The Second Battle of Masaya (15 November 1856 – 17 November 1856) took place in the town of Masaya, northwest of William Walker’s filibuster capital, Granada. Having fought an inconclusive battle there the previous month, Walker again aimed to capture the valuable fortified town. The assault and subsequent siege of the town was inconclusive, as the heavy losses suffered on both sides still did not produce a definitive result, with Walker’s men withdrawing back to Granada after three days and nights of fighting. This loss drove Walker to not only abandon his vulnerable capital at Granada, but also to burn it to the ground.
After the unsuccessful First Battle of Masaya in October, Walker knew that an enemy force encamped so nearby made his position in Granada untenable. After driving Jose Maria Cañas out of La Virgen at the Battle of the Transit on November 11, and with the return of the experienced General Charles Frederick Henningsen to his force, Walker felt confident in his victorious army's ability to retake Masaya. Walker and his men embarked from La Virgen to Granada, there mustering 550 men. On the morning of the 15th, Walker and this force set off in the direction of Masaya. However, halfway to their destination, Walker received news that 800 men under General Máximo Jerez had departed Masaya in order to reinforce Cañas’ defeated army at Rivas. This newly mobile force threatened the transit link under Walker’s control, so Walker peeled off 200 men with orders to reinforce the garrison left to man the recently captured transit city of La Virgen. Left at this point with only 350 men, Walker inexplicably decided to carry on with the assault on Masaya. As explained by Daniel Bedinger Lucas, Walker’s “mania for assaulting fortified towns with an inferior force” is what motivated the decision to attack.[1] Whatever the reason, on the 15th of November, Walker’s force arrived at Masaya.[1][2]
Walker’s men assaulted the town, this time supported by constant fire from the artillery commanded by General Henningsen. Just as had happened during the battle at Masaya in October, Walker’s men quickly captured the small plaza of San Sebastian, but after vicious fighting, were halted mere yards from the city’s central plaza. By this point, one third of Walker’s command had been killed or wounded,[1] and inconclusive fighting raged for the next two days. By midnight of the 17th, Walker had concluded that not only had losses been too costly in the assault, but that too much valuable time had been lost. Walker and his men thus lifted the siege and quietly retired back to Granada.[1][2]
Aftermath
Walker and his remaining 200 men were able to return unmolested back to Granada, presumably because the Central American forces had also taken serious losses and were in no position to pursue Walker’s army. It was after this costly battle that Walker made the decision to abandon and destroy Granada, relating to Henningsen his intentions after re-entering the city on the 18th.[1][2]
References
^ abcdeLucas, Daniel Bedinger, 1836-1909. (1986). Nicaragua : war of the filibusters. Tienda El Quetzal. ISBN0913129100. OCLC 17933116.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ abcJamison, James Carson, 1830-1916. (1909). With Walker in Nicaragua ; or, Reminiscences of an officer of the American phalanx. E.W. Stephens Pub Co. OCLC 19914284.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
January 21, 2023
second, battle, masaya, november, 1856, november, 1856, took, place, town, masaya, northwest, william, walker, filibuster, capital, granada, having, fought, inconclusive, battle, there, previous, month, walker, again, aimed, capture, valuable, fortified, town,. The Second Battle of Masaya 15 November 1856 17 November 1856 took place in the town of Masaya northwest of William Walker s filibuster capital Granada Having fought an inconclusive battle there the previous month Walker again aimed to capture the valuable fortified town The assault and subsequent siege of the town was inconclusive as the heavy losses suffered on both sides still did not produce a definitive result with Walker s men withdrawing back to Granada after three days and nights of fighting This loss drove Walker to not only abandon his vulnerable capital at Granada but also to burn it to the ground Second Battle of MasayaPart of The Filibuster WarThe pier in MasayaDate15 17 November 1856LocationMasaya NicaraguaResultAllied victory Filibusters repulsedBelligerentsFilibustersAllied Central American Army Ejercito Aliado Centroamericano Nicaragua Costa Rica Honduras Guatemala El SalvadorCommanders and leadersWilliam WalkerStrength350 Filibusters 3000Casualties and losses150 killed and wounded46 killed and 90 woundedContents 1 Background 2 Battle 3 Aftermath 4 ReferencesBackground EditAfter the unsuccessful First Battle of Masaya in October Walker knew that an enemy force encamped so nearby made his position in Granada untenable After driving Jose Maria Canas out of La Virgen at the Battle of the Transit on November 11 and with the return of the experienced General Charles Frederick Henningsen to his force Walker felt confident in his victorious army s ability to retake Masaya Walker and his men embarked from La Virgen to Granada there mustering 550 men On the morning of the 15th Walker and this force set off in the direction of Masaya However halfway to their destination Walker received news that 800 men under General Maximo Jerez had departed Masaya in order to reinforce Canas defeated army at Rivas This newly mobile force threatened the transit link under Walker s control so Walker peeled off 200 men with orders to reinforce the garrison left to man the recently captured transit city of La Virgen Left at this point with only 350 men Walker inexplicably decided to carry on with the assault on Masaya As explained by Daniel Bedinger Lucas Walker s mania for assaulting fortified towns with an inferior force is what motivated the decision to attack 1 Whatever the reason on the 15th of November Walker s force arrived at Masaya 1 2 General Charles Frederick HenningsenBattle EditWalker s men assaulted the town this time supported by constant fire from the artillery commanded by General Henningsen Just as had happened during the battle at Masaya in October Walker s men quickly captured the small plaza of San Sebastian but after vicious fighting were halted mere yards from the city s central plaza By this point one third of Walker s command had been killed or wounded 1 and inconclusive fighting raged for the next two days By midnight of the 17th Walker had concluded that not only had losses been too costly in the assault but that too much valuable time had been lost Walker and his men thus lifted the siege and quietly retired back to Granada 1 2 Aftermath EditWalker and his remaining 200 men were able to return unmolested back to Granada presumably because the Central American forces had also taken serious losses and were in no position to pursue Walker s army It was after this costly battle that Walker made the decision to abandon and destroy Granada relating to Henningsen his intentions after re entering the city on the 18th 1 2 References Edit a b c d e Lucas Daniel Bedinger 1836 1909 1986 Nicaragua war of the filibusters Tienda El Quetzal ISBN 0913129100 OCLC 17933116 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link a b c Jamison James Carson 1830 1916 1909 With Walker in Nicaragua or Reminiscences of an officer of the American phalanx E W Stephens Pub Co OCLC 19914284 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Second Battle of Masaya amp oldid 1066512932, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
