Webb sailed to North America as a subordinate of Lord Loudoun who was travelling to become Commander-in-Chief of Britain's American colonies. Webb is best remembered for his role in the operations around Lake George in 1757, which culminated in the Battle of Fort William Henry. Believing a French deserter's report that the French army of General Louis-Joseph de Montcalm was 11,000 men strong, Webb refused to send any of his estimated 1,600 men north to relieve the besieged garrison at Fort William Henry, since they were all that stood between the French and Albany. General Webb was recalled because of his actions; the influential British Indian agent William Johnson later wrote that Webb was "the only Englishman [I] ever knew who was a coward." In James Fenimore Cooper's novel "The Last of the Mohicans", Webb is portrayed as a minor character most noteworthy for declining to send adequate support to Fort William Henry. In the 1992 film he is portrayed by Mac Andrews.