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The Thornton Affair, also known as the Thornton Skirmish, Thornton's Defeat, or Rancho Carricitos was a battle in 1846 between the military forces of the United States and Mexico west upriver from Zachary Taylor's camp along the Rio Grande. The much larger Mexican force defeated the Americans in the opening of hostilities, and was the primary justification for U.S. President James K. Polk's call to
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
to declare war.Bauer, K.J., 1974, ''The Mexican War, 1846–1848'', New York: Macmillan,


Background

Although the United States had annexed Texas, both the US and Mexico claimed the area between the
Nueces River The Nueces River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas, about long. It drains a region in central and southern Texas southeastward into the Gulf of Mexico. It is the southernmost major river in Texas northeast of the Rio Grande. ''Nueces' ...
and the Rio Grande. Polk had ordered Taylor's Army of Occupation to the Rio Grande early in 1846 soon after Mexican President
Mariano Paredes Mariano Paredes may refer to: * Mariano Paredes (President of Mexico) (1797–1849), conservative Mexican general and president * Mariano Paredes (President of Guatemala) (1800–1856), 4th President of Guatemala * Mariano Paredes (artist) Mari ...
declared in his inaugural address that he would uphold the integrity of Mexican territory to the Sabine River. Mariano Arista assumed command of the
Division of the North The Division of the North ( es, División del Norte) was a Spanish infantry division that existed in 1808. Spain was, at that time, an ally of France and the division, composed of 15,000 men under the command of the Marquis de la Romana, Pedro ...
on April 4 and arrived at Matamoros on April 24, making the total force there about 5000 men, and notified Taylor hostilities had commenced. Arista promptly ordered General
Anastasio Torrejón Anastasio Torrejón (c. 1802 – 1861) was a Mexican Army officer who commanded troops during the Mexican–American War. Biography Torrejón was born in Llanos de Apan in the Viceroyalty of New Spain, becoming a cadet lieutenant at the age of 1 ...
to cross the Rio Grande fourteen miles upstream at La Palangana.


Battle

Taylor received two reports on April 24 of Mexicans crossing the Rio Grande, the first crossing below his camp, the other a crossing upriver. Taylor ordered Captain Croghan Ker to investigate downriver and Captain Seth B. Thornton with two
Dragoon 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 w ...
companies to investigate upriver. Ker found nothing but Thornton rode into an ambush and his 80-man force was quickly overwhelmed by Torrejon's 1600, resulting in the capture of those not immediately killed. Thornton's guide brought news of the hostilities to Taylor and was followed by a cart from Torrejón containing the six wounded, Torrejon stating he could not care for them.


Aftermath

In the fierce encounter, fourteen of Thornton's men were killed, six wounded and one was fatally wounded, while the rest were taken prisoner (including Captain Thornton and his second in command Captain
William J. Hardee William Joseph Hardee (October 12, 1815November 6, 1873) was a career U.S. Army and Confederate States Army officer. For the U.S. Army, he served in the Second Seminole War and in the Mexican–American War, where he was captured and exchanged. ...
). Mexican casualties are unknown. Torrejón continued on to the Matamoros-Point Isabel road, surprising
Samuel H. Walker Samuel Hamilton Walker (February 24, 1817 – October 9, 1847) was an American army officer. He served as a Texas Ranger captain and officer of the Republic of Texas and the United States armies. Walker served in several armed conflicts, includ ...
's Texas Rangers on April 28, before continuing on to Longoreno to cover the crossing of the main Mexican army. Following the
Battle of Palo Alto The Battle of Palo Alto ( es, Batalla de Palo Alto) was the first major battle of the Mexican–American War and was fought on May 8, 1846, on disputed ground five miles (8 km) from the modern-day city of Brownsville, Texas. A force of some ...
and the
Battle of Resaca de la Palma The Battle of Resaca de la Palma was one of the early engagements of the Mexican–American War, where the United States Army under General Zachary Taylor engaged the retreating forces of the Mexican ''Ejército del Norte'' ("Army of the No ...
, Arista and Taylor agreed to a prisoner exchange which resulted in the release of Thornton, Hardee and their men. Thornton was killed on August 20, 1847 in an engagement at Churubusco outside Mexico City. With eerie symmetry, this soldier who was wounded at the war's opening act was killed in this last conflict of the war.


Declaration of war

Upon learning of the incident, President James K. Polk asked for a Declaration of war before a joint session of the United States Congress, and summed up his justification for war by famously stating: :''"The cup of forbearance had been exhausted even before the recent information from the frontier of the Del Norte io Grande But now, after reiterated menaces, Mexico has passed the boundary of the United States, has invaded our territory and shed American blood upon the American soil. She has proclaimed that hostilities have commenced, and that the two nations are now at war."''. On May 13, 1846, the U.S. Congress declared war on Mexico, despite the Mexican government's position that Thornton had crossed the border into Mexican Texas, which Mexico maintained began south of the
Nueces River The Nueces River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas, about long. It drains a region in central and southern Texas southeastward into the Gulf of Mexico. It is the southernmost major river in Texas northeast of the Rio Grande. ''Nueces' ...
(the historical border of the province of Texas). Opposition also existed in the United States, with one senator declaring that the affair had been "as much an act of aggression on our part as is a man's pointing a pistol at another's breast". Congressman
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...
demanded to know the "particular spot of soil on which the blood of our citizens was so shed" (the spot resolutions). The ensuing Mexican–American War was waged from 1846 to 1848 which cost the lives of many thousands and the loss of all northern provinces from Mexico. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the war on February 2, 1848, and established the Rio Grande as the border between the U.S. and Mexico, and led to Mexico recognizing Texas as a part of the United States.


See also

* List of battles of the Mexican–American War


References

{{Reflist, 2


External links

* History channel '
The Mexican-American War
''
A Continent Divided: The U.S.-Mexico War
Center for Greater Southwestern Studies, the University of Texas at Arlington 1846 in Mexico Texas Campaign April 1846 events Invasions of the United States