The war with Mexico
On November 1845, the president of the United States, James k. Polk sends Louisiana legislator John Slidell to Mexico, with the purpose to negotiate about the land of New Mexico and California. The president of the United States offered its government $5 million dollars for the land of New Mexico and $25 million dollars for the land of California, but this offered was rejected by the Mexican government. The president James K. Polk was prepare for any response of the Mexican government, he was prepare to purchase the territory or to fight for it.
The war start
On April 26, 1846 after president Polk heard some rumors, that some soldiers under general Windfield Scott had been attacked by Mexican troops and killed eleven of his soldiers, Taylor inform Polk that hostilities have begun. The president was ready to face against Mexican troops. On May 11, 1846 Polk sends a declaration of War congress claiming that Mexico has started the war by shedding "American blood upon American soil".
The Battle of Monterrey
The first land of Mexico that Taylor and his troops attacked was the town of Monterrey, located about 100 miles south of the Rio Grande. Taylor headed toward Monterrey with 6,640 troops arriving on September 21, in the middle of a heavy rainstorm. The Mexican troops was prepare with only 5000 Mexican soldiers under the command of Major General Pedro de Ampudia who lead his troops in order to defend the town. After three days of bloody battled that ends with hand-to-hand fighting toward the central plaza, with people firing at theme continuously from rooftops and windows. In the other hand the U.S. soldiers behave in Monterrey was a big controversy in the United States after Newspapers published that U.S. soldiers have been burned homes, stole goods, raped women and even killed some civilians before their officers could get theme under control.
The fight for Chapultepec Hill
On September 12, 1847 Scott's troops began bombing the Chapultepec Hill land and the city beyond it. U.S. troops fight with heavy cannons kept up their devastating work through the whole day and night, causing much damage and many deaths. The troops of in Mexico was under the command of General Nicolas Bravo, the hill was defended by only about eight hundred troops, most of Bravos soldiers were experienced veterans, but about fifty of them were cadets from the National Military Academy, who were dedicated to defend their school and their nation. As the U.S. soldiers charged toward the hill, the Mexicans fired down on them until they were at the hill's base, out of the range of the Mexican guns, many of the U.S. and Mexican soldiers were shot down or fell to the ground. The battle was brutal almost all of the Mexican defenders of Chapultepec Hill had fallen even though they outnumbered the U.S. troops. At the end of this battled were six cadets who fight ferociously until they were killed, earning for themselves a lasting place in Mexico's history, Los Ninos Heroes (the boy heroes) Juan Escutia was the last cadet to died, after being shot, he pulled down his country's flag and wrapped it around himself before he either jumped or fell from the palace roof.