The Battle of Chapultepec was a battle between American forces and Mexican forces holding the strategically located
Chapultepec Castle
Chapultepec Castle ( es, Castillo de Chapultepec) is located on top of Chapultepec Hill in Mexico City's Chapultepec park. The name ''Chapultepec'' is the Nahuatl word ''chapoltepēc'' which means "on the hill of the grasshopper". The castle has s ...
just outside
Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
, fought 13 September 1847 during the
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...
. The building, sitting atop a hill, was an important position for the defense of the city.
The battle was part of the campaign to take Mexico City, for which General
Winfield Scott
Winfield Scott (June 13, 1786May 29, 1866) was an American military commander and political candidate. He served as a general in the United States Army from 1814 to 1861, taking part in the War of 1812, the Mexican–American War, the early s ...
's U.S. Army totaled 7,200 men. General
Antonio López de Santa Anna
Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón (; 21 February 1794 – 21 June 1876),Callcott, Wilfred H., "Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez De,''Handbook of Texas Online'' Retrieved 18 April 2017. usually known as Santa Ann ...
, known for vicious attacks against Native Mexican American tribes, had formed an army of approximately 25,000 men. Mexican forces, including military cadets of the
Military Academy
A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally provides education in a military environment, the exact definition depending on the country concerned. ...
, defended the position at Chapultepec against 2,000 U.S. forces. The Mexicans' loss opened the way for the Americans to take the center of Mexico City.
In Mexican history, the battle is cast as the story of the brave deaths of six cadets, the
Niños Héroes
The ''Niños Héroes'' (Boy Heroes, or Heroic Cadets) were six Mexican military cadets who were killed in the defence of Mexico City during the Battle of Chapultepec, one of the last major battles of the Mexican–American War, on 13 September ...
, who leapt to their deaths rather than be taken captive, with one wrapping himself in the Mexican flag. American sources also feature many depictions of the battle from the American point of view. Although it lasted only about 60–90 minutes, the battle has great importance in the histories of both countries.
Scott's campaign to take Mexico City
![Chapultepec disposition of forces](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Chapultepec_disposition_of_forces.jpg)
Scott had taken a risk by marching inland from the port of Veracruz, going beyond his supply lines. He fought a
major battle at Cerro Gordo, but encountered virtually no resistance in capturing Mexico's second-largest city,
Puebla
Puebla ( en, colony, settlement), officially Free and Sovereign State of Puebla ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its cap ...
. He then pushed further toward the capital. Scott avoided the direct route from Puebla to Mexico City because the road was heavily defended at El Peñon. Instead, he cut a road looping south of Lake Chalco and Lake Xochimilco to the town of San Agustín. The Mexican defenders blocked the route to the capital at Hacienda of San Antonio, with marshes to their north and a lava field to the south, known as the Pedregal. General
Gideon Johnson Pillow
Gideon Johnson Pillow (June 8, 1806 – October 8, 1878) was an American lawyer, politician, speculator, slaveowner, United States Army major general of volunteers during the Mexican–American War and Confederate brigadier general in the Ameri ...
's division cut a road for artillery through the Pedregal to engage the entrenched Mexican forces under General Gabriel Valencia at Contreras on 20 August. The Mexicans were routed and the U.S. forces pressed on. Santa Anna fortified the ex-convent at Churubusco, with
fierce fighting there. A 2-week armistice followed the battle.
On September 8, 1847, in the costly
Battle of Molino del Rey
The Battle of Molino del Rey (8 September 1847) was one of the bloodiest engagements of the Mexican–American War as part of the Battle for Mexico City. It was fought in September 1847 between Mexican forces under General Antonio León against ...
, U.S. forces had managed to drive the Mexicans from their positions near the base of
Chapultepec Castle
Chapultepec Castle ( es, Castillo de Chapultepec) is located on top of Chapultepec Hill in Mexico City's Chapultepec park. The name ''Chapultepec'' is the Nahuatl word ''chapoltepēc'' which means "on the hill of the grasshopper". The castle has s ...
guarding Mexico City from the west, but
Army engineers were still interested in the southern
causeways
A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet Tr ...
to the city.
[Bauer, K.J., 1974, ''The Mexican War, 1846–1848'', New York: Macmillan, ] General Scott held a
council of war
A council of war is a term in military science that describes a meeting held to decide on a course of action, usually in the midst of a battle. Under normal circumstances, decisions are made by a commanding officer, optionally communicated ...
with his generals and engineers on September 11.
