Malespín's War (Spanish: ''Guerra de Malespín'') was a

Salvadoran Salvadorans (Spanish: ''Salvadoreños''), also known as Salvadorians (alternate spelling: Salvadoreans), are citizens of El Salvador, a country in Central America. Most Salvadorans live in El Salvador, although there is also a significant Salvado ...

and Honduran invasion of

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 ...

caused by the election of

liberal democrat Several political party, political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democracy, liberal democratic ideology. Active parties Former parties ...

Manuel Pérez at the time of Central American turmoil dictated by Rafael Carrera's conservative dictatorship in

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

. The war mostly took place in León, which was besieged by the invading forces on 27 November 1844, a siege which would last until 24 January 1845.

Cause

On 1 April 1843 Supreme Director

Pablo Buitrago y Benavente Pablo Sánchez de Buitrago Sandoval y Benavente (25 January 1807 – 22 June 1882) was a legitimist Nicaraguan politician who served as the 2nd Supreme Director of Nicaragua from 4 March 1841 to 1 April 1843. He was the first non-acting, elected ...

resigned and Parliament appointed

Juan de Dios Orozco Juan de Dios Orozco was a Nicaraguan politician who served as acting Supreme Director of Nicaragua from 1 April to 31 May 1843. In 1823 Mexican Emperor Agustín de Iturbide began plans to annex the Federal Republic of Central America. Intendant ...

as Acting Supreme Director. Orozco was to oversee public elections, but those failed because no candidate obtained the required majority vote. Because of the failed elections, parliament elected liberal Manuel Pérez, with support from the ''de facto'' military dictator of Nicaragua,

Casto Fonseca Casto Fonseca (c. 1800 – 24 January 1845) was a Nicaragua, Nicaraguan military figure who served as the ''de facto'' military leader of Nicaragua from 6 April 1839 to 20 January 1845, preceded by Bernardo Méndez de Figueroa and succeeded by J ...

. This concerned the conservative politicians mainly based in

Granada Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...

. Under Pérez, Managua's council decided to move the jurisdiction policy of Granada towards the jurisdiction policy of León and Granadans feared that Managua would be controlled militarily by Fonseca, and that the leaders of Leonese liberalism would be a threat to them. The conservative government in El Salvador under

Francisco Malespín Francisco Malespín Herrera (1806 – 25 November 1846) was a Salvadoran military officer and politician, elected as the president of El Salvador in 1844. He served from 7 February 1844 to 15 February 1845, when he was deposed by his vice presi ...

had at that time just avoided war with Guatemala after conservative dissidents, led by "liberal-turned-conservative"

Manuel José Arce Manuel José Arce y Fagoaga (1 January 1787 – 14 December 1847) was a decorated salvadoran General and president of the Federal Republic of Central America from 1825 to 1829, followed by Francisco Morazán. Background Manuel José Arce was ...

, attempted to invade El Salvador. The Governments of El Salvador and Honduras, led by

Francisco Ferrera Francisco Ferrera (29 January 1794 – 10 April 1851) was a president of Honduras. He was born in San Juan de Flores, Honduras. Ferrera joined the guerrerista campaigns of General Francisco Morazán José Francisco Morazán Quesada (; b ...

, then put blame for their internal unrest on the Nicaraguan liberals in León. The Nicaraguan liberals saw this as a threat of invasion, so they attacked

Nacaome Nacaome, with a population of 19,990 (2020 calculation), is the capital city of the Valle department of Honduras and the municipal seat of Nacaome Municipality. It is a manufacturing and commercial center located on the banks of the Nacaome Riv ...

, Honduras on 23 October 1844, before they could form a military alliance, but were pushed back by the Hondurans. Malespín then began preparing to invade.

Initial invasion

On 25 October 1844 Malespín handed over the presidency to his Vice President,

Joaquín Eufrasio Guzmán Joaquín Eufrasio Guzmán (Cartago, Costa Rica, 15 February 1801 – San Miguel, El Salvador, 1875) was a Central American politician and military general who served as acting President of El Salvador on three occasions: from 25 October 1844 to ...

