History of the War between the United States and Mexico/Chapter 5

by John Stilwell Jenkins

 

CHAPTER V.

WOOL'S COLUMN.

Terms of the Capitulation at Monterey — Armistice — Revolution in Mexico — Return of Santa Anna — Proposition to negotiate — Evacuation of Monterey — Concentration of troops at San Antonio de Bexar — March of General Wool — Change of Route — Monclova — Termination of the Armistice — Occupation of Saltillo, Parras, and Tampico — The Mexican Army at San Luis Potosi — Threatened Attack on Saltillo — March to Victoria.

In whatever light it may be viewed, the capture of Monterey must be regarded as one of the most brilliant achievements recorded in the annals of modern warfare. Though most advantageously situated and well defended, the city was compelled to capitulate, after three days' fighting, to an inferior force, without heavy artillery, and destitute of the means usually employed for the reduction of fortified towns. A simple statement of the difficulties to be overcome by General Taylor and his army, and of the success which crowned their efforts, is all that is required to establish their claims to the gratitude and admiration of their countrymen. The terms of the capitulation, however, w^ere not entirely satisfactory to the army, or rather, to the Texan volunteers, who, it cannot be denied, were but too anxious to redress the wrongs which they had received during their revolution; neither were they approved by the Executive authorities of the United

GENL. JOHN E. WOOL.

States.^[1] It was thought by the President, that an unconditional surrender of the Mexican forces in Monterey, and of their arms and munitions of war, should have been insisted upon by General Taylor; and that the article providing for an armistice was both unnecessary and unadvisable.^[2]

General Taylor might have taken the city without a surrender. There was no misgiving on the part of his soldiers. However obstinate the defence, it would certainly have been overcome in the end, even though every street and plaza had been drenched in blood. On the evening of the 24th of September, the exact distance to the cathedral and the main plaza was ascertained by the officer having charge of the mortar, and he was prepared to throw his shells accordingly. Had no offer to capitulate been received, the fire would have been kept up for a few hours, and this would have been followed by an assault, probably on the night of the 24th. The powder of the enemy was stored in the cathedral, and the women and children were collected in and near the main plaza. The loss of life which must inevitably have attended the assault, and the consequent explosion of the magazine, would have been frightful. Every principle of humanity demanded that this should be avoided, if possible, and General Taylor and the American commissioners were very willing to be governed by such a consideration, when they found it was impossible to prevent the escape of the Mexican soldiers, with all their light arms and baggage, through the numerous narrow passes in the rear of the city, which they were unable to guard. In his dispatch to the Mexican minister at war announcing the surrender, dated on the 25th of September, Ampudia

intimated that he would have been compelled to open his way with the bayonet. His assertion, however, is not entitled to much weight, because he undoubtedly anticipated censure, and was anxious to avoid it by representing his situation to have been desperate as possible. Military men who have examined the ground, and all the abler and more experienced officers in the army of General Taylor, concur in the opinion that the terms of the capitulation were as rigorous as ought to have been required; and he must be a bold man who would undertake to question the judgment of those who are so competent to decide.

The armistice was another feature of the capitulation to which objections were made. General Taylor was not in a situation to advance from Monterey, or to prosecute the war, on account of the severe loss he had sustained, and the want of necessary supplies, until a very few days before the expiration of the term prescribed in the article. So far, therefore, as the force under his immediate command was concerned, the delay would have been necessary under any circumstances, and could have produced no injurious results. The enemy desired the armistice; it might have had the tendency to restore friendly relations at once; and good policy required the concession to be made. But while the army was on its march to Monterey, and employed in its reduction, an expedition was planned by the President and his cabinet against Tampico and the southern part of the department of Tamaulipas, below the line which neither party was to cross while the armistice was in force. In the month of June previous, General Taylor had been placed in the full command of all the land forces of the United States operating against the republic of Mexico, south of the province of New Mexico;^[3] this order had not been countermanded; the contemplated movement against Tampico was not known to him or to the American commissioners; and they did all that was required of them. in leaving the armistice subject to the ratification of their government. But beside all this, General Taylor was instructed by the Secretary of War, that hostilities were to be prosecuted for the conquest of a speedy and honorable peace;^[4] Ampudia expressly stated in the conference that propositions for peace had been made; it was notorious, too, that negotiations had been, or were, in progress; the object of the war seemed about to be gained; and the commissioners of both countries were influenced in their deliberations by these considerations.