Scott was in favor of attacking Chapultepec, and only General
David E. Twiggs agreed.
Most of Scott's officers favored the attack through the southern gates, including Captain
Robert E. Lee.
A young lieutenant,
P. G. T. Beauregard, gave a speech that persuaded General
Franklin Pierce to change his vote in favor of the western attack.
Given that Mexican forces defended fortified positions tenaciously and had inflicted severe casualties on U.S. forces at Molino del Rey and Cerro Gordo, the decision to attack Chapultepec was not taken lightly.
Battle
General Lopez de Santa Anna was in command of the army at Mexico City, and understood that Chapultepec Castle was an important position for the defense of the city.
The castle sat atop a 200-ft-tall hill, which was used as the
Mexican Military Academy.
Although Santa Anna's total forces defending Mexico City were larger than Scott's, he had to defend multiple positions, since he did not know from where the attack would come. He did not have enough troops to effectively defend both the southern causeways into Mexico City and Chapultepec Castle, at a distance from the capital. At Chapultepec, General
Nicolás Bravo
Nicolás Bravo (10 September 1786 – 22 April 1854) was a Mexican soldier and politician who first distinguished himself during the Mexican War of Independence. He was Mexico's first vice-president though while holding this office Bravo ...
had fewer than 1,000 men
(832: Total including 250: 10th Infantry, 115: Querétaro Battalion, 277: Mina Battalion, 211: Union Battalion, 27: Toluca Battalion and 42: la Patria Battalion with seven guns (Gen. Manuel Gamboa with two 24-lb, one 8-lb, three 4-lb. and one howitzer) to hold the hill, including 200 cadets, some as young as 13 years old. Also defending the castle was the
Batallón de San Blas
The San Blas Battalion was a Mexican infantry unit founded in 1823 in San Blas, Nayarit. Under the name ''Batallón Activo Guardacostas de San Blas'' (San Blas Active Coastguard Battalion), it saw action on several occasions culminating in the Me ...
under the command of Lieutenant Colonel
Felipe Xicoténcatl, a hero of the battle, along with six cadets who died defending the castle. Thinking that the attack would come from the south, Santa Anna devoted preparation time and troops there, both before and during the bombardment. He did not realize his mistake until the U.S. troops were actually on the hill, but that was too late.
Chapultepec Castle was not built as a fortress but as a luxury residence, later converted to the military academy. It was obviously strategically positioned, but its stone walls were vulnerable to cannon fire. U.S. forces used its heavy artillery to bombard the castle before the infantry attack. The Mexican forces had attempted to fortify the defenses by digging shallow trenches and placing sandbags. During the artillery bombardment, the defenders had nowhere to shelter and they had no way to defend against this attack from a distance. Destruction of the walls, sandbags, and other defenses was demoralizing for many defenders, and some began abandoning their positions. Only when the bombardment went on all day did Santa Anna realize the main attack was to be on Chapultepec. If he sent forces there, they would be exposed to U.S. fire in the flat land below the hill, and they could not reach the hill to help the defenders there during the bombardment. Santa Anna consulted with Nicolás Bravo, confessing to him that many of his demoralized troops were also likely to melt away if sent into a situation that would have high casualties.
Scott organized two storming parties of about 250 men each, including 40 Marines.
The first party consisted of Captain Samuel Mackenzie's 256 men from
Gideon Pillow
Gideon Johnson Pillow (June 8, 1806 – October 8, 1878) was an American lawyer, politician, speculator, slaveowner, United States Army major general of volunteers during the Mexican–American War and Confederate brigadier general in the Ameri ...
's division, who would advance from the Molino east up the hill.
The second storming party consisted of Captain
Silas Casey
Silas Casey (July 12, 1807 – January 22, 1882) was a career United States Army officer who rose to the rank of major general during the American Civil War.
Early life and military career
Casey was born in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. He gradua ...
's men from
John A. Quitman
John Anthony Quitman (September 1, 1798 – July 17, 1858) was an American lawyer, politician, and soldier. As President of the Mississippi Senate, he served one month as Acting Governor of Mississippi (from December 3, 1835, to January 7, 1836) a ...
's division, advancing along the Tacubaya Road,
but Casey was replaced by Major
Levi Twiggs Levi Twiggs (21 May 1793 – 13 September 1847) was an officer in the United States Marine Corps during the War of 1812, the Seminole Wars, and the Mexican–American War.
