Siege of Huajuapan de León

Siege of Huajuapan de León
Part of the Mexican War of Independence
The main square in Huajuapan's Independence Park.
Date 5 April – 23 July 1812 Location Huajuapan de León, Oaxaca, Mexico Result Mexican rebel victory
Belligerents
Mexican Rebels	Spanish Empire
Commanders and leaders
José María Morelos	José María de Régules Villasante Bemardino Bonavia
Strength
Thousands	1,500
Casualties and losses
Unknown	400 dead

El Siege of Huajuapan de León was a battle of the Mexican War of Independence that was fought from 5 April to 23 July 1812 at Huajuapan de León, in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. The battle was fought between the royalist forces loyal to the Spanish crown, and the Mexican rebels fighting for independence from the Spanish Empire. This Spanish siege of the town, lasting 111 days, was the longest of the entire war. The battle resulted in a victory for the Mexican insurgents.

The siege was defended against by a group of local insurgents commanded by Colonel . This siege is considered one of the most important battles of the second phase of the Mexican War for Independence.

The insurgent forces commanded by and had joined together with those of the priest, Father Mendoza at the beginning of March 1812 at Tamazulapan, Oaxaca. Their goal was to defeat the royalist General José María de Régules Villasante who had fortified himself at Yanhuitlán

At the beginning of the insurgent attacks, Régules Villasante decided to occupy only the town square and the buildings in its immediate vicinity. The insurgent attackers, who initially believed their assault to be a complete success, were turned back and obliged to retreat once they reached the fierce Spanish resistance in the city center. Miguel Bravo marched from there with his forces to Cuautla to aid Generalissimo José María Morelos y Pavón who was there besieged by royalist forces. Trujano, for his part, marched with his own troops to Huajuapan where he fortified the city and recovered from the defeat at Yanhuitlán.

A royalist commander named Bemardino Bonavia who controlled one royalist division, began the siege against the town in an effort to regain Spanish control. He was quickly aided by more royalist troops under the command of José María de Régules Villasante on 5 April 1812 beginning the siege. The Spanish forces numbered about 1,500 men with 14 pieces of artillery. Five days after their arrival at Huajuapan, the royalist troops opened fire on the city, unleashing all their firepower on the rebel defenses. , who had no artillery of his own with which to defend the city, was unable to return fire until the fabrication of new artillery pieces made from the town's church bells.

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