The propositions for peace alluded to by Ampudia, were made by the authorities of the United States, in the month of July, in consequence of a change in the Mexican government. Paredes was never firmly seated in power. As early as the 8th of March, 1846, Santa Anna, then in exile at Havana, addressed a confidential letter to a friend in Mexico, accompanied with his plan for a revolution. He declared that his sentiments were changed in relation to the proper form of government for his countrymen, and that he was willing one should be established by a Congress to be chosen in accordance with the electoral laws under which the members of the Congress of 1824 were elected. These views were satisfactory to the leading federalists, and it was designed to make a movement on the 1st of April.^[5] The main reliance of Paredes was upon the army, and this could not be withdrawn from him, or secured by the friends of Santa Anna and the federalists, until after the battles on the Rio Grande. The cry was then raised, that the war had not been conducted with sufficient vigor or skill. Paredes was deposed and thrown into prison, but afterwards made his escape to Havana. General Salas, the firm friend of Santa Anna, was chosen provisional President, and immediately issued a decree requiring a Congress to be elected and to assemble on the 6th of December following, under the laws in force in 1824. In the meantime it was declared that the constitution of 1824 should be the supreme law of the land. Santa Anna arrived at Vera Cruz on the 16th of August, having been allowed to pass the blockading squadron without opposition, in pursuance of instructions from the Navy Department.

The order received by Commodore Conner to allow Santa Anna to enter the Mexican ports freely, if he endeavored to do so, although he could unquestionably have returned had it not been in existence, was issued on the 13th of May 1846. It was then supposed that his presence in Mexico might lead to the overthrow of Paredes, and to the establishment of a government more favorable to peace; but this proved to be a mistake.^[6] Paredes originally came into power as the friend of war; yet the very men who were the most active in deposing. him were compelled to make similar professions. The popular feeling was warlike, and the army were dissatisfied in consequence of their reverses. Whatever may have been the private sentiments of Santa Anna, however much he was inclined to peace, he could never have regained any part of his former influence, except as the decided supporter of war measures. He was too wise not to understand that the true policy of his country should have been the restoration of peace, but he was also too ambitious not to yield to the current bearing every thing before it. He was not ignorant of the prevailing fondness of the Mexican people for military heroes, and he well knew that his own fame must be rejuvenated, and the laurels which had been withered at San Jacinto, restored to their original freshness, before he could succeed in guiding or controlling them. Had he been able to have achieved one victory, — had he forced his way through the wall of living men who blocked up the narrow pass of Angostura, or maintained his position on the heights of Cerro Gordo, he would have been hailed with loud acclaim as the saviour of his country. At such an hour, and under such circumstances, he might have recommended peace, and his advice would have been followed without hesitation.

As soon as it became known that a new government had been established in Mexico, the olive branch was again tendered to her. Mr. Buchanan addressed a letter to the Mexican minister of foreign relations, on the 27th of July 1846, proposing that negotiations should be opened for the conclusion of a peace. The minister, Mr. Rejon, replied on the 3lst of August, declining any action in the premises, except that of simply laying the proposition before the Congress to assemble in December.^[7] The result of this attempt to. open negotiations between the two countries for the adjustment of their difficulties, was not known at the time of the capitulation at Monterey. A government supposed to be more favorable to peace was in existence, and friendly overtures had been made. For this reason the request of Ampudia for an armistice was granted by General Taylor and the American commissioners.

On the 25th of September the citadel in front of Monterey was occupied by a detachment of the American army under Colonel P. F. Smith, and the Mexican troops soon after evacuated the town. Ampudia retired with his forces to Saltillo. He endeavored to prevail upon the inhabitants to fortify the place and prepare for resistance. Being unsuccessful, he proceeded with the main body of his army to San Luis Potosi, where he was placed in arrest, and ordered to be tried by a court martial, for neglecting to maintain his position at Monterey.

