In 1812, Henry Lee, who was a strong Federalist, was severly injured when a mob stormed a jail where he, Alexander Hanson and others had gone for protection after Hanson's Federalist newspaper had denounced President Madison and the War of 1812. Because of bad business decisions, Henry Lee ended up in debtor's prison in 1812, where he wrote his Memoirs of the War in the Southern Department. He was in constant pain, because of internal injuries inflicted during the beating.
In 1813, Lee went to the warmer climate of the West Indies for recuperation, although some said it was to flee his creditors. When his health continued to grow worse and it was clear that he was dying, he set sail for home. However, he was put ashore at Cumberland Island, Georgia, where he was nursed by the daughter of Maj. General Nathanael Greene, his old commander. He passed away there on March 25, 1818 and was bured there.
