The Battle of Buena Vista
Ramón Alcaraz

February 1846

A little further on, they came up with the enemy on the field of battle known by the name of the Angostura. The ground which had to be passed over was formed of extensive and broad plains, in which it would not have been possible to resist the vigorous shock of our troops, especially of our beautiful cavalry. But where the enemy had halted to give battle, two successive series of hills and barrancas began, which formed a position truly formidable. Each hill was fortified with a battery, and ready to deal its murderous fire upon any attempting to take it. The position presenting serious obstacles to an attack, manifested very plainly, that for the Mexicans to gain a victory they would have to sustain a heavy loss in men.

As soon as the cavalry arrived at the Encantada, where they came in presence of the enemy, the firing of light arms commenced. The General-in-chief immediately ordered the infantry to accelerate their speed by marching in double quick time. When this was effected, notwithstanding the troops being exhausted, they were pushed forward to the Angostura, which thus made the day's tramp in all some 12 leagues. The fatigue alone killed several soldiers, who remained stretched upon the road. When the infantry came up, the brigade of General Mejía took a position to the left in the cornfields, and was supported by a corps of cavalry. The remainder of the infantry being placed upon the right, formed in two lines, with sufficient reserves and batteries. The brigades of cavalry were halted in the rear.

The General-in-chief directed Ampudia to occupy with the light corps a mountain that had remained abandoned on our right, and which was extremely important to deciding the action. These troops moved towards this position, and General Taylor at the same instant perceived the mistake he had made. In order to retrieve his error, he sent a respectable force in the same direction, in hopes to anticipate our reaching the point. The two divisions approached each other, and knowing that the occupation of the mountain would not now be an easy undertaking, and that it would belong to the victor, they opened their fire and joined in a fierce struggle. Besides the opposition of the enemy, this eminence presented in itself weighty obstacles. The ascent was almost perpendicular, and consequently to take the park along there were painful difficulties, making it necessary to adopt a thousand expedients to overcome them.

The action was prolonged with animation, and when the night had completely closed in, the result was even then doubtful. The light corps fought courageously, and the other part of the army, simple spectators of the battle, followed with their eyes the direction of the fires, anxious between doubt and hope. "As soon as it was dark," continues the account before quoted, "the scene was magnificent. A cloud of fire was seen in fact floating in the skies, which increased or diminished as the enemy gained or lost ground." At last the Americans gave way, their soldiers retreated, and ours scaled a summit as desperately defended as intrepidly won.

For the balance of the night they bivouacked in front of the enemy. It had rained: the cold was intense: and to make fires was not proper, as all lights had been prohibited in the camp. The greater portion of the army awaited the action indifferent and tranquil, as if death were not ringing in sounds about their heads. Meanwhile some officers watched, oppressed with reflections which prevail on the eve of a great battle.

The 23d commenced, and the first dawn of that ever-memorable day was saluted by martial strains from all the corps. General Santa Anna was now on his horse, giving directions. The fire of the cannon opened, the troops took their positions, and the brigade of General Mejía passed from the left to the right of the road. The battle soon after became general, and as there was no time to prepare food, the soldiers fought all day without eating.

The action began at the mountain gained in the evening, where the enemy now contended with out light corps without success. Between seven and eight in the morning the General-in-chief gave the order to charge. All the troops now advanced, moving in a parallel line of battle. By the road moved forward a column under the orders of General Blanco (D. Santiago), composed of the battalions of Sappers, the mixed of Tampico, and the Fijo de Mexico; their left being supported by the regiment of Husares. To the right of this column was the division of Lombardini, forming the centre, and at his side was that of Pacheco. A little further back still to the right, serving as a reserve, followed that of General Ortega. General Ampudia, with the light corps, reinforced by the 4th of the line, continued fighting with the American force at the foot of the mountain.

The line of the enemy was oblique, wherefore when our army marched in line parallel as we have said the column on the road received a destructive fire from cannon, while the other divisions were yet distant from the Americans. However, it was not disconcerted, and the soldiers fearlessly rushed forward, closing up the gaps which the balls opened in their ranks, with musket to the shoulder, and desiring to come to the bayonet to avenge their slain comrades, sacrificed with impunity. But General Santa Anna perceiving the slaughter ordered a halt, sheltering them behind a slight undulation which shut out the enemy's fire.

In the meanwhile the divisions of Lombardini and Pacheco had debouched and were at the points contested. When the action began Lombardini received an honorable wound, which caused him to retire, and the command devolved upon General Perez. The troops of General Pacheco, almost entirely raw recruits, were shaken and soon disbanded, pressed by the unerring fire which they received in the front, and moreover even another in flank which effectually threw them into disorder. The dispersion was general. In vain Pacheco, with a valor worthy of eulogy, endeavored to hold his men, who never halted until they reached the last ranks. The enemy, desirous of improving their advantage, hastened to complete the victory and advanced with intrepidity. But the division of General Perez calmly and steadily made a change of front to the right, and obliged them to retire. This skilful movement was seconded by a battery of 8, which Captain Ballarta had charge of, and which Santa Anna had placed under the orders of the serene General Micheltorena. The fire from these pieces occasioned a considerable loss to the Americans. Each discharge was effective from the short distance at which they fought, being only that of a small hill. The enemy who had dreamed for a moment of victory retired, routed, leaving the field covered with bodies, the brave mixed up on both sides who had fallen in this bloody conflict.

