The Battle of San José del Cabo was a military engagement of 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 ...

which took place on two November days in 1847, after the

fall Autumn, also known as fall in American English and Canadian English, is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Southe ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

City A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

Background

On 21 July, 115 men from the Seventh Regiment of New York Volunteers landed peacefully at La Paz, under the command of Lt. Col. Henry S. Burton.Nunis, D.B., editor, The Mexican War in Baja California, 1977, Los Angeles: Dawson's Book Shop, Before departing to capture Mazatlan on 11 Nov.,

Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore ...

William Shubrick William Branford Shubrick (October 31, 1790 – May 27, 1874) was an officer in the United States Navy. His active-duty career extended from 1806 to 1861, including service in the War of 1812 and the Mexican–American War; he was placed on the ret ...

landed 4 sailors and 20 marines, with a 9-pounder carronade, at San Jose del Cabo under the command of Lt.

Charles Heywood Major General Charles Heywood (October 3, 1839 – February 26, 1915) was the ninth Commandant of the Marine Corps. He served as an officer for over 45 years and was the first Marine to reach the rank of major general. During Heywood's term as ...

. Heywood's men made the old mission building into a fort. Additionally, 12 Californians joined the American force, occupying the Mott house. Captain

Manuel Pineda Munoz Manuel may refer to: People * Manuel (name) * Manuel (Fawlty Towers), a fictional character from the sitcom ''Fawlty Towers'' * Charlie Manuel, manager of the Philadelphia Phillies * Manuel I Komnenos, emperor of the Byzantine Empire * M ...

had sent Vincente Mejia, Jose Matias Moreno and José Antonio Mijares with 150 men from La Paz to demand the surrender of the San Jose del Cabo garrison, which was refused on 19 Nov.

Battle

On 19 November at 3 PM, 150 mounted Mexican men occupied La Somita.Heywood's report, 1847, in ''The Mexican War in Baja California'', Nunis, D.B., editor, 1977, Los Angeles: Dawson's Book Shop, At sunset, the Mexicans used their 6-pounder to fire upon the Americans along Main Street, which did little damage. The Mexicans were beaten back from an attack on the Mott house at 10 PM and the south end of Main street, the Mexicans retiring only at daylight. 20 November was quiet until sunset, when the Mexicans attacked, attempting to capture the American gun and gain the roof of the fort, but

grape shot Grapeshot is a type of artillery round invented by a British Officer during the Napoleonic Wars. It was used mainly as an anti infantry round, but had other uses in naval combat. In artillery, a grapeshot is a type of ammunition that consists of ...

canister shot Canister shot is a kind of anti-personnel artillery ammunition. Canister shot has been used since the advent of gunpowder-firing artillery in Western armies. However, canister shot saw particularly frequent use on land and at sea in the various ...

and musket fire stopped the attack. On 21 November, the

whaler A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. Terminology The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Japa ...

s ''Magnolia'' and ''Edward'' arrived, and the Mexican force withdrew after the discharge of the whalers' guns.

Aftermath

Upon hearing of the attack at San José del Cabo, Commodore Shubrick sent the storeship USS ''Southampton'' and the first-class sloop-of-war to reinforce Heywood's men. The Southampton arrived on November 26 and the Portsmouth on December 3. Captain Pineda, facing two defeats, one at La Paz where he personally commanded the battle, recalled his company from San José and decided to escalate his attack strength, first at the Siege of La Paz and then again at the

Siege of San José del Cabo A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characterize ...

. For his brave action in the final assault on the American fort , the Mexicans consider the death of Lieutenant Mijares as heroic and have placed a monument to honor him on the main street of San José del Cabo, which is called Boulevard Antonio Mijares.

Background

Battle

Aftermath

References

Further reading