Thirty-five pieces of artillery, and a large amount of ammunition, were surrendered to General Taylor in pursuance of the terms of the capitulation. The loss sustained by his army before Monterey was 488; eighteen officers were killed, or subsequently died of their wounds,^[8] and twenty-six were wounded; there were one hundred and eight men killed, and three hundred and thirty-seven wounded. The loss of the enemy was not ascertained, but was supposed to exceed five hundred. Immediately after the passage of the act of May 13, 1846, General Wool was ordered to muster into service the volunteers from Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and Mississippi. In the brief period of six weeks fourteen and a half regiments were organized, and on their way to the seat of war. Ten thousand men were sent to reinforce General Taylor, and the remainder, about twenty-five hundred in number, were ordered to San Antonio de Bexar. General Wool landed at La Vaca on Matagorda Bay, on the 2nd of August, with the 1st and 2nd Illinois regiments, and from thence marched to the appointed rendezvous of his division. Colonel Harney, of the 2nd dragoons, had been previously stationed at San Antonio with a small force of regular cavalry, and several companies of Texan volunteers, for the protection of the frontier from Indian incursions. The other regiments and detachments ordered to join General Wool arrived during the month of August. Several weeks were spent in hauling the supplies for the army from La Vaca, the nearest point to San Antonio on the Gulf; but the time was profitably employed in organizing and drilling the command preparatory to taking the field.

All things being made ready, the advance of the army of the centre, under Colonel Harney, marched from San Antonio on the 26th of September. General Wool left on the 29th; the 1st Illinois regiment under Colonel Hardin marched on the 2nd of October; and the rear under Colonel Churchill, Inspector-general, followed in a few days, consisting of the 2nd Illinois and various detachments belonging to the different corps.^[9] From San Antonio the route lay westward to the Rio Grande opposite Presidio, a distance of one hundred and fifty-seven miles, through a tract of country about equally divided into fertile prairies, sandy barrens, and marshy chaparrals. Boats had been constructed at San Antonio for crossing the Rio Grande, and transported over land. The passage of the river, therefore, was effected without difficulty, on the 10th of October.

General Wool anticipated resistance on entering the enemy's country, but was amply prepared to meet it. His men were well provided, and in a fine state of discipline. The rules and regulations which he laid down and enforced were often regarded as being too harsh and severe, but they contributed materially to preserve the health and efficiency of his command. Every halt or delay was improved in drilling and manoeuvring the troops; complaints were loud and frequent among the volunteers; yet their commander would permit no relaxation. Himself a soldier in every sense of the word, he knew what constituted the real strength of an army. He would not suffer the discipline of his command to be neglected upon any consideration, and those who complained the most bitterly learned to bless the cautious foresight that saved them from utter destruction on the bloody field of Buena Vista.^[10]

Leaving the Rio Grande at Presidio, General Wool marched through Nava and San Fernando to Santa

Rosa, taking peaceable possession of the different towns on his route; the Mexican population neither possessing the means, nor the inclination, to oppose his movements. At Santa Rosa he unexpectedly found an impassable barrier to his further advance in the direction of Chihuahua. The tall peaks of the Sierra Gorda, fringed with cedars, and concealing countless stores of wealth within their bosoms, towered to the very clouds before him, and looked down frowning upon the sterile plains, the fertile valleys, the beautiful haciendas and olive groves, of Coahuila. There was no pathway through the mountains, and to storm that mighty breastwork which nature had reared, was beyond the power and skill of his soldiers. He therefore turned aside to Monclova, the ancient capital of the province, where he arrived on the 29th of October. The Spanish inhabitants of this town are wealthy, intelligent and refined, hospitable and courteous. The American army were received and treated with marked kindness and condescension; and on informing General Taylor, then at Monterey, of his arrival at Monclova, General Wool was directed to remain there until further orders.

