Original subtitles

BY GRANTS FROM THE FOLLOWING:

THE NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES,

EXPANDING AMERICA'S UNDERSTANDING

OF WHO WE WERE, WHO WE ARE, AND WHO WE WILL BE...

AND THE ANNUAL FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM...

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY...

AND THE FOLLOWING ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS...

Narrator: FOR MEXICO, 1846 HAD BEEN A YEAR OF BITTER DEFEAT.

U.S. GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR'S FORCES

HAD ROUTED THE MEXICAN ARMY IN TEXAS

AND CROSSED THE RIO GRANDE.

THERE WERE OTHER LOSSES.

U.S. PRESIDENT JAMES K. POLK

HAD SENT STEPHEN KEARNY'S ARMY OF THE WEST

TO OCCUPY NEW MEXICO.

WITHIN MONTHS, CALIFORNIA WOULD FALL, TOO.

BUT FOR MEXICO, 1846 WOULD ALSO BE THE YEAR OF THE RETURN

OF EXILED PRESIDENT ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA.

SOON, SANTA ANNA WOULD MEET ZACHARY TAYLOR

ON A BARREN, WINDSWEPT PLATEAU IN THE BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA.

AND POLK WOULD OPEN A SECOND FRONT,

INVADING MEXICO BY SEA.

IF NECESSARY, HE WOULD STRIKE

THE VERY HEART OF THE COUNTRY--

MEXICO CITY ITSELF, THE FABLED HALLS OF MONTEZUMA.

CAPTIONING MADE POSSIBLE BY U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND KERA

Narrator: IN AUGUST OF 1846, A SHIP FROM HAVANA, CUBA,

CARVED ITS WAY THROUGH THE WATERS OF THE GULF OF MEXICO,

BOUND FOR VERACRUZ.

ONBOARD WAS A MAN WHO WAS CONVINCED

THAT HE WOULD BE THE SAVIOR OF HIS COUNTRY.

HE WAS THE EXILED FORMER PRESIDENT OF MEXICO,

ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA.

THE MEXICAN GOVERNMENT OF MARIANO PAREDES HAD JUST FALLEN,

AND SANTA ANNA'S SUPPORTERS WERE CLAMORING FOR HIS RETURN.

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

Translator: WE NEED A GENERAL,

A GENERAL WHO WOULD BE ABLE

TO ORGANIZE AN ARMY WITHOUT MONEY...

WHO HAS ENOUGH--LET'S SAY IT IN WHATEVER WAY--

CHARISMA TO ATTRACT SOLDIERS

AND GET THEM TO FIGHT WITHOUT PAY...

WITHOUT TRAINING...

WITHOUT ANYTHING,

AND WHO IS ABLE TO UNITE CERTAIN GROUPS.

Narrator: EARLIER THAT YEAR,

SANTA ANNA HAD SENT A CONFIDENTIAL AGENT

TO U.S. PRESIDENT JAMES K. POLK WITH A SURPRISING PROPOSAL.

IF POLK WOULD ALLOW HIM TO PASS THROUGH

THE U.S. BLOCKADE OF MEXICO,

SANTA ANNA WOULD TRY TO BRING ABOUT

THE SALE OF CALIFORNIA TO THE UNITED STATES.

THE TERMS OF THE OFFER WERE VAGUE,

AND SANTA ANNA WAS STILL HATED IN THE UNITED STATES

BY THOSE WHO REMEMBERED THE ALAMO AND GOLIAD,

BUT IN SPITE OF HIS DOUBTS, POLK AGREED TO THE PROPOSAL.

Man: WHEN YOU FACE SANTA ANNA WITH POLK,

YOU ARE FACING ONE OPPORTUNIST WITH ANOTHER.

THEY BOTH HAVE THAT CHARACTERISTIC

AS A PART OF THEIR MAKEUP,

AND IF SANTA ANNA WAS RETURNING TO MEXICO

WITHOUT ANY CLEAR IDEA OF WHAT HE WAS GOING TO DO,

POLK WAS USING SANTA ANNA DELIBERATELY TO GAIN SOMETHING

THAT HE HAD NOT BEEN ABLE TO GAIN ANY OTHER WAY,

THAT IS, NEGOTIATIONS WITH MEXICO.

OF COURSE, WHAT HE DID NOT FORESEE

WAS THAT SANTA ANNA WOULD RALLY HIS PEOPLE.

