 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (August 2019) |
| Battle of Zacatecas | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Rebellion in Zacatecas | |||||||
 General View of Zacatecas, 1836 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Centralist Government | Zacatecan rebels | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Antonio López de Santa Anna | Francisco García Salinas | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 3,400 men | 3,000 men | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 100 dead captured or scattered | 250 dead, 2,723 captured | ||||||
The Battle of Zacatecas in 1835 took place on 11 May 1835 in the immediate vicinity of the capital city in the state of Zacatecas, Mexico, between elements of the federal army under the command of Gen. Antonio López de Santa Anna and elements of the rebel army, which was commanded by General Francisco García Salinas during the Rebellion in Zacatecas of 1835.
Prelude to Battle
[edit]The Civic Militia of Zacatecas was notably well armed and equipped reporting nearly 20,000 men in its service, though only an estimated 4,000 were actually on active duty and prepared to defend the City.
Santa Anna left Mexico City on April 18th with a division composed of 4,000 men of Infantry, Artillery and Cavalry and headed through Queretaro to Lagos.
Upon learning of Santa Anna's movements, the Active Battalion of Aguascalientes was ordered to reinforce Garcia Salina's force in Zacatecas, this Battalion consisted of 1,300 men but only 300 of them arrived as hundreds had either deserted or defected to join Santa Anna's forces.[1]
Battle
[edit]García Salinas marched out with the Civic Militia of Zacatecas to the field of Guadalupe where Santa Anna attacked him at five in the morning on May 11 with a combined force of 3,400 men.[1]
Salinas was warned not to face Santa Anna's forces in an open field by Edward Harkort stating "The battle plan that I had drawn up was rejected by him, and I had to organize and position our forces according to his notions." After the first shots were exchanged, Garcia Salinas fled from the battlefield as well as large groups of Civic Militia soldiers.[2]
Despite this, the battle was fiercely contested for 2 hours. At 9 o'clock, the victory was declared by Santa Anna. According Santa Anna's first report 800 prisoners were taken, the number increased to 2,723 on the 14th. Santa Anna had a loss of 100 men (including the dead, wounded and scattered). In contrast, General Joaquin Parres took Fresnillo and Sombrerete without spilling a single drop of blood.
Aftermath
[edit]The entrance of Santa Anna's forces to Zacatecas was followed by disorder and crimes by his troops, mainly against foreigners, whose houses were robbed and some killed.[3][1]
The Mexican Government paid a small sum of money to recuperate the damages caused to the English citizens.[1]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 México a través de los siglos : historia general y completa del desenvolvimiento social, pol. University of California Libraries. 1888. p. 354.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ↑ Harkort, Eduard; Brister, Louis E. (Louis Edwin) (1986). In Mexican prisons : the journal of Eduard Harkort, 1832-1834 (in engger). Internet Archive. College Station : Texas A&M University Press. p. 124. ISBN 978-0-89096-259-6.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - ↑ Riva Palacios, Vicente (1940). López, G.S. (ed.). México á través de los siglos: historia general y completa [Mexico Across the Centuries] (in Spanish). México.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
- Thrall, Homer S. (1885). A History of Texas: From the Earliest Settlements to the Year 1885; with an Appendix Containing the Constitution of the State of Texas, Adopted November, 1875, and the Amendments of 1883. For Use in Schools, and for General Readers. University publishing Company. p. 72.
- Costeloe, Michael P. (3 October 2002). The Central Republic in Mexico, 1835-1846: 'Hombres de Bien' in the Age of Santa Anna. Cambridge University Press. p. 51. ISBN 978-0-521-53064-4.
- South Texas Studies. Victoria College Press. 2001. p. 14.