Immediately upon his landing at Vera Cruz, Santa. Anna issued a proclamation containing similar sentiments with those communicated to his friends, while he was at Havana, and retired temporarily to his hacienda of Mango de Clavo, where he remained until the month of September. He then set out for the city of Mexico, and arrived at Ayotla, on the 14th of September. At this place he received a communication offering him the supreme executive power, or dictatorship, of the republic, in the name of the provisional government. This was accepted on the same day, and he thus became, as he styled himself, "the Commander in Chief of the Liberating Army of Mexico." On the 15th of September he entered the capital amid the congratulations of his fellow-citizens, thousands of whom assembled to celebrate the re-establishment of the federal constitution, to join in "the glorious cry of Dolores," and to welcome the soldier and hero whom they already fancied as their deliverer. Decrees had been previously issued providing for the increase of the forces, their supply and equipment; and Santa Anna hastened directly to the head-quarters of the northern army at San Luis Potosi, to receive the new levies, and conduct the future operations of the war in that quarter. The spirit of the nation was aroused. San Luis was soon filled to overflowing with troops, and even the women came down in crowds, from San Diego and Tlascala, to cheer the soldiers by their presence, and encourage them by their approving words and smiles.

On the second of September a dispatch was forwarded to General Taylor from the War Department, directing him to make preparations for an expedition against Tampico, to be commanded by General Patterson, in which allusions were made to an advance upon San Luis Potosi if found practicable. This dispatch was intercepted by the enemy, and preparations were forthwith made by the Mexican forces at San Luis to check the advance of the American army, which was supposed to be in contemplation. Deeming it impossible to hold Tampico, the garrison was withdrawn on the 27th of October. Early in November Santa Anna was officially notified by General Taylor that the armistice would terminate on the 13th instant, and that hostilities would thereupon be recommenced. The work on the fortifications erected at San Luis was now prosecuted as rapidly as possible; the water-tanks on the road leading from Saltillo were destroyed; and General Miñon was ordered with a body of cavalry to hold that route in observation, while General Urrea was sent to Tula with a similar force, to keep watch over the passes in the vicinity of Tampico and Victoria.^[11]

General Taylor remained quietly at Monterey for several weeks after the capitulation. Occasional excesses were committed by some of the lawless volunteers under his command; but this evil was promptly checked by an order forbidding their free ingress into the town. The main body of the troops were encamped at Walnut Springs, and the city occupied by a garrison detailed for that purpose. On the 5th of November he notified Santa Anna that the armistice would terminate previous to the expiration of the time specified in the articles of capitulation, in accordance with instructions received from the War Department; and on the 13th he advanced towards Saltillo, the capital of Coahuila, about seventy miles beyond Monterey, accompanied by General Worth with about 1200 men under his command. General Taylor regarded the occupation of this town as being of the highest importance. It appeared to be a necessary outpost to Monterey, and covered both the defile leading from the lower country to the table land in the interior, and the road to Parras, situated in one of the richest sections of northern Mexico, and from which large supplies of cattle and breadstuffs could be drawn if required. No opposition was made to the occupation of Saltillo, the governor of the State contenting himself with a mere protest. General Worth was left in command, and General Taylor returned to Monterey.

Tampico was taken without opposition, by a portion of the Gulf squadron, on the 14th of November, and soon after garrisoned by eight companies of artillery, under Lieutenant Colonel Belton, and a regiment of Alabama volunteers, well supplied with heavy ordnance and provisions, the whole commanded by General Shields. Towards the close of the month General Wool was ordered with his force to Parras, Where he experienced the same kind treatment from the inhabitants which he had met at Monclova. He lay encamped for a number of weeks in the Alameda; every attention was paid to his wants; and whenever his men were sick, he was invited by the citizens to bring them into their houses. Saltillo and Santa Fe being in possession of the American troops, it was not thought advisable for him to proceed to Chihuahua, as that town could be occupied at any moment if it should be found necessary.