THIS WAS THE DANGER,

BUT POLK DIDN'T REALIZE WHAT A DANGER IT WAS.

Narrator: NOW, AFTER A YEAR AND A HALF IN EXILE,

SANTA ANNA WAS RETURNING HOME.

ON POLK'S ORDERS, THE U.S. NAVY

ALLOWED HIM TO PASS THROUGH THE BLOCKADE.

IN VERACRUZ, SANTA ANNA GREETED THE SMALL CROWD

THAT HAD GATHERED TO WELCOME HIM HOME.

As Santa Anna: MEXICANOS, THERE WAS ONCE A DAY

YOU CALLED ME THE SOLDIER OF THE PEOPLE.

ALLOW ME TO ASSUME THAT TITLE AGAIN

AND TO DEVOTE MYSELF, UNTIL DEATH,

TO THE DEFENSE OF LIBERTY

AND TO THE INDEPENDENCE OF THE REPUBLIC.

Narrator: THE HOMECOMING WAS UNEASY.

NOT 2 YEARS EARLIER, SANTA ANNA'S ABUSE OF PRESIDENTIAL POWER

HAD CAUSED AN ANGRY MOB TO SMASH HIS STATUE,

EXHUME THE LEG HE HAD LOST TO WAR,

AND DRAG IT THOUGH THE STREETS OF MEXICO CITY.

NOW THERE WERE ALREADY RUMORS

THAT SANTA ANNA MIGHT HAVE MADE A DEAL WITH POLK.

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

Translator: THE PEOPLE DON'T KNOW IF IT IS TRUE,

BUT THE POLITICIANS DON'T HAVE CONFIDENCE IN SANTA ANNA.

AND THIS IS ANOTHER VULNERABLE POINT FOR MEXICO...

BECAUSE THE POLITICIANS AREN'T GOING TO TRUST

THE GENERAL AND COMMANDER OF THE MEXICAN ARMY--

A SERIOUS THING IN A STATE OF WAR.

Narrator: EVEN SO, SANTA ANNA HAD BECOME THE ONLY LEADER

WHO COULD UNITE THE COUNTRY AND STOP THE U.S. INVASION.

IN DECEMBER OF 1846,

JUST 3 MONTHS AFTER HIS RETURN FROM EXILE,

HE WAS ELECTED PRESIDENT OF MEXICO...AGAIN.

IN THE ENTIRE UNITED STATES ARMY,

ONE MAN STOOD OUT AS THE GENERAL

MOST ABLE TO WIN THE WAR WITH MEXICO.

PRESIDENT POLK DISLIKED HIM WITH A PASSION.

HIS NAME WAS WINFIELD SCOTT.

HE WAS THE ARMY'S GENERAL IN CHIEF.

A HERO OF THE WAR OF 1812 AND A SUPERIOR STRATEGIST,

SCOTT HAD TWICE GONE ABRD

TO STUDY EUROPEAN MILITARY TACTICS.

SOME FOUND HIM BRILLIANT AND ENTERTAINING,

YET HE STRUCK OTHERS AS IMPOSSIBLY POMPOUS AND VAIN.

ULYSSES GRANT ONCE REMARKED

THAT THE GENERAL ALWAYS WORE ALL THE UNIFORM ALLOWED BY LAW.

Man: TECHNICALLY, HE WAS

FAR MORE ACCOMPLISHED A SOLDIER THAN TAYLOR HAD BEEN,

BUT IN CONTRAST TO THE NICKNAME

OF "OLD ROUGH AND READY" OR "OLD ZACH" FOR TAYLOR,

SCOTT WAS UNFORTUNATELY KNOWN AS "OLD FUSS AND FEATHERS"

BECAUSE HE LOVED MILITARY PANOPLY,

AND HE LOVED UNIFORMS.

HE LOVED TO HAVE HIS STAFF WITH HIM AND, OH, GOSH.

SO, THEREFORE, WHEN HE GOT IN TROUBLE,

PEOPLE JUST ENJOYED HIS DISCOMFORT.

Narrator: BY THE FALL OF 1846, POLK WAS CONVINCED

HE HAD TO OPEN A SECOND FRONT AGAINST MEXICO.

HE NEEDED A COMMANDER.

POLK DESPISED SCOTT PERSONALLY AND FEARED HIM POLITICALLY.

SCOTT WAS A MEMBER OF THE OPPOSING WHIG PARTY.