Biography
Born in Richmond County, Georgia, Twiggs was commissioned a seco ...
. Only Twiggs' division and
Bennett Riley's brigade were left on the American right flank.
The U.S. forces began an
artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...
barrage against Chapultepec at dawn on September 12.
It was halted at dark and resumed at first light on September 13.
At 8:00 am, the bombardment was halted and General Scott ordered the infantry attack.
Three assault columns formed. On the left were the
11th and 14th Infantry under Colonel
William Trousdale
William Trousdale (September 23, 1790March 27, 1872) was an American soldier and politician. He served as the 13th governor of Tennessee from 1849 to 1851, and was United States Minister to Brazil from 1853 to 1857. He fought under Andrew Jackso ...
moving east along the Anzures aqueduct, in the center were four companies of the
Voltigeur regiment under Colonel
Timothy Patrick Andrews along with the
9th
9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding .
Evolution of the Arabic digit
In the beginning, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bottom dot. The Kshatrapa, Andhra and ...
under Colonel
Truman Bishop Ransom
Truman Bishop Ransom (September 20, 1802 – September 13, 1847) was a Vermont educator and military officer who served as President of Norwich University and commander of a Regiment#United States Army, regiment in the Mexican–American War. He ...
and the
15th Infantry all moving through the swamp and western edge of the grove, and on the right were the remaining four Voltigeur companies under Lieutenant Colonel
Joseph E. Johnston
Joseph Eggleston Johnston (February 3, 1807 – March 21, 1891) was an American career army officer, serving with distinction in the United States Army during the Mexican–American War (1846–1848) and the Seminole Wars. After Virginia secede ...
.
Pillow was quickly hit in the foot and called for reinforcements, which came from
John A. Quitman
John Anthony Quitman (September 1, 1798 – July 17, 1858) was an American lawyer, politician, and soldier. As President of the Mississippi Senate, he served one month as Acting Governor of Mississippi (from December 3, 1835, to January 7, 1836) a ...
's division, but the attack faltered when fired upon by the Moelia Battalion battery.
Andrews's column cleared the grove of Mexican troops and linked up with Johnston.
The attack by the 9th and 15th Infantries stalled waiting for scaling ladders, and Col.
Truman B. Ransom, commander of the 9th Infantry, was killed.
Quitman sent
Persifor Smith's brigade to his right and brought in
James Shields, plus the New York and 2d Pennsylvania Regiments into the assault.
At the same time,
Newman S. Clarke's brigade arrived on the western slope, as did the scaling ladders.
The
Voltigeurs
The Voltigeurs were French military skirmish units created in 1804 by Emperor Napoleon I. They replaced the second company of fusiliers in each existing infantry battalion.
Etymology
''Voltigeurs'' ( ɔltiʒœʀ English: "acrobats") were named ...
soon planted their flag on the parapet.
By 9:00 am, General Bravo surrendered to the New York Regiment, and the American flag flew over the castle.
Santa Anna watched the Americans take Chapultepec, while an aide exclaimed, "let the Mexican flag never be touched by a foreign enemy". He also exclaimed, "I believe if we were to plant our batteries in Hell, the damned Yankees would take them from us."
Los Niños Héroes
![Logo Basado en Medalla 1847](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/Logo_Basado_en_Medalla_1847.svg)
During the battle,
five Mexican military cadets, and one of their instructors, refused to fall back when General Bravo finally ordered retreat, and fought to the death.
These were ''teniente'' (lieutenant) Juan de la Barrera and cadets Agustín Melgar, Juan Escutia, Vicente Suárez, Francisco Márquez, and Fernando Montes de Oca, all between the ages of 13 and 19. According to legend, the last of the six, Juan Escutia, grabbed the
Mexican flag
The national flag of Mexico ( es, Bandera de México) is a vertical tricolor of green, white, and red with the national coat of arms charged in the center of the white stripe. While the meaning of the colors has changed over time, these thre ...
