The Battle of Dolores River was a battle fought during the

Philippine–American War The Philippine–American War or Filipino–American War ( es, Guerra filipina-estadounidense, tl, Digmaang Pilipino–Amerikano), previously referred to as the Philippine Insurrection or the Tagalog Insurgency by the United States, was an arm ...

Background

The

Pulahanes The Pulahan (literally "those wearing red" in Cebuano; es, pulajanes), also known as dios-dios, were the members of a religious revival of Philippine beliefs that developed in the Visayas prior to the Philippine Revolution. At its peak, it ...

in July 1904 slaughtered the people of Taviran and then burned the town of Santa Elena. In December, over a thousand Pulahanes besieged a detachment of native scouts in the town of Taft.

Battle

In December 1904, the 38th Philippine Constabulary Scouts, under Lieutenant Stephen Hayt, were on patrol along the Dolores River in an attempt to link up with the 37th Constabulary Scouts and another Constable Company led by Lieutenant Hendryx. The 38th was ambushed en route, by over 1,000

. As the Pulahanes rushed, waving colorful banners and shouting "Tad-Tad!" (Cut To Pieces!) they were met with a volley of rifle-fire that stopped their advance. The Constables held their ground and repelled the attacks, inflicting heavy losses with accurate and steady rifle fire. The Pulahanes were far greater in number, however, and they eventually enveloped and wiped out the entire scout force.

Aftermath

Of the 43-man contingent, the officer and 37 of his men were killed.Foreman, J., 1906, ''The Philippine Islands, A Political, Geographical, Ethnographical, Social and Commercial History of the Philippine Archipelago'', New York: Charles Scribner's Sons The Pulajans on the other hand, suffered much heavier losses. Estimates range as high as 300 dead before the Constabulary fell. The Pulajan fighters were able to capture 38 Krags rifles, along with a large amount of ammunition.

References

{{coord missing, Philippines Visayan history Doloras, Massacre at Doloras, Massacre at Dolores River 1904 in the Philippines Dolores River December 1904 events