FOR AS LONG AS HE COULD,

POLK HAD KEPT SCOTT BEHIND A DESK IN WASHINGTON,

BUT NOW THE PRESIDENT NEEDED THE GENERAL'S TALENT AS A SOLDIER.

RELUCTANTLY, POLK GAVE SCOTT COMMAND OF THE OPERATION.

Man: HE WAS SO GRATEFUL AND SO MUCH AFFECTED

THAT HE ALMOST SHED TEARS.

HE LEFT APPARENTLY THE MOST DELIGHTED MAN

I HAVE SEEN FOR A LONG TIME. JAMES K. POLK.

Narrator: FROM THE BEGINNING, WINFIELD SCOTT HAD ARGUED

THAT ONLY A MAJOR CAMPAIGN AGAINST MEXICO CITY ITSELF

WOULD FORCE THE MEXICANS TO SURRENDER.

HE WOULD DO IT THE WAY CORTES HAD DEFEATED THE AZTECS--

LAND AN ARMY ON THE COAST AT VERACRUZ

AND FIGHT HIS WAY 250 MILES UP THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY

AND INTO THE CAPITAL.

SCOTT KNEW HE HAD TO MOVE QUICKLY.

VERACRUZ WAS KNOWN TO SUFFER

DEVASTATING EPIDEMICS OF MALARIA AND YELLOW FEVER IN LATE SPRING.

AN INVADING ARMY WOULD HAVE TO CAPTURE VERACRUZ

AND MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND BEFORE THEN.

THE GENERAL NEEDED TROOPS IMMEDIATELY.

THE MOST AVAILABLE AND MOST EXPERIENCED

WERE ZACHARY TAYLOR'S SOLDIERS IN NORTHERN MEXICO.

TAYLOR HAD ESTABLISHED HIS HEADQUARTERS

IN THE PROVINCIAL CAPITAL OF SALTILLO,

75 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MONTERREY.

IN JANUARY OF 1847, HE RECEIVED A LETTER FROM SCOTT.

As Scott: MY DEAR GENERAL,

I SHALL BE OBLIGED TO TAKE FROM YOU

MOST OF THE GALLANT OFFICERS AND MEN

WHOM YOU HAVE SO LONG AND NOBLY COMMANDED.

GENERAL WINFIELD SCOTT.

Narrator: TAYLOR WAS SO UPSET,

AN AIDE SAW HIM MISTAKENLY SPOON MUSTARD INTO HIS COFFEE.

As Taylor: SUCH A DECIMATION OF MY ARMY

HAD NEVER CROSSED MY MIND.

THE IDEA OF A FURTHER ADVANCE WITH THE REMAINING FORCES

IS TOO PREPOSTEROUS TO BE ENTERTAINED FOR A MOMENT.

GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR.

Narrator: EVEN AT FULL STRENGTH,

TAYLOR'S ARMY HAD ALWAYS BEEN OUTNUMBERED.

NOW, WITH HIS TROOPS REDUCED TO 5,000 INEXPERIENCED VOLUNTEERS,

THE GENERAL KNEW HE WAS DANGEROUSLY EXPOSED.

WHAT HE DID NOT KNOW WAS THAT SANTA ANNA WAS AWARE OF IT, TOO.

BY THIS TIME IN JANUARY OF 1847,

SANTA ANNA WAS

IN SAN LUIS POTOSI,

NORTH OF MEXICO CITY,

WHERE HE HAD MANAGED

TO RAISE AN ARMY OF 20,000 SOLDIERS.

BYSTANDERS WATCHED AS OFFICERS HASTILY ORGANIZED

RECRUITS SO INEXPERIENCED, MANY HAD NEVER HELD A GUN.

THE TROOPS WERE NOT READY,

BUT SANTA ANNA FELT HE HAD TO TAKE THE FIELD.

HE WAS STILL THE TARGET OF SUSPICIOUS RUMORS

CONCERNING HIS DEAL WITH POLK.

CRITICS WERE QUESTIONING WHY HE HAD NOT YET FOUGHT THE INVADERS.

THE GENERAL HAD LEARNED FROM CAPTURED DOCUMENTS

OF SCOTT'S PLANNED INVASION AT VERACRUZ.

NOW HE FACED A CRUCIAL DECISION.

THE LANDING AT VERACRUZ

WOULD HAVE TO BE STOPPED,

BUT A QUICK VICTORY FIRST

OVER TAYLOR'S WEAKENED FORCES

WOULD SILENCE THOSE WHO STILL

QUESTIONED HIS LEADERSHIP.