, wrapped it around himself, and jumped off the castle point to prevent the flag from falling into enemy hands. In 1967,
Gabriel Flores
Gabriel Flores (February 9, 1930 – December 14, 1993) was a Mexican painter and muralist born in Guadalajara, Jalisco. Between 1956 and 1993, his murals focused on historical and universal themes, as well as the ability of art functioning as ...
painted a mural depicting ''Los Niños Héroes''. The mural decorates the ceiling of the palace, showing Escutia wrapped in the flag, apparently falling from above. A monument stands in Chapultepec Park commemorating their courage. The cadets are eulogized in
Mexican history
The written history of Mexico spans more than three millennia. First populated more than 13,000 years ago, central and southern Mexico (termed Mesoamerica) saw the rise and fall of complex indigenous civilizations. Mexico would later develop ...
as ''los Niños Héroes'', the Child Heroes or Heroic Cadets.
Saint Patrick's Battalion
Thirty men from the
Saint Patrick's Battalion, a group of former
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
soldiers who joined the Mexican side, were executed ''en masse'' during the battle. They had been previously captured at the
Battle of Churubusco. Colonel
William S. Harney specified that they were to be hanged with Chapultepec in view and that the precise moment of their death was to occur when the U.S. flag replaced the Mexican tricolor atop the citadel.
Battles for the Belén and San Cosmé Gates
General Scott arrived at the castle and was mobbed by cheering soldiers.
William J. Worth's division was sent by Scott to support Trousdale's men on La Verónica Causeway (now Avenida Melchor Ocampo) for the main attack against the San Cosme Gate.
Defended by Gen. Rangel's Granaderos Battalion, part Matamoros, Morelia, and Santa Anna Battalions (Col. Gonzalez), part 3d Light (Lt. Col. Echeagaray), & 1st Light (Comdt. Marquez) Trousdale, followed by
John Garland,
Newman Clarke, and
George Cadwalader
George Cadwalader (May 16, 1806 – February 3, 1879) was a general in the United States Army during the Mexican–American War and American Civil War.
Biography
Cadwalader was born and raised in Philadelphia. He studied law and was admitted to th ...
's brigades, began advancing up the causeway.
General Quitman quickly gathered the troops in Chapultepec, except the 15th Infantry, who guarded the castle and prisoners, and designed as a feint, headed down the Belén Causeway, stopping at the Belen Garita.
The gate was manned by the Morelia Battalion, under the command of General Andrés Terrés' (three guns and 180 men: 2d Mexico Activos) and the ''paseo'' to the north by General Ramirez.
Troops began to desert, and when Terres ran out of ammunition, he withdrew into the Ciudadela.
Led by the Mounted Rifles (fighting on foot), Quitman breached the Belén Gate at 1:20 pm.
General Scott later commented, "Brave Rifles, you have gone through fire and come out steel".
Worth started his advance down the San Cosme causeway at 4:00 pm, having fended off an attack by 1,500 of Torrejon's cavalry.
Garland's brigade used the arches of the aqueduct to advance on the right.
Clarke's men on the right passed through a tunnel made by
sappers
A sapper, also called a pioneer or combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties, such as breaching fortifications, demolitions, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, preparing fie ...
.
Lieutenant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
, and some 4th Infantry used the bell tower of San Cosme Church south of the causeway to place a mountain
howitzer.
On the north side of the road, naval officer
Raphael Semmes
Raphael Semmes ( ; September 27, 1809 – August 30, 1877) was an officer in the Confederate Navy during the American Civil War. Until then, he had been a serving officer in the US Navy from 1826 to 1860.
During the American Civil War, Semmes wa ...
repeated Grant's successful maneuver.
Lt. George Terrett then led a group of
U.S. Marines
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
behind the Mexican defenders, and climbing to the roof, unleashed a deadly volley on the artillery gunners.
By 6 pm, Worth had broken through the gate, and the defenders scattered, many retreating into the Ciudadela, sweeping Santa Anna along with them.
As night fell, Worth lobbed five
mortar rounds into the city, which fell near the National Palace.
Aftermath
The city was yet to be taken, Santa Anna had 5,000 troops in the Ciudadela (armory) and 7,000 in other parts of the city.
Six of his generals were taken prisoner.
At 1 AM the next day, he ordered a withdrawal to
Guadalupe Hidalgo while the city authorities appeared at Scott's headquarters at 4 AM.
By 7 am, the American flag was flying over the Ciudadela.
Historian K. Jack Bauer gives the Mexican casualties as approximately 3,000; including 823 taken prisoner.