, and the Command of the Army, to his brother Calixto Malespín, and began leading his troops towards Nicaragua with military support from Honduras under

José Santos Guardiola José Santos Guardiola Bustillo (1 November 1816 in Tegucigalpa, Honduras – 11 January 1862 in Comayagua, Honduras) was a two-term President of Honduras from 17 February 1856 to 7 February 1860 and from 7 February 1860 to his death on 11 Janu ...

. Manuel Pérez sent the Nicaraguan troops gathering in

Chinandega Chinandega () is a city and the departmental seat of Chinandega department in Nicaragua. It is also the administrative centre of the surrounding municipality of the same name. It is Nicaragua's 2nd most important city (economy) and 6th largest c ...

to Chichigalp, thus preventing military action. However, this support given to Malespín provoked parliamentary opposition, and so Pérez was removed from office on 26 September and his duties were replaced by

Emiliano Madriz Emiliano Madriz (c. 1800 – 24 January 1845) was a liberal Nicaraguan lawyer and politician who served as acting Supreme Director of Nicaragua from 26 September to 26 December 1844, and as the interim Supreme Director in León until 24 January ...

. However, Pérez did not resign voluntarily and continued to work until 4 November. On the night of 21 November the combined Armies of El Salvador and Honduras, known as the ''"Ejército Protector de la Paz"'' under the supreme command of Malespín, with Guardiola as second and

José Trinidad Muñoz José Trinidad Muñoz Fernández (1790 – 18 August 1855) was a Nicaraguan military general who served as the ''de facto'' military leader of Nicaragua in 1845, and again from 1847 to 1855, preceded by Casto Fonseca. Background Muñoz was t ...

as third in command, set up camp at the Barranca de San Antonio gorge, and at 8 p.m. on 26 November they reached León and set up camp in the outskirts of the city.

Beginning the Siege of León

On 27 November at 3 p.m., Malespín, drunk, ordered the first attack, which ended disastrous for the attackers, however, the attack continued until 4 p.m., when allied troops ran out of ammunition and scores of their officers were killed or injured. Disorder ensued and the Honduran troops began to withdraw, but Malespín convinced them to stay in combat, not before Commander Manuel Quijano y García and 64

dragoons Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat ...

had already deserted. The attack continued under the command of Muñoz, who entrenched the following night, and by the morning of the next day, the allied troops were ready for an effective attack. The Granadans offered their support to

when he was besieged in León, under a pact to improve the regime; but the ''"Grand Marshal"'' replied that the government did not agree with rebels, that the Granadans should proceed as they saw fit, that he reserved giving them the punishment they deserved. The people of

had to arrange with Malespín to depose Fonseca's military absolutism as soon as possible. Initially, about 400

Matagalpa Matagalpa () is a city in Nicaragua which is the capital of the department of Matagalpa. The city has a population of 111,258 (2021 estimate),

Situation in the capital

Some officers believed that Fonseca, though brave, was not competent enough to make a proper defense.

José María Valle José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacul ...

, ''"El Chelon"'', suggested that Fonseca hand over command to

José Trinidad Cabañas José Trinidad Cabañas Fiallos (9 June 1805– 8 January 1871) was a liberal Honduran military general and politician who served as President of Honduras on two separate occasions: From 1 March to 6 July 1852. And 31 December 1853 to 6 Jun ...

. Fonseca considered the suggestion an insult, and consequently Valle withdrew and Cabañas became an object of suspicion for Fonseca. Faced with Fonseca's ineptitude and intransigence, Supreme Director Madriz took command of the defenses, which had to withstand 89 days of siege. The defense of Sutiava was entrusted to

Gerardo Barrios José Gerardo Barrios Espinoza (24 September 1813 – 29 August 1865) was a liberal Salvadoran military general and politician who served as President of El Salvador from 12 March 1859 to 26 October 1863. Barrios was a liberal and supported the ...