TO MARCH NORTH IN THE MIDDLE OF WINTER WAS A GAMBLE,

BUT SANTA ANNA WAS WILLING TO ACCEPT THE RISK.

NOW WAS THE TIME TO MEET TAYLOR'S ARMY AND DESTROY IT.

Man: SALTILLO LIES ON THE SLOPE OF A HILL.

THE CATHEDRAL OCCUPIES ONE SIDE.

ITS 15 BELLS CHIME SWEETLY.

AFTER A HARD AND DUSTY MARCH,

WE ENTERED WITH MUSIC AND COLORS FLYING.

THE MEXICANS LOOKED DAGGERS, AND DOUBTLESS HAD THEM,

BUT DID NOT DARE TO DRAW THEM.

LIEUTENANT JOHN JAMES PECK.

[MAN SPEAKING SPANISH]

Translator: WHEN THE NORTH AMERICANS ARRIVED IN SALTILLO

AT THE END OF 1846,

THE CITIZENS RECEIVED THEM COLDLY.

THEY ALL CLOSED THEIR DOORS

AND PUT BLACK RIBBONS OR BOWS OF MOURNING ON THEM,

IN HONOR OF THE MEXICAN SOLDIERS WHO HAD DIED AT MONTERREY.

AND THE SOLDIERS ENTER

AND OCCUPY THE CENTER OF THE CITY.

Narrator: DURING THE U.S. OCCUPATION OF SALTILLO,

SOLDIERS AND CIVILIANS BECAME MORE ACCUSTOMED TO ONE ANOTHER.

AND LIEUTENANT JOHN PECK FOUND TIME TO APPRECIATE HIS SURROUNDINGS.

As Peck: THE LADIES OF SALTILLO ARE PRETTY.

THEY HAVE ELEGANT FORMS AND MOVE WITH THAT EASE AND GRACE

SO PECULIAR TO THE CASTILIANS.

OFTENTIMES, THEY STRIKE THE LIGHT GUITAR.

IN GOING TO MY MEALS, I PASS SOME BEAUTIFUL CREATURES.

ALL I CAN SAY IS BUENOS DIAS AND BUENAS TARDES.

Narrator: NO LESS ROMANTIC BUT CONSIDERABLY MORE DARING

WAS A VOLUNTEER FROM BOSTON, PRIVATE SAM CHAMBERLAIN.

AS A BOY, CHAMBERLAIN HAD INTENDED TO STUDY THEOLOGY

BUT INSTEAD BECAME A SELF-DESCRIBED ROGUE

WHO LOVED FIGHTING AND WOMEN IN EQUAL MEASURE.

HE WAS A SELF-TAUGHT ARTIST AND IN HIS LATER YEARS

WROTE A LAVISHLY ILLUSTRATED ACCOUNT

OF HIS ADVENTURES DURING THE WAR.

ACCORDING TO WHAT HE CALLED HIS CONFESSION,

CHAMBERLAIN NEVER MISSED A MEXICAN FANDANGO,

NEVER FOUGHT A MAN HE DIDN'T BEAT,

AND RARELY MET A WOMAN WHO COULD RESIST HIS CHARM.

BUT CHAMBERLAIN WAS ALSO A KEEN OBSERVER,

AND IN HIS RECOLLECTIONS, HE DESCRIBED

HORRIFYING INCIDENTS OF WARTIME VIOLENCE.

AMID THE SETTLED ROUTINE OF OCCUPATION LIFE,

DEATH WOULD COME SUDDENLY, WITHOUT WARNING.

MEXICAN GUERRILLA FIGHTERS WOULD SWEEP DOWN ON U.S. SUPPLY TRAINS

OR PICK OFF INDIVIDUAL SOLDIERS,

LEAVING THE DEAD MUTILATED BEYOND RECOGNITION.

MEXICAN CIVILIANS FOUND THEMSELVES CAUGHT BETWEEN BOTH SIDES.

[MAN SPEAKING SPANISH]

Translator: MANY OF THE PEOPLE

LIVING IN THE SMALL TOWNS, RANCHES, HACIENDAS, AND FARMS

SUFFERED ATTACKS BY THE MEXICAN GUERRILLA FIGHTERS

BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT THE PEOPLE

WERE AIDING THE NORTH AMERICAN ARMY.

