Battle of Las Taironas

Battle of Las Taironas
Part of Cuban War of Independence and Invasion from East to West in Cuba
DateJanuary 17, 1896
Location
Result Cuban victory
Belligerents
Cuban rebels Spain
Commanders and leaders
Antonio Maceo Ulpiano Sánchez Echevarría
Units involved
Céspedes Regiment
Las Villas Regiment[1]
Baza Battalion
Isabel la Católica Regiment[1]
Strength
1,560 Mambises[1] 520 Infantry[1]
Casualties and losses
12 killed, 49 Wounded[1][2] Source 1: 48 – 200 killed and wounded [1]
Source 2: 400 killed and wounded[2]

The Battle of Las Taironas was a battle of the Cuban War of Independence that took place on January 17, 1896 at Pinar del Río between Cuban forces led by Major General Antonio Maceo and the Spanish led by lieutenant colonel Ulpiano Sanchez Echevarria who was a Cuban native.[1][2]

Background

Within the period of the Invasion from East to West in Cuba, Antonio Maceo; After separating from Máximo Gómez in La Habana Province, he continued his march to the westernmost end of the province of Pinar del Río with the aim of reaching the end of the invasion. After a series of defeats, the Spanish command, led by Arsenio Martínez Campos, sought one last action to stop Maceo, an occasion that appeared in the town of Las Taironas.

The Battle

During the course of the battle , the Spanish hosts were repelled, leaving, in a field covered with dead and wounded and the Mambi troops opening the doors for the end of the invasion. The Cuban revolutionaries suffered a major loss during the fighting however as Dr. Federico de la Torre y Latte was killed in action.[3]

Aftermath

The Cuban rebels captured 45 mules from the Spanish.[2] As a result of this failure, which together with the arrival of Maceo to Guane on January 22, 1896, Captain General Martínez Campos was forced to submit his resignation.[1]

References