Attempted peace negotiations

In an attempt to avoid war, when the invading forces reached Barranca de San Antonio on 21 November, peace negotiations began at the

hacienda An ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or ''finca''), similar to a Roman ''latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards), ...

"Satoca" located southeast of

Somotillo Somotillo is a town and a municipality in the Chinandega department of Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the ea ...

. The Nicaraguan negotiators were Hermenegildo Zepeda and Gerónimo Carcache. The bases of the negotiations were set in León and they were categorically rejected. On 1 December the peace negotiations resumed. The Nicaraguan delegates were Canon Desiderio Cortés and Anselmo Alarcón, representing León,

José Francisco del Montenegro José Francisco del Montenegro (1790 – 11 August 1851) was a Nicaraguan politician who served as Acting Supreme Director of Nicaragua from 5 to 11 August 1851, the same date he died. As a member of the Legitimist Party, in 1845, he became Minis ...

and

Juan Ruiz Juan Ruiz (), known as the Archpriest of Hita (''Arcipreste de Hita''), was a medieval Castilian poet. He is best known for his ribald, earthy poem, ''Libro de buen amor'' ('' The Book of Good Love''). Biography Origins He was born in Alcal ...

, Rivas. Malespín insisted on imposing onerous conditions and the Leonese delegates withdrew.

Selva's government

The differences between the Nicaraguans surfaced and the conservatives from Granada abandoned the liberals in León and on 8 December they sought support from the invading leader. Thus, Granada sided with Malespin, followed by Rivas.Montúfar y Rivera, Lorenzo. Reseña histórica de Centro América. IV. 600, 635-6.

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

and

Ruiz The Spanish surname Ruiz originates from the Germanic personal name " Hrodric" which is composed of the elements "Hrōd", meaning "renown", and "rīc", meaning "power(ful)", thus "famous ruler". Ruiz is a patronymic from the personal name Ruy, a sh ...

were the ambassadors sent by Granada and Rivas to Malespín, with the result of the creation of a provisional government in charge of Silvestre Selva based in

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 ...

, without the consent of León under siege.

José María Estrada José María Estrada Reyes (1802 – 13 August 1856 in Ocotal) was the President of Nicaragua after Fruto Chamorro’s death during the Filibuster War, serving from 12 March to 23 October 1855. Estrada was born in 1802 in the Conservative capit ...

, future President of Nicaragua, was appointed Minister General. After the establishment of Selva's Government, the eastern and southern departments recognised Malespin as ''"Protector of Nicaraguans"'' and even organised a regiment to serve under Selva, until the end of war.

Counter government

In early 1845,

Blas Antonio Sáenz Basic Linear Algebra Subprograms (BLAS) is a specification that prescribes a set of low-level routines for performing common linear algebra operations such as vector addition, scalar multiplication, dot products, linear combinations, and matrix ...

and

José León Sandoval José León Sandoval de la Cerda (1789 – 1854) was a Nicaraguan politician, member of the short lived centrist Republican Party, who served as 4th Supreme Director of Nicaragua from 4 April 1845 to 12 March 1847. A mestizo descendant of the co ...

formed a counter-government against Selva in Masaya, where Sáenz was formally declared Supreme Director on 20 January. Also in early January 1845, Malespin appointed

as the new General Commander of Arms and began heading to León once again.

Sautiva fire

A shipment of weapons for the Leonese, on a ship docked at the port of

El Realejo El Realejo is a municipality in the Chinandega department of Nicaragua. History The town of El Realejo was constructed in 1532, during the first years of Spanish colonization. During this period it served as Nicaragua's principal port, and remain ...

in the department of

, accidentally fell into the hands of the invading forces (Malespin actually obtained information from an Englishman named Manning, an agent of Selva's government). Among the captured armament were 1,000 muskets and 200 rifles, in addition to 200 barrels of gunpowder, 200

quintals The quintal or centner is a historical unit of mass in many countries which is usually defined as 100 base units, such as pounds or kilograms. It is a traditional unit of weight in France, Portugal, and Spain and their former colonies. It is co ...

of lead, and 12,000 flints. With the newly found equipment, on 22 January 1845, Salvadoran commanders Manuel Quijano y García and

Ramón Belloso Ramón Belloso (1810–1858) was a Salvadoran military man born in San Salvador who helped expel the filibuster William Walker from Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central Am ...

ordered the Matagalpa archers to set fire to the straw houses of Sutiava and occupied it, allowing the advance towards León.