AND AT TIMES, THE NORTH AMERICANS

ATTACKED THEM, BURNED AND DESTROYED THEIR BUILDINGS,

BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT THE PEOPLE

WERE HELPING THE GUERRILLA FORCES.

IT WAS A SITUATION THE CIVILIANS COULD NOT WIN.

Narrator: AS THE OCCUPATION WORE ON,

TAYLOR FOUND IT HARD TO KEEP DISCIPLINE IN THE RANKS.

CHAMBERLAIN WROTE THAT THE MOST ABUSIVE AND VIOLENT SOLDIERS

WERE THE VOLUNTEERS FROM THE SOUTHERN STATES.

As Chamberlain: LOOKING UPON THE "GREASERS"

AS BELONGING TO THE SAME SOCIAL CLASS AS THEIR OWN NEGRO SLAVES,

THEY PLUNDERED AND ILL-TREATED THEM.

WE WERE OBLIGED TO PATROL THE COUNTRY FOR MILES AROUND CAMP

TO PROTECT THE WRETCHED INHABITANTS

AND ARREST THESE HEROES.

Narrator: ON ONE OF THE OCCASIONS

WHEN MEXICAN CIVILIANS FOUGHT BACK

AND KILLED A U.S. SOLDIER,

THE VOLUNTEERS FROM ARKANSAS, KNOWN AS RACKENSACKERS,

SOUGHT REVENGE.

SAM CHAMBERLAIN WAS ON PATROL

WHEN HE HEARD GUNFIRE IN THE HILLS.

As Chamberlain: CRIES OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN REACHED OUR EARS,

COMING FROM A CAVE AT THE END OF THE RAVINE.

A HORRID SIGHT WAS BEFORE US.

THE CAVE WAS FULL OF OUR VOLUNTEERS

YELLING LIKE FIENDS, WHILE ON THE ROCKY FLOOR

LAY OVER 20 MEXICANS, DEAD AND DYING IN POOLS OF BLOOD.

Narrator: TAYLOR WAS OUTRAGED BY THE MASSACRE

AND ORDERED THE RACKENSACKERS TO RETURN HOME IN DISGRACE.

BUT BEFORE THEY COULD LEAVE, U.S. SCOUTS REPORTED

A LARGE MEXICAN ARMY APPROACHING FROM THE SOUTH.

IT WAS SANTA ANNA,

AND TAYLOR WOULD NEED EVERY MAN HE HAD.

IT WAS MID-FEBRUARY OF 1847.

FOR 3 WEEKS, SANTA ANNA AND HIS ARMY

HAD SUFFERED AN AGONIZING JOURNEY NORTH

THROUGH THE DESOLATE COUNTRYSIDE.

SECOND LIEUTENANT MANUEL BALBONTIN

HAD SURVIVED THE BATTLE OF MONTERREY.

NOW HE FEARED HE WOULD FREEZE TO DEATH.

As Balbontin: IT'S BITTER COLD, WINDY, AND SNOWING.

LAST NIGHT, SOME OF THE SOLDIERS AND THE WOMEN DIED.

THE TROOPS, HUNGRY AND NUMB FROM THE COLD,

REFUSE TO MARCH.

Narrator: ILLNESS, DESERTION, AND DEATH

HAD TAKEN A TERRIBLE TOLL.

OF THE 20,000 WHO HAD STARTED THE MARCH,

ONLY 15,000 REMAINED.

TRAVELING WITH THE SOLDIERS WERE AN UNKNOWN NUMBER OF WOMEN,

WHO HAD CHOSEN TO MARCH WITH THE ARMY

AND CARE FOR THEIR MEN.

[MAN SPEAKING SPANISH]

Translator: THESE WOMEN TRAVELED ON FOOT,

CARRYING BABIES ON THEIR BACKS,

CARRYING SMALL GRILLS FOR COOKING,

ACCOMPANYING THE SOLDIERS,

AND MANY TIMES, THEY ALSO DIE.

THEY DIE OF HUNGER; THEY DIE OF SICKNESS;

THEY DIE OF ABANDONMENT.

Narrator: STILL SANTA ANNA

PUSHED HIS TROOPS RELENTLESSLY NORTH,

HOPING TO SURPRISE TAYLOR'S ARMY

AT AGUA NUEVA, SOUTH OF SALTILLO,

BUT THE U.S. GENERAL WAS WAITING FOR HIM

AT A PLACE WHERE THE ROAD TO SALTILLO

RAN THROUGH A NARROW PASS

THE MEXICANS CALLED LA ANGOSTURA.

