Battle of Azcapotzalco
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The Battle of Azcapotzalco, ( es, link=no, Batalla de Azcapotzalco), was fought on August 19, 1821, in the town of
Azcapotzalco Azcapotzalco ( nci, Āzcapōtzalco , , from ''wikt:azcapotzalli, āzcapōtzalli'' “anthill” + ''wikt:-co, -co'' “place”; literally, “In the place of the anthills”) is a Boroughs of Mexico City, borough (''demarcación territorial'') i ...
, near
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 ...
. It was to be one of the last military action of the
Mexican War of Independence The Mexican War of Independence ( es, Guerra de Independencia de México, links=no, 16 September 1810 – 27 September 1821) was an armed conflict and political process resulting in Mexico's independence from Spain. It was not a single, co ...
. The insurgents, commanded by the
colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...
s
Anastasio Bustamante Anastasio Bustamante y Oseguera (; 27 July 1780 – 6 February 1853) was a Mexican physician, general, and politician who served as president of Mexico three times. He participated in the Mexican War of Independence initially as a royalist befo ...
and Luis Quintanar, fought the Spanish forces commanded by Manuel de la Concha.


Prelude

By August 1821, The
Army of the Three Guarantees At the end of the Mexican War of Independence, the Army of the Three Guarantees ( es, Ejército Trigarante or ) was the name given to the army after the unification of the Spanish troops led by Agustín de Iturbide and the Mexican insurgent troo ...
, led by Agustin de Iturbide, had control of the majority of towns and important cities of
New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Am ...
, leaving only the royalist bastions of Mexico City and the port of
Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...
. Mexico City as capital of the Viceroyalty of New Spain was the key point for ending the 11 year Mexican War of Independence. The Army of the Three Guarantees had surrounded the periphery of the city and the royalist forces were forced into Tacuba (today
Miguel Hidalgo Don Miguel Gregorio Antonio Ignacio Hidalgo y Costilla y Gallaga Mandarte Villaseñor (8 May 1753  – 30 July 1811), more commonly known as Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla or Miguel Hidalgo (), was a Catholic priest, leader of the Mexican Wa ...
) and the old Hacienda of Clavería.


Battle

Before the battle Agustín de Iturbide went to Córdoba to have a meeting with the Political Superior Chief,The Political Superior Chief ( es, link=no, Jefe Político Superior) was the name given in the
Constitution of Cadiz The Political Constitution of the Spanish Monarchy ( es, link=no, Constitución Política de la Monarquía Española), also known as the Constitution of Cádiz ( es, link=no, Constitución de Cádiz) and as ''La Pepa'', was the first Constituti ...
of 1812, to the highest political and administrative officer of the provinces in which the Spanish territories were divided, both in
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and overseas. According with the new constitutional system, the
Viceroyalty of New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Amer ...
and the other kingdoms in
the Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America, North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. ...
ceased to exist and were divided in juridical equal provinces ruled by a Political Superior Chief appointed by the
King of Spain , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...
and a provincial council. In the Mexican history the five political chiefs of New Spain are also known as Viceroys.
Juan O'Donojú, he left command of the troops around Mexico City to Luis Quintanar and
Anastasio Bustamante Anastasio Bustamante y Oseguera (; 27 July 1780 – 6 February 1853) was a Mexican physician, general, and politician who served as president of Mexico three times. He participated in the Mexican War of Independence initially as a royalist befo ...
. Bustamante successfully occupied the Haciendas of Cristo and Careaga, (today known as Rosario and Molino de la Hacienda Santa Mónica) and from there he took the next step into Mexico City. On 19 August 1821, the insurgent, Nicolas Acosta, entered
Azcapotzalco Azcapotzalco ( nci, Āzcapōtzalco , , from ''wikt:azcapotzalli, āzcapōtzalli'' “anthill” + ''wikt:-co, -co'' “place”; literally, “In the place of the anthills”) is a Boroughs of Mexico City, borough (''demarcación territorial'') i ...
and took over the Rosario bridge with the purpose of attacking the royalist forces. The attack began in the middle of a rainstorm. As soon as the battle began, the royalist general Manuel de la Concha went to his headquarters in
Tacubaya Tacubaya is a working-class area of west-central Mexico City, in the borough of Miguel Hidalgo, consisting of the '' colonia'' Tacubaya proper and adjacent areas in other colonias, with San Miguel Chapultepec sección II, Observatorio, Daniel Ga ...
for reinforcements. The insurgents retired to Azcapotzalco, sending troops to the Hacienda of Careaga. General Concha followed and tried to force them to face him in Azcapotzalco. When the royalist forces arrived, the insurgent forces attacked them in the vestibule and the ceilings of the Convent of the Dominicos. The combat continued until 11 am and stopped when the insurgent ammunition ran out. Anastasio Bustamante ordered a cannon placed at the entrance of the town but it was unfruitful and he decided to retreat. The famous insurgent soldier Encarnación Ortiz also known as ''El Pachondo'' tried to rescue the artillery but was shot and killed. The act inflamed the insurgents who assaulted the vestibule, facing the royalist forces hand-to-hand, defeating them and forcing them to flee to the Rosario Bridge.


Aftermath

The victory by the insurgent forces of the Army of the Three Guarantees forced the royalists to leave the Haciendas of Clavería,
Tacuba Tacuba is a municipality in the Ahuachapán department of El Salvador. Church Of Tacuba It is located in Villa of Tacuba. It is head of the municipality of the same name in the department of Ahuachapán, at about 14 Kilometers of the city of Ahu ...
, Popotla and San Jacinto. Days later independence was granted. The victory of the insurgents in the last battle of the war cleared the way to Mexico City which was finally taken by the insurgents on 27 September 1821, ending the long Mexican War of Independence.
Valentin Canalizo Valentin is a male given name meaning "strong, healthy, power, rule, terco". It comes from the Latin name ''Valentinus'', as in Saint Valentin. Commonly found in Spain, Romania, Bulgaria, France, Italy, Russia, Ukraine, Scandinavia, Latin America ...
also fought in this battle. He, like
Anastasio Bustamante Anastasio Bustamante y Oseguera (; 27 July 1780 – 6 February 1853) was a Mexican physician, general, and politician who served as president of Mexico three times. He participated in the Mexican War of Independence initially as a royalist befo ...
, would later become
President of Mexico The president of Mexico ( es, link=no, Presidente de México), officially the president of the United Mexican States ( es, link=no, Presidente de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos), is the head of state and head of government of Mexico. Under the Co ...
.


Notes


Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Azcapotzalco Battles of the Mexican War of Independence Battles involving Spain Battles involving Mexico August 1821 events