporaries , and historians generally consider him to be one of the most accomplished generals in U.S. history
1852 Whig National Convention
1852 Whig National Convention
Winfield Scott