THE U.S. SOLDIERS CALLED IT BUENA VISTA,

AFTER A NEARBY HACIENDA.

THE POSITION WAS WELL CHOSEN.

THE PLATEAU WAS DEEPLY FURROWED,

SURROUNDED BY HILLS AND GULLIES.

THE BROKEN GROUND WOULD HAMPER

SANTA ANNA'S BEST TROOPS, THE CAVALRY.

THE HILLS WOULD BE ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO TAKE.

Eisenhower; SO, IT WAS DEFENSIBLE.

IF YOU'D HOLD THOSE HEIGHTS,

AND IT'S EASY TO HOLD DOWN BY THE GULCHES,

YOU CAN DEFEND YOURSELF AGAINST A MUCH LARGER FORCE,

WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT TAYLOR DID

ON THE VERY STRONG ADVICE OF JOHN E. WOOL,

WHO WAS A VERY, VERY EXCELLENT SOLDIER.

Narrator: THAT NIGHT, A TERRIBLE WINTER STORM BLEW OVER THE TROOPS,

BLASTING OVERHEAD WITH THUNDER AND LIGHTNING.

BOTH SIDES LAY ON THEIR WEAPONS, WITHOUT FIRES,

SHIVERING IN THE ICY WIND.

THE NEXT DAY DAWNED CLEAR AND COLD.

TAYLOR'S TROOPS COULD SEE THAT THEY WERE OUTNUMBERED 3 TO ONE.

MOST OF THEM WERE VOLUNTEERS WHO HAD NEVER SEEN BATTLE.

REVEILLE SOUNDED ALONG THE MEXICAN LINES.

PRIVATE SAM CHAMBERLAIN WATCHED IN AWE

AS THE CALL PASSED FROM UNIT TO UNIT.

As Chamberlain: A PROCESSION OF ECCLESIASTICAL DIGNITARIES,

WITH ALL THE GORGEOUS PARAPHERNALIA OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH,

ADVANCED ALONG THE LINES,

PRECEDED BY THE BANDS PLAYING A SOLEMN ANTHEM.

THEIR CAVALRY WAS MAGNIFICENT.

SOME 6,000 IN UNIFORMS OF BLUE FACED WITH RED

WITH WAVING PLUMES AND GLITTERING WEAPONS

ADVANCED TOWARD US AS IF THEY WOULD RIDE DOWN OUR LITTLE BAND

AND FINISH THE BATTLE IN ONE BLOW.

PRIVATE SAM CHAMBERLAIN.

Narrator: EARLY THAT MORNING, SANTA ANNA LAUNCHED HIS ATTACK.

MEXICAN TROOPS LED BY GENERAL MANUEL MARIA LOMBARDINI

BURST OUT OF A BROAD RAVINE

AND CHARGED AGAINST THE U.S. LINE.

BREAKING THROUGH THE U.S. POSITION,

THE MEXICAN ARMY TOOK THE OFFENSIVE

AND SWEPT EAST ACROSS THE PLAIN.

MEXICAN SOLDIERS ADVANCED ALONG THE FOOT OF THE MOUNTAINS

AND CIRCLED AROUND THE U.S. TROOPS

TO SEAL OFF THE ROAD BEHIND THEM.

INSTEAD, THEY MET THE MISSISSIPPI RIFLES,

LED BY COLONEL JEFFERSON DAVIS.

THE REGIMENT HAD LINKED UP WITH ANOTHER FROM INDIANA

TO CREATE AN OPEN-ENDED "V" FORMATION.

AS THE MEXICAN TROOPS CHARGED BETWEEN THE LINES,

THE U.S. SOLDIERS CUT THEM DOWN.

LATER THAT DAY, SANTA ANNA CALLED UP HIS RESERVES

AND ORDERED AN ALL-OUT ASSAULT.

BUT ONCE AGAIN, THE U.S. ARTILLERY PROVED ITS WORTH.

BATTERIES TORE INTO THE MEXICAN TROOPS

WITH A DEADLY HAIL OF CANISTER AND GRAPE,

AND THE MEXICAN ATTACK STALLED.

AS NIGHT FELL, BOTH SIDES WERE EXHAUSTED.

MANY WENT TO SLEEP WONDERING

HOW THEY COULD SURVIVE ANOTHER DAY.

