The bravery of these teenage cadets is remembered throughout Mexico

Los Ninos Heroes Los Ninos Heroes

“Ninos Heroes” is not solely the name of a street here in Mazatlán – it’s a street name that can be found in almost every Mexican city, as well as on schools, plazas, monuments and even a rock band from Juarez. The faces of these ninos heroes - “boy heroes” or “heroic children” - have also appeared on Mexican currency.

Who are they and what did they do? Los Ninos Heroes were six teenage boys who defended Chapultepec Castle from invading U.S. forces during the Mexican-American War, even after being told to abandon their posts. The young men, ranging in age from 13 to 19, came from all over Mexico: Chihuahua, Tepic, Puebla, Guadalajara, Mexico City and Azcapotzalco. Lieutenant Juan de la Barrera, Cadets Agustin Melgar, Juan Escutia, Vicente Suarez, Francisco Marquez and Fernando Montes de Oca all fought valiantly and died defending their homeland.

Chapultepec Hill is in Mexico City and at 200 feet (60 meters), the castle sits on its highest point. On the morning of September 12, 1847, it was the home of the Mexico Military Academy, defended solely by 832 soldiers and a small group of students. General Nicolas Bravo and General Jose Mariano Monterde, Director of the Academy, were in charge. (An interesting note: Chapultepec Castle is also known as the Halls of Montezuma, and the U.S. Marines effort at this battle is immortalized by the opening lyrics to the “Marines Hymn.” It’s also commemorated by the “blood stripe” on the blue dress uniform of Marine NCOs and officers.)

Following the battle of Battle of Molino del Rey, the U.S. troops were poised to overtake Mexico City. The North American commander, General Winfield Scott, was insistent on attacking Chapultepec from the north. General David E. Twiggs agreed while the rest of his officers favored attacking from the south. One of these young officers was Robert E. Lee, who would later be the Commanding General of the southern troops during the U.S. Civil War. On the defensive side, General Santa Anna, knowing well the strategic value of the hill, ordered General Bravo to simply “preserve the point at all risk.”

U.S. troops began an artillery barrage that lasted until dark and resumed at first light the next day, Sept. 13. At 8 a.m., General Scott ordered the charge. The battle was tough, lasting all day, briefly stalling at one point while U.S. troops waited for scaling ladders to arrive. Once they arrived, the soldiers were able to quickly ascend the walls since there were so many - 50 men could climb at once.

It was a long, hot battle and at nightfall General Bravo, seeing the gravity of the situation, ordered the retreat, but the six young cadets refused to give up. They fought the U.S. troops aggressively, but fell, one after another, until the very last cadet, Juan Escutia, wrapped himself with the Mexican flag and jumped to his death from the castle wall, preventing the capture of both himself and the flag. It’s said that an aide of General Santa Anna witnessed this and exclaimed, “Let the Mexican flag never be touched by a foreign enemy.”

At the same moment the U.S. flag was raised over the castle, 30 men were hung simultaneously. They were part of the renowned Saint Patrick’s Brigade, former U.S. soldiers who had been sentenced as deserters because they had joined the Mexican side to fight along with their Catholic brethren. These men had been captured at the Battle of Churobusco, and had been marching since with the army. They were the last of the brigade to be executed and General Scott wanted it done in full view of the castle.

It’s been argued the story of Los Ninos Heroes is just that - a story. Some say it was an “us too” retort by the Mexicans in reference to the Alamo. Another theory is the elitist Mexicans, whose sons attended the academy, made it up to “prove” how much more valiant they were than the “average” Mexican. Others argue that everything is too well documented to be untrue; that those who claimed it to be false were the politicians who ran the Mexican government after the war and whose primary concern was good relations with the U.S. to further their own greed.

Regardless, the tale of Los Ninos Heroes is a tale of extreme valor and source of great national pride. They are remembered with reverence throughout Mexico and a monument in their honor stands at the entrance to Chapultepec Park in Mexico City.

A visit to this monument by a North American 100 years later helped ease the relations between the two countries. In 1947, President Harry S. Truman made an unscheduled stop to pay reverence. “Brave men don’t belong to any one country. I respect bravery wherever I see it,” he said. The next day, papers in Mexico City ran such headlines as, “Friendship Began Today Rendering Homage to the Heroes of ’47,” and “Truman Heals an Old National Wound Forever.”

Comments

treaney

0

 

 

Mexico has had many heroes in her history. Perhaps none are more revered than Los Ninos Heroes. The events at Chapultepec are true. Please don't suggest otherwise.

Thursday 23 July 2009, 09:45

Please login to post comments or replies.