Battle
San Martín sent his troops down the mountain starting at midnight of the 11th to prepare for an attack at dawn. At dawn his troops were much closer to the Spanish than anticipated, and fought hard and heroically. Soler's troops had to go down a tiny path that proved long and arduous, and took longer than expected. General O’Higgins, supposedly seeing his homeland and being overcome with passion, defied the plan of attack and charged along with his 1,500. What exactly happened in this part of the battle is fiercely debated. O’Higgins claimed that the Spanish stopped their retreat and started advancing towards his troops. He said that if he were to lead his men back up the narrow path and retreat, his men would have been decimated one by one. San Martín saw O’Higgins early advancement and ordered Soler to charge the Spanish flank, which took the pressure off of O’Higgins and allowed his troops to stand their ground.
The firefight then ensued into the afternoon, and the tides turned for the Patriots as Soler captured a key Spanish artillery point. At this point, the Spanish set up a defensive square around the Chacabuco Ranch. O’Higgins charged the center of the Spanish position, and Soler got into place behind the Spanish forces, effectively cutting off any chance of retreat. O’Higgins and his men overwhelmed the Spanish troops and they attempted to retreat but Soler's men cut off their retreat and pushed towards the ranch. Hand to hand combat ensued in and around the ranch until every Spanish soldier was dead or taken captive. 500 Spanish soldiers were killed and 600 taken captive. The Patriot forces only lost twelve men in battle, but an additional 120 lost their lives from wounds suffered during the battle.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Chacabuco
Famous quotes containing the word battle:
“I remember the scenes of battle in which we stood together. I remember especially that broad and deep grave at the foot of the Resaca hill where we left those gallant comrades who fell in that desperate charge. I remember, through it all, the gallantry, devotion and steadfastness, the high-set patriotism you always exhibited.”
—Benjamin Harrison (1833–1901)
“That we can come here today and in the presence of thousands and tens of thousands of the survivors of the gallant army of Northern Virginia and their descendants, establish such an enduring monument by their hospitable welcome and acclaim, is conclusive proof of the uniting of the sections, and a universal confession that all that was done was well done, that the battle had to be fought, that the sections had to be tried, but that in the end, the result has inured to the common benefit of all.”
—William Howard Taft (1857–1930)
“For WAR, consisteth not in Battle only, or the act of fighting; but in a tract of time, wherein the Will to content by Battle is sufficiently known.... So the nature of War, consisteth not in actual fighting; but in the known disposition thereto, during all the time there is no assurance to the contrary. All other time is PEACE.”
—Thomas Hobbes (1579–1688)