Legacies
![Placa y lugar donde fueron hallados los restos de seis combatientes en Chapultepec 1947 a](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/Placa_y_lugar_donde_fueron_hallados_los_restos_de_seis_combatientes_en_Chapultepec_1947_a.JPG)
The efforts of the U.S. Marines in this battle and subsequent
occupation of Mexico City are memorialized by the opening lines of the "
Marines' Hymn
The "Marines' Hymn" is the official hymn of the United States Marine Corps, introduced by the first director of the USMC Band, Francesco Maria Scala. Its music originates from an 1867 work by Jacques Offenbach with the lyrics added by an anonymou ...
", "From the Halls of Montezuma...".
A number of lower-ranking U.S. Army officers participating in the invasion became generals on both sides of the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
, including
Daniel H. Hill,
Ulysses Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
,
George Pickett
George Edward Pickett (January 16,Military records cited by Eicher, p. 428, and Warner, p. 239, list January 28. The memorial that marks his gravesite in Hollywood Cemetery lists his birthday as January 25. Thclaims to have accessed the baptism ...
,
James Longstreet
James Longstreet (January 8, 1821January 2, 1904) was one of the foremost Confederate generals of the American Civil War and the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee, who called him his "Old War Horse". He served under Lee as a corps ...
,
John C. Pemberton
John Clifford Pemberton (August 10, 1814 – July 13, 1881) was a career United States Army officer who fought in the Seminole Wars and with distinction during the Mexican–American War. He resigned his commission to serve as a Confederate Stat ...
,
Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson,
P. G. T. Beauregard, and
Robert E. Lee.
U.S. Marine tradition maintains that the red stripe is worn on the trousers of the
blue dress uniform, commonly known as the
blood stripe, because a large number of the Marine NCOs and officers of the detachment died while storming the castle of Chapultepec in 1847, though iterations of the stripe antedate the war. In 1849, the stripes were changed to a solid red from dark blue stripes edged in red, which dated from 1839.
In Mexico, the battle has a complicated place in historical memory, since the capture of Chapultepec led to the fall of Mexico City to the invaders. The fierce defense of Chapultepec by military cadets at the Military Academy, six of whom died by leaping from the walls to their deaths. The Niños Héroes ("Boy Heroes") were considered martyrs fighting to maintain Mexico's honor as a nation. Their bravery and innocence was lauded in Mexico, as opposed to the Mexican Army generals, particularly Antonio López de Santa Anna, blamed for Mexico's defeat.
In 1947, President
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...
laid a wreath on the 1881
cenotaph
A cenotaph is an empty tomb or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although the vast majority of cenot ...
of the Niños Héroes as a gesture of goodwill after
Mexico aided the U.S. in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
[Wagenen, Michael Scott. ''The Forgotten War: The Enduring Legacies of the U.S.-Mexican War''. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press 2012, pp. 144-45]
Gallery
File:The Battle of Chapultepec (Storming of Chapultepec) by James Walker.jpg, ''Battle of Chapultepec'' by James Walker, 1857
File:Chapultepec Currier.jpg, ''Attack on the Castle Chapultepec''
File:Chapultepec1.jpg, ''Storming of Chapultepec in Mexico''
File:Chapultepec.jpg, Attack on Chapultepec, Sept. 13, 1847
File:Monumentoalosniñosheroes.jpg, Monument to the six Heroic Cadets, with Chapultepec Castle in the background.
File:Mexico City Battles.jpg, Molino del Rey is on the left. "O" depicts a Mexican battery, "P" an American battery, and "R" is Steptoe's battery.
References
Further reading
* Alcaraz, Ramon et al. ''Apuntes Para la Historia de la Guerra entre Mexico y los Estados Unidos''
* Eisenhower, John S. D., ''Agent of Destiny – The Life and Times of General Winfield Scott''
* Kendall, George Wilkins. ''The War Between the United States and Mexico Illustrated''. New York: D. Appleton & Co. 1851.
* Ramsey, Albert C. ''The Other Side''
* Sandweiss, Martha A., Rick Stewart, and Ben W. Huseman. ''Eyewitness to War: Prints and Daguerreotypes of the Mexican War, 1846-1848''. Fort Worth: Amon Carter Museum of Western Art, 1989.
* Annual Reports 1894, War Department lists trophy guns: 1- 24pounder bronze, 1- 8 inch howitzer and 2- 4-pounder bonze howitzers.
External links
A Continent Divided: The U.S. – Mexico War Center for Greater Southwestern Studies and UTA Libraries Special Collections, the University of Texas at Arlington
* Scott, Winfield
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