The ardor had been great with all who had here been engaged. Now our soldiers ascending the hill charged with the bayonet, now descending the barranca closed with the enemy, and again climbing up without ceasing to fight, and again turned like an avalanche from above headlong to the bottom. Thus they gained and lost ground, thus appeared the most distinguished, and thus at last they remained masters of the place achieved by such heroic efforts. The triumph would at that instant have been complete if the cavalry had been at hand to dash upon the broken remains of the conquered forces. Unfortunately this was at a distance, and when it came up, it met them already reformed. But it charged with boldness, under the direction of the valiant General Juvera. All did their duty, and General D. Angel Guzman, colonel of the regiment of Morelia, distinguished himself in a special manner, pursuing the enemy to the hacienda of Buena Vista. Part of the cavalry followed so far in the chase that to return to our camp, they hd to take to the rear of Taylor's troops and pass out by the left of the position.

In the first to which we have referred, the Mexicans had conquered. But the advantages which the ground afforded to the enemy, required continued efforts, and not one victory, but many. Rallying their troops upon the top of a hill, they at once reformed them, and it was necessary to proceed by taking hill after hill. The column which we had left upon the road, sheltered by the unevenness of the ground, came now to form the reserve of the line. Our troops advanced in good order; the battery of General Micheltorena alone which played upon our side, destroyed the enemy, and it came to the bayonet, with the soldiers fighting hand to hand. For the second time our brave men conquered. The Americans rallied on the next hill top, leaving for a trophy one piece of cannon and three flags.

At this time some persons for a parley presented themselves to the General-in-chief, intimating for him to surrender. Santa Anna answered with dignity, and refused to accede to so original a request. We should have passed over this incident in silence, as unimportant, if it were not for the fact that the envoy of this parley communicated, that General Taylor was under the impression Santa Anna had sent previously another to him, and that officer has so certified in his official report. To clear up the affair, we will explain in what this mistake consisted.

At the second charge of our troops a lieutenant, D. José Maria Montoya, who was in the front rank, became mixed up with the Americans. Seeing himself alone, and not desiring to be killed nor taken prisoner, he availed himself of a stratagem to feign a parley, whereby he was carried into the presence of General Taylor. This was followed by his returning to our camp accompanied by two officers of their army, to have an interview with General Santa Anna. But Montoya, who had his reasons for not presenting himself, separated from the commissioners, who fulfilled their instructions.

After the second combat, which was in the morning between ten and eleven, a light drizzling rain fell. Our troops now took some rest and at twelve returned to march again upon the positions of the enemy. The Sappers and other corps who were in reserve having at this time already turned to engage in the battle, General Taylor believed our left was weak. He therefore advanced some forces in that direction, who met with an unconquerable resistance. The brigade of Torrejon charged upon them, and they lost many officers and soldiers. The action became general; our line advanced; the light corps, who in the course of the battle had made the troops which they met give way, and were now at the very extreme end of the brow of a hill, closed with the enemy. Again the affray became desperate, the dead and wounded increased on both sides; the one attacked gallantly, the other defended bravely; none yielded; the combat was prolonged for whole hours, and at the end only after unheard of efforts did they succeed in rolling the enemy to their last position. Two more of their pieces and a field forge fell into our hands.

At this time there came on a heavy shower of rain, and the troops, dead with fatigue, halted. Taylor having tenaciously receded from hill to hill, and losing all, after an obstinate resistance, prepared to make his final stand before yielding the palm of victory. But the battle had ceased; the charge feebly made was the last stroke of our forces. The enemy did not believe themselves routed, for so well had they lost all their positions, except one, which was sufficient still to present a hostile attitude, that they feigned the glory of having conquered. On our part the army was proclaimed victorious, alleging in proof the trophies captured, the positions taken, and the divisions vanquished. The truth is, our arms routed the Americans in all the encounters, and so far the issue of the battle was favorable to us. There had been three partial triumphs, but not a complete victory.

During the action the brigade of General Miñon was in the rear of Taylor's army, sometimes near to Buena Vista, sometimes to Saltillo. Its inaction has given rise to a warm controversy between Generals Santa Anna and Miñon, into which we will not enter, for our principal object is to refer to events as they transpired, without taking part in discussions which have arisen from them.

The nation has cause to lament the serious losses in this battle. There the blood of her bravest sons flowed copiously, and forty officers were borne off wounded. Among the killed we must mention the Lieut.-colonels D. Francisco Berra and D. Felix Azoños; commandante of battalion, D. Julian de los Rios, and commandantes of squadron, D. Ignacio Peña, D. Juan Lullando, and D. José Santoyo, who fell upon the field of battle.

In the above description we have done no more than explain the movements of the army as a whole, omitting strokes of valor and patriotism, which could not be inserted in this class of articles. Upon the whole, however, we must say in general, that to the many persons whose conduct has been eulogized with justice, there are more who merit equally the estimation of their fellow-citizens. It was seen that various chiefs of corps took their flags in hand, led on their soldiers to action, and occupied the posts of the greatest danger. The officers behaved with dignity and proper deportment. The valor of the troops has extorted praise even from the very enemy, who have only spoken ill of some generals, alleging that if all had imitated the example of the subordinates, the issue of the battle would have been decided in our favor.

General Santa Anna has not been embraced in this accusation. Friends and enemies have recognised the valor with which he constantly braved the fire. It is to be regretted his combinations did not correspond with his gallantry, that his errors dim the splendor of his merits, and that while it is painful to blame his conduct as a general, it is also pleasing to praise his courage as a soldier.

Ramon Alacaraz. The Other Side: Or Notes for the History of the War Between Mexico and the United States Written in Mexico. Albert C. Ramsey, translator. (New York:1850), pp. 122-129.