Massacre of León

When Malespín entered León he executed many prominent citizens of Leonese society at the time, including Minister General Crescencio Navas, Supreme Director

and General Commander

. He also allowed his troops to abuse the civilian population by raping women and stealing religious treasures from churches and houses as payment for "war expenses". The only house exempt from looting was Manning's. He also ordered a raid on the atrium of the chapel San Juan de Dios, and the execution of priest Dionisio Urcuyo y Crespín, for defending the sick who were being massacred in the hospital Santa Catarina Mártir of which he was chaplain being parish priest of the church Saint John the Baptist of Sutiaba. A commemorative plaque was placed on the wall of the atrium where Father Crespin was executed. Canon Desiderio Cortés was also executed, but the liberal leaders, Cabañas and Barrios, managed to escape and return to El Salvador. Malespín then appointed Silvestre Selva in León, after he was overthrown in Masaya.

Overthrow of Malespín and peace treaty

The Vice President of El Salvador,

, conducted a coup against Malespin on 2 February 1845 and was joined by the greater part of the inhabitants of the capital, and a portion of the general's small army. They deposed Malespin and Guzmán assumed the executive office. When Malespin, still in Nicaragua, heard of the news, he immediately accepted a negotiating delegation from Hermenegildo Zepeda and Gerónimo Carcache. In the Peace Treaty it stated that El Salvador and Honduras were to pay expenses for the lootings and massacres, as well as return all stolen weaponry, the resegaition of

to the governorship of León, and the extradition of Joaquín Rivera, Maximo Orellana,

Miguel Álvarez Castro Miguel Álvarez Castro (1795–1856) was a Salvadoran politician and poet. He is considered the first Salvadoran national poet. Álvarez Castro was born on a hacienda near the city of San Miguel, El Salvador. In his youth, he studied in the '' ...

Diego Vigil y Cocaña Diego Vigil y Cocaña (1799, Tegucigalpa, Honduras – 10 January 1845, Granada, Nicaragua) was a Central American politician. He was the last president of the Federal Republic of Central America (1839–40), during its disintegration. He w ...

and Ramon Vijil. The corresponding peace treaty was signed by

, thus ending the war on 13 February 1845.

Attempted return to power

Because of the murders of Dionisio Urcuyo y Crespín and Desiderio Cortés, Bishop Jorge de Viteri y Ungo excommunicated Malespin on 23 February in the Cathedral of San Salvador. Malespín then left for Honduras where he received protection from President

Coronado Chávez Coronado Chávez (1807–1881) was President of Honduras from 8 January 1845 to 1 January 1847. For the week prior to his taking office he had been a member of the council of ministers that was running Honduras along with Casto Alvarado. He was ...

. In late 1846, backed by forces from Honduras, Malespin invaded El Salvador to recover the presidency and he began marching towards San Salvador. He was assassinated by a group of indigenous people in the town of

San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...

on 25 November of the same year. His body was decapitated and his skull is still hung in

Ciudad Delgado Ciudad Delgado is a municipality in the San Salvador department of El Salvador. It is a part of the Metropolitan Area of San Salvador The Metropolitan Area of San Salvador (''Área Metropolitana de San Salvador'' or ''AMSS'') is a metropolit ...

, where it is known as the ''"Cuesta de la Calavera"''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malespin's War Conflicts in 1844 Conflicts in 1845 Wars involving Nicaragua Wars involving El Salvador Wars involving Honduras León, Nicaragua Political history of El Salvador History of Nicaragua 19th century in Nicaragua