Eisenhower: THE EVENING OF THE 23rd

MUST HAVE BEEN A PRETTY GLOOMY EVENING

FOR TAYLOR SITTING THERE AT BUENA VISTA

BECAUSE HIS TROOPS WERE SPENT FROM THE DAY'S FIGHTING.

HE KNEW THAT IN SPITE OF THE FACT

THAT THEY HAD REPULSED ALL OF SANTA ANNA'S ATTACKS,

HE WAS STILL VASTLY OUTNUMBERED,

AND THE REINFORCEMENTS HAD NOT COME UP

IN ANY SUBSTANTIAL NUMBERS.

HE HAD EVERY REASON TO FEEL THAT THE NEXT DAY

WAS GOING TO BE A VERY, VERY TOUGH DAY.

Narrator: EARLY THE NEXT MORNING,

THE U.S. SOLDIERS LOOKED OUT OVER THE BATTLEFIELD.

THE MEXICAN ARMY WAS GONE.

[CARLOS RECIO DAVILA SPEAKING SPANISH]

THEY FELL BACK TO AGUA NUEVA,

AND SANTA ANNA MENTIONS IN HIS BATTLE REPORT...

THAT HE DOES THIS BECAUSE THE SOLDIERS ARE EXHAUSTED.

THEY HAVE NOT EATEN FOR 2 DAYS.

THEY HAD NOT BEEN ABLE TO EAT DURING THE BATTLE.

NOR HAVE THEY HAD WATER.

SO HE DECIDES TO RETURN TO AGUA NUEVA

AND PLANS, HE SAYS, TO ATTACK AGAIN IN A FEW DAYS.

IN FACT, HE DOES NOT.

Narrator: FOR SANTA ANNA,

THE TRIUMPH THAT HAD SEEMED SO CERTAIN THE DAY BEFORE

HAD BECOME A WASTED OPPORTUNITY.

THE FIELD BELONGED TO ZACHARY TAYLOR

AND HIS ARMY OF VOLUNTEERS.

IT WOULD BE TAYLOR'S LAST BATTLE OF THE CAMPAIGN,

A VICTORY THAT WOULD MAKE HIM A HERO AT HOME.

STILL, THE U.S. CASUALTIES AT BUENA VISTA

WERE THE HIGHEST OF THE WAR SO FAR--

659 MEN DEAD OR WOUNDED.

THE MEXICAN ARMY FARED MUCH WORSE--

MORE THAN 1,600 CASUALTIES.

THE TRAIL OF WOUNDED SOLDIERS

STRETCHED ALL THE WAY TO AGUA NUEVA AND BEYOND.

AS NIGHT FELL, MANY FACED A TERRIBLE FATE.

[COYOTE HOWLS]

Man: MEN ABANDONED IN THE DESERT,

STEEPED IN THEIR OWN BLOOD,

SHIVERING WITH COLD, PARCHED WITH THIRST,

ON THEIR FACES THE APPALLING CALM OF DESPAIR.

IN SIGHT ALREADY WERE THE COYOTES AND DOGS,

WHO AWAITED THE MOMENT WHEN THEY MIGHT BEGIN THEIR FRIGHTFUL BANQUET.

Narrator: THE FIRST NEWS TO REACH SAN LUIS POTOSI

FROM THE BATTLEFIELD AT LA ANGOSTURA

REPORTED A MEXICAN VICTORY.

PEOPLE REJOICED IN THE STREETS

AS CATHEDRAL BELLS ANNOUNCED SPECIAL MASSES OF THANKSGIVING.

BUT WHEN THE REMNANTS OF SANTA ANNA'S BATTERED ARMY

FINALLY RETURNED, THE TRUTH WAS EASY TO SEE.

THE MARCH NORTH HAD BEEN DISASTROUS;

THE TRIP BACK EVEN WORSE.

HALF THE SOLDIERS THAT HAD STARTED OUT JUST 6 WEEKS EARLIER

WERE EITHER DEAD, WOUNDED, OR MISSING.

FOR SANTA ANNA, THERE WAS NO TIME TO REST.

IN MEXICO CITY, A REVOLT HAD BROKEN OUT

AGAINST HIS VICE PRESIDENT, VALENTIN GOMEZ FARIAS.

DESPERATE FOR MONEY TO FIGHT THE WAR,

GOMEZ FARIAS HAD TRIED TