On 9 March 1847, during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

, the United States military made an

amphibious landing Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conducted ...

and besieged the key Mexican seaport of

Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...

. The port surrendered twenty days later. The U.S. forces then marched inland to

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

Background

After the battles of

Monterrey Monterrey (, , abbreviated as MtY) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León. It is the ninth-largest city and the second largest metropolitan area, after Greater Mexico City. Located at the foothills of th ...

and Buena Vista, much of

Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military officer and politician who was the 12th president of the United States, serving from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States ...

's Army of Occupation was transferred to the command of Major General

Winfield Scott Winfield Scott (June 13, 1786May 29, 1866) was an American military commander and political candidate. He served as Commanding General of the United States Army from 1841 to 1861, and was a veteran of the War of 1812, American Indian Wars, Mexica ...

in support of the upcoming campaign. That campaign, determined by Scott and other

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

officials, would be a Veracruz landing and an advance inland.Bauer, K.J., 1974, ''The Mexican War, 1846–1848'', New York: Macmillan, Mexican military intelligence knew in advance of U.S. plans to attack Veracruz, but internal government turmoil left them powerless to send crucial reinforcements before the American assault commenced.

Opposing forces

Mexican defenses

Veracruz was considered to be the strongest fortress in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

at the time. Brigadier General Juan Esteban Morales commanded a garrison of 3,360 soldiers occupying three major forts guarding Veracruz: * Fort Santiago – south end of town * Fort Concepción – north end of town ** These two forts included 3,360 troops and 89 guns: artillery, 2nd and 8th infantry regiments, 3rd Light Regiment, a picket of 11th Regt., Puebla Libres, Orizaba, Veracruz, Oaxaca and Tehuantepec national guards. Battalions, sappers and enlisted marines. *

Fort San Juan de Ulúa A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

– offshore on the Gallega Reef. Gen. Jose Durán with 1,030 troops and 135 guns: artillery, Puebla and Jamiltepec activo battalions, companies of Tuxpan, Tampico and Alvardo activo battalions. * See Orders of Battle Mexican War.

Landings

The Americans arrived at Anton Lizardo, Veracruz in early March. Scott agreed with Conner's suggestion for a landing site at Collado Beach, south of Veracruz. The 1st Regular Division under Worth was chosen to make the landing first, followed by Patterson's volunteers and then Twiggs' regular division. Conner's

Mosquito Fleet The term Mosquito Fleet has had a variety of naval and commercial uses around the world. United States In U.S. naval and maritime history, the term has had several meanings: *The United States Navy's fleet of small gunboats, leading up to and d ...

moved to within of the beach to supply covering fire if necessary. By 12:15 pm on 9 March, this force was off Collado Beach, followed by larger vessels over the next three hours and a signal for landing the surfboats at 5:30 pm. Just before the main force touched the beach, a gig dashed ahead, and General Worth with his staff jumped ashore. Worth's whole division landed without firing or receiving a single shot. By 11 pm, Scott's entire army had been brought ashore without a single man lost.

Siege

Envelopment

Once ashore Patterson's division began marching northward to effect a complete envelopment of the city. One of Patterson's brigades under

Gideon Pillow Gideon Johnson Pillow (June 8, 1806October 8, 1878) was a senior officer of the Confederate States Army in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, having previously served as a general of United States Volunteers during the Mexican–Ame ...

drove off a Mexican cavalry unit at Malibrán, cutting off the Alvarado road and the city's water supply. Quitman and Shields managed to drive off with one shot the cavalry attempting to prevent the

investment Investment is traditionally defined as the "commitment of resources into something expected to gain value over time". If an investment involves money, then it can be defined as a "commitment of money to receive more money later". From a broade ...

. By 13 March, the U.S. had completed a siege line from Collado in the south to Playa Vergara in the north. On 17 March, siege lines were dug for Scott's siege artillery, sufficient for taking the city but not Ulua.

Investment

The besiegers were plagued by sorties from the city, and Col. Juan Aguayo used the cover of a storm to slip his Alvarado garrison into Veracruz. Commodore

Matthew C. Perry Matthew Calbraith Perry (April 10, 1794 – March 4, 1858) was a United States Navy officer who commanded ships in several wars, including the War of 1812 and the Mexican–American War. He led the Perry Expedition that Bakumatsu, ended Japan' ...

, Conner's successor, returned from

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

after making repairs to , on 20 March. Perry and Conner met with Scott regarding the Navy's role in the siege, and offered six guns that were to be operated by sailors from the ships. The naval battery was constructed under the direction of Captain

Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...

from the city walls. On March 22, Morales declined a surrender demand from Scott, and the American batteries opened fire at 4:15 pm followed by those of Commander

Josiah Tattnall III Commodore Josiah Tattnall (November 9, 1795 – June 14, 1871) was a United States Navy officer during the War of 1812, the Second Barbary War, the Mexican–American War and the Second Opium War. He later served in the Confederate States Navy ...

's Mosquito Fleet at 5:45 pm. The Naval battery's heavy cannonballs easily broke the coral walls.

Congreve rocket The Congreve rocket was a type of rocket artillery designed by British inventor Sir William Congreve, 2nd Baronet, Sir William Congreve in 1808. The design was based upon Mysorean rockets, the rockets deployed by the Kingdom of Mysore against ...

s were fired into the defenses and the combined fire forced the abandonment of Fort Santiago and Mexican morale began to drop as civilian deaths reached the hundreds. On March 24, Persifor F. Smith's brigade captured a Mexican soldier with reports that

Antonio López de Santa Anna Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón (21 February 1794 – 21 June 1876),Callcott, Wilfred H., "Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez De,''Handbook of Texas Online'' Retrieved 18 April 2017. often known as Santa Anna, wa ...

was marching an army from

to the relief of Veracruz. Scott dispatched Colonel William S. Harney with 100

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 wi ...

s to inspect any approaches that Santa Anna might make. Harney reported about 2,000 Mexicans and a battery not far away, and he called for reinforcements. General Patterson led a mixed group of volunteers and dragoons to Harney's aid and cleared the force from their positions, chasing them to Medellin.

Surrender

Scott made plans for an assault on the city when on 25 March, the Mexicans called for a cease-fire to evacuate women and children which Scott refused. That night, Morales'

council of war A council of war U.S. flag The national flag of the United States, often referred to as the American flag or the U.S. flag, consists of thirteen horizontal stripes, alternating red and white, with a blue rectangle in the canton bearing fifty small, white, five-point ...

flew over San Juan de Ulúa.

Aftermath

The obstacle to an advancement to

was removed and Scott made immediate plans to leave a small garrison at Veracruz and march inland, his first objective being

Jalapa Xalapa or Jalapa (, ), officially Xalapa-Enríquez (), is the capital city of the Mexican state of Veracruz and the name of the surrounding municipality. In 2020 census the city reported a population of 443,063 and the municipality of which it ...

. Along the way, Scott would in fact encounter a sizable Mexican army under Santa Anna at the

Battle of Cerro Gordo The Battle of Cerro Gordo, or Battle of Sierra Gordo, was an engagement in the Mexican–American War on April 18, 1847. The battle saw Winfield Scott's United States troops outflank Antonio López de Santa Anna's larger Mexican army, driving ...

References

External links

A Continent Divided: The U.S.–Mexico War
Center for Greater Southwestern Studies, the University of Texas at Arlington

annotated art gallery {{Coord, 19, 11, 25, N, 96, 9, 12, W, display=title

1847 in Mexico Veracruz (city)

March 1847

History of Veracruz