By Luis Felipe Rodriguez
On March 17, 1811, Ignacio Allende and the other leaders of the War of Independence, left the town of Saltillo. They were escorted by just over 1,000 men. General Rayón, of the royal army, on the other hand had 2,500 troops, and they began moving inland. The insurgents were led by their leaders in 14 carriages, followed by 24 cannons of various calibers, and baggage which included 500,000 pesos in money and silver bars. They passed through Santa María, Anhelo, and Espinazo del Diablo. The march was painfully slow through the uninhabited plains because of all the baggage, the lack of provisions, and the scarcity of water.
Colonel Elizondo, another royalist leader, was at the head of 350 men. He left Monclova on the afternoon of March 19 and settled in the town of Acatita de Baján. Two days later, at nine in the morning, the insurgent caravan was sighted, and they were allowed to pass until surrounded by the men of Elizondo. This was a complete surprise to the rebel army because they believed that Elizondo’s troops were friendly to them and were shocked when they were suddenly arrested. Geography also played a part, because the road they were following had come to a curve and a hill behind which the bulk of the royalist troops were hiding.
One after another, the 14 carriages were stopped, and those who were in them arrested. In the last carriage were the insurgents Jiménez, Arias, Igancio Allende, and his son Indalecio. When told to surrender, Allende fired his pistol at Elizondo, calling him a traitor, but failed to injure him. At that point, Elizondo ordered his troops to fire, and the barrage of bullets killed Allende’s son. Arias was seriously wounded, and he died a few hours later. Ignacio Allende and Jiménez were apprehended and tied up like their other companions. Miguel Hidalgo, who was riding behind the carriages also found himself in the midst of the royalist troops and was forced to surrender.
Once the leaders and their escorts were prisoners, Elizondo advanced toward the rest of the insurgent troops. The artillery battalion was taken completely by surprise and did not have sufficient time to use their cannons. The Lipan Indians rushed at the artillerymen, killing 40 of them with spears, and the rest of the insurgent troops either ran off or were apprehended as well. Elizondo then took possession of all the artillery, baggage, treasures, and 800 prisoners.
But his greatest trophy was the capture of all the chiefs and officers: Hidalgo, Allende, Aldama, Mariano Hidalgo, Balleza and Don José Santos Villa, José Mariano Jiménez; Abasolo, and Camargo. There were also the field marshals Zapata and Lanzagorta; Fray Gregorio de la Concepción, who led the uprising in San Luis Potosí; Santamaría, governor of Nuevo León; Valencia, director of engineers who joined the independents on his way through Zacatecas; José María Chico, minister of justice for Hidalgo during his stay in Guadalajara; Portugal, the brave winner of La Barca; and Don Manuel Ignacio Solís, quartermaster of the army. The other prisoners were brigadiers, colonels, and other officers, as well as civil employees and some other friars and clergymen.
The prisoners were treated harshly from the moment they fell into the hands of the royalists. They were physically abused, endured horrible insults, and were then forced to walk the rest of the way to Monclova, where the roar of an artillery salute was the celebration of their defeat. Once in town, they were surrounded by a mob angrily threatening them because they had been told that the insurgents were about to hand over the kingdom to Napoleon. The captives remained in Monclova, locked up in a narrow and filthy jail until March 26. On that date, they left for Chihuahua under the custody of Lieutenant Colonel Don Manuel Salcedo. The members of the clergy were led by Parras to Durango, with the exception of Hidalgo, who continued his march towards Chihuahua with the rest of the insurgents.
Source: Mexico through the centuries, Vol. V, pp.: 211-213.