The distance from Saltillo to San Luis Potosi is not far from three hundred miles, and for a greater part of the way very poorly supplied with water. General Taylor early formed the opinion that a march to San Luis would not be expedient, but that if the war was to be prosecuted, an expedition against Vera Cruz, and an advance movement from thence in the direction of the capital, would be preferable. These views were communicated at different times to his government.^[12] In anticipation of receiving the necessary orders to prepare a part of the troops under his command for the expedition, he left Monterey for Victoria, the capital of Tamaulipas, with all his disposable forces, under the command of Generals Twiggs and Quitman, on the 15th of December, having already directed General Patterson to join him at that place with the regiment of Tennessee cavalry, and two regiments of volunteer infantry. General Butler remained in command of the reserve at Monterey. At Montemorelos General Taylor effected a junction with the 2nd infantry under Colonel Riley, and the 2nd Tennessee foot. While here he received a dispatch from General Worth, informing him that Saltillo was threatened by Santa Anna, who was within three days' march, and that he could hold the position for that time against any force that might be brought against him, but would require assistance on the fourth day. General Quitman was ordered to continue his march to Victoria with the volunteers, reinforced by a field battery, and General Taylor returned to Monterey with the regulars under General Twiggs.

Generals Butler and Wool had also been advised of the threatened attack on Saltillo, and had moved rapidly to join General. Worth with all their available forces. General Wool received the intelligence on the evening of the 17th, and in two hours his whole army was in motion. He was three nights upon the road, and his men were aroused at one o'clock in the morning to resume the march. When they arrived near Saltillo, his soldiers, who had confidently anticipated a battle, were much chagrined to find that the alarm proved to be unfounded. On the 215t of December General Wool took position with his command at Agua Nueva, a small rancho seventeen miles south of Saltillo and near the great pass through the mountains, in order to hold the approaches from San Luis in observation.

On his way to Saltillo General Taylor was informed that the position was no longer in danger. He therefore retraced his steps to the camp near Monterey, and in a few days again started for Victoria. At Montemorelos,an officer of the topographical engineers, with a squadron of cavalry, under Lieutenant Colonel May, was dispatched to reconnoitre a pass through the mountains to Labradores, and thence to Linares. The reconnaissance was effected, but on the return of the party to Linares, the baggage and ten men of the rear guard were cut off in a narrow pass beyond San Pedro. Lieutenant Colonel May dismounted a portion of the squadron and repassed the defile, in the hope of rescuing his men. Occasional shots were fired upon him from the cliffs overhead, but he did not encounter the enemy.

General Quitman occupied Victoria without resistance on the 29th of December. A body of the enemy's cavalry, numbering about 1,500, and belonging to a strong division of observation stationed at Tula under General Valencia, were in the town when he approached, but retired before he came up, to Jamauve. General Taylor arrived on the 4th of January with the regulars under General Twiggs, and was joined on the same day by General Patterson with the regiments ordered from Matamoras. The united force amounted to more than 5,000 men. With the possession of Victoria, every prominent town on the line of the Sierra Madre, between Saltillo and Tampico, was occupied by General Taylor with the forces under his command.

COMMANDER CONNER.

 

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1. See Correspondence between the Secretary of War and General Taylor, House of Rep. Exec. Doe. 119, (pp. 77, et seq.) 2nd Session, 29th Congress.
2. The following were the terms of the capitulation:

   "Terms of capitulation of the city of Monterey, the capital of Nuevo Leon, agreed upon by the undersigned Commissioners, to wit: General Worth= of the United States Army, General Henderson of the Texan Volunteers, and Colonel Davis, of the Mississippi Riflemen, on the part of Major General Taylor, commanding-in-chief the United States forces, and General Requena and General Ortega, of the Army of Mexico, and Señor Manuel M. Llano, Governor of Nuevo Leon, on the part of Señor General Don Pedro Ampudia, commanding-in-chief the Army of the North of Mexico:

   "Art. I. As the legitimate result of the operations before this place, and the present position of the Contending armies, it is agreed that the city, the fortifications, cannon, the munitions of war, and all other public property, with the undermentioned exceptions, be surrendered to the commanding general of the United States forces now at Monterey.

   "Art. II. That the Mexican forces be allowed to retain the following arms, to wit: the commissioned officers their side-arms, the infantry their arms and accoutrements, the cavalry their arms and accoutrements, the artillery one field battery, not to exceed six pieces, with twenty — one rounds of ammunition.

   "Art. III. That the Mexican armed forces retire, within seven days from this date, beyond the line formed by the pass of Rinconada, the city of Linares, and San Fernando de Parras.
   

   "Art. IV. That the citadel of Monterey be evacuated by the Mexican and occupied by the American forces to-morrow morning at ten o'clock.

   "Art. V. To avoid collisions, and for mutual convenience, that the troops of the United States will not occupy the city until the Mexican forces have withdrawn, except for hospital and storage purposes.

   "Art. VI. That the forces of the United States will not advance beyond the line specified in the 3rd article, before the expiration of eight weeks, or until orders or instructions of the respective governments can be received.

   "Art. VII. That. the public property to be delivered, shall be turned over and received by officers appointed by the commanding generals of the two armies.

   "Art. VIII. That all doubts as to the meaning of any of the preceding articles, shall be solved by an equitable construction, or on principles of liberality to the retiring army.

   "Art. IX. That the Mexican flag, when struck at the citadel, may be saluted by its own battery.

   "Done at Monterey, Sept. 94, 1846."

3. House of Rep. Exec. Doc. 119, (p. 50,) 2nd Session, 29th Congress.
4. Ibid., loc. cit.
5. House of Rep. Exec. Doc. 4, (pp. 31, et seq.) 52nd Session, 29th Congress.
6. Annual Message of President Polk, December, 1846: Special Message and accompanying documents, January 12, 1848.
7. House of Rep. Exec. Doc. 4, (pp. 40, et seq.) 2nd Session, 29th Congress.
8. The names of the officers killed were, Captain Williams, topographical engineers; Lieutenant Terrett, 1st infantry; Major Barbour, Captains Morris and Field, Lieutenants Irwin and Hazlitt, 3rd infantry; Lieutenants Hoskins and Woods, 4th infantry; Captain M^cKavett, 6th infantry; Lieutenant Colonel Watson, Baltimore and Washington battalion; Captain Battlem and Lieutenant Putnam, 1st Tennessee; Lieutenant Hett, Ohio regiment; and Captain Gillespie, Texan volunteers. Lieutenant Dilworth, 1st infantry, Major Lear, 3rd infantry, and Lieut. Graham, 4th infantry, died of their wounds after the occupation of the city.
9. The central division, under General Wool, consisted of four companies of the 2nd dragoons, Colonel Harney; one company of the 4th artillery, Captain Washington, with eight pieces, two twelve pounders, and the remainder six pounders; battalion of (5th infantry, Major Bonneville; Colonel Yell's regiment Arkansas mounted volunteers; 1st Illinois infantry, Colonel Hardin; 2nd Illinois, Colonel Bissell; and one company of Kentucky Cavalry, and one of Texan volunteers. Total strength, 2,829.
10. See the Correspondence between General Wool and the Illinois volunteers, June, 1847.
11. It is stated in a letter written from Mexico, that Santa Anna collected his army at San Luis Potosi, with the intention of advancing against General Taylor, (Frost's Life of General Taylor, p. 214.) The movements of the Mexican commander do not appear to justify any such conclusion. He expected to be attacked, and made preparations to defend his position. Indeed, after the dispatch of the 2nd of September was intercepted, he could have formed no other opinion. General Taylor did not advance, and when a portion of his troops were withdrawn, and the Mexican people began to complain on account of the delay, Santa Anna moved forward with his army, but not until that time.
12. "I am decidedly opposed to carrying the war beyond Saltillo in this direction, which place has been entirely abandoned by the Mexican forces, all of whom have been concentrated at San Luis Potosi.*** If we are, (in the language of Mr. Polk and General Scott,) under the necessity of 'conquering a peace,' — and that by taking the Capital of the country, — we must go to Vera Cruz, take that place, and then march on the city of Mexico." — Letter of General Taylor to General Gaines, November 5, 1847. See also, General Taylor's letters to the Adjutant General, dated July 2nd, October 15th, November 8th, 9th, and 12th, and December 8th, and to President Polk dated August 1st, in House of Rep. Exec. Doc. 119, 2nd session, 29th Congress.