The Battle of Coyotepe Hill was a significant engagement during the

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occupation Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, th ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

from August through November 1912 during the insurrection staged by Minister of War

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

Luis Mena against the government of

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Adolfo Díaz Adolfo Díaz Recinos (15 July 1875 in Alajuela, Costa Rica – 29 January 1964 in San José, Costa Rica) served as the President of Nicaragua between 9 May 1911 and 1 January 1917 and again between 14 November 1926 and 1 January 1929. Born in C ...

. Coyotepe is an old fortress located on a 500-foot hill overlooking the strategic railroad line near

Masaya Masaya () is the capital city of Masaya Department in Nicaragua. It is situated approximately 14 km west of Granada and 31 km southeast of Managua. It is located just east of the Masaya Volcano, an active volcano from which the cit ...

roughly halfway between

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and

Granada, Nicaragua Granada () is a city in western Nicaragua and the capital of the Granada Department. With an estimated population of 104,980 (2021), it is Nicaragua's ninth most populous city. Granada is historically one of Nicaragua's most important cities, econ ...

Battle

On 2 to 4 October 1912, a Nicaraguan rebel force led by

Benjamín Zeledón occupying Coyotepe and another hill, Barranca fort, overlooking the strategic rail line, refused to surrender to government troops under

.Musicant, I, The Banana Wars, 1990, New York: MacMillan Publishing Co.,

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Smedley Butler Major General Smedley Darlington Butler (July 30, 1881June 21, 1940), nicknamed the "Maverick Marine", was a senior United States Marine Corps officer who fought in the Philippine–American War, the Boxer Rebellion, the Mexican Revolution and W ...

's Marine battalion, with whom Zeledón's rebels had skirmished on September 19, returned from its capture of

on 3 October and shelled the rebel stronghold on Coyotepe. During pre-dawn hours on 4 October Butler's battalion, in concert with two Marine battalions and one from the led by Marine

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Joseph H. Pendleton Major General Joseph Henry Pendleton (June 2, 1860 – February 4, 1942) was a United States Marine Corps general for whom Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton is named. Pendleton served in the Marine Corps for over 40 years. Biography Joseph Hen ...

converged from different positions to storm the hill and capture it. Zeledón was killed during the battle, probably by his own men.

Aftermath

With the capture of

León, Nicaragua León () is the second largest city in Nicaragua, after Managua. Founded by the Spanish as Santiago de los Caballeros de León, it is the capital and largest city of León Department. , the municipality of León has an estimated population of 2 ...

two days later by U.S. Marines and the recapture of Masaya by Nicaraguan government troops, the Nicaraguan revolution of 1912 was essentially over. During the Somoza dictatorship the fortress was used as a prison. Occasionally dissidents imprisoned there would be taken from the fortress in a helicopter and dropped into a nearby volcano.''American Naval History, An Illustrated Chronology of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps'', by Jack Sweetman, p. 114
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References

{{coord missing, Nicaragua History of Nicaragua Coyotepe Hill Coyotepe Hill Coyotepe Hill 1912 in Nicaragua Coyotepe Hill October 1912 events

Battle

Aftermath

See also

References