Puerto Rican Military Personnel

Puerto Rican Military Personnel

Throughout history Puerto Ricans, including people of Puerto Rican descent, have gained notability as members of the military. They have served and have fought for many countries, such as Canada, Cuba, England, Mexico, Spain, the United States and Venezuela.

Puerto Ricans have fought and defended their homeland against attacks from the Caribs and pirates. They fought against the invasions of foreign countries and defeated the British, French, and Dutch in doing so. They fought alongside General Bernardo de Gálvez during the American Revolutionary War in the battles of Baton Rouge, Mobile, Pensacola and St. Louis. and in Europe against the forces of Napoleon Bonaparte at the Siege of Saragossa.

Puerto Ricans such as Augusto Rodríguez, who resided in the United States in the mid-19th century, fought in the American Civil War. They also fought against the Spanish Empire. They fought for Mexico's independence and in the Latin American wars of independence alongside Simón Bolívar. In Puerto Rico they revolted against Spanish rule and fought for Puerto Rico's independence in the Grito de Lares and in the Intentona de Yauco. They also fought for Cuba's independence in the Ten Years' War alongside General Máximo Gómez and as members of the Cuban Liberation Army alongside José Martí. At the end of the 19th century, Puerto Ricans fought alongside their Spanish counterparts in the Spanish–American War against the United States in the Battle of San Juan Hill; in Cuba as members of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Puerto Rican Provisional Battalions; and in Puerto Rico when the American military forces invaded the island, in what is known as the Puerto Rican Campaign. They also fought against the "Tagalos" during the Philippine Revolution.

Puerto Rico became a territory of the United States upon the signing of the Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898. Upon the outbreak of World War I, the U.S. Congress approved the Jones–Shafroth Act, which gave Puerto Ricans a limited citizenship. As a result many Puerto Ricans, with the exception of women, became eligible for the military draft. However they were, and still are, not permitted to vote for the President of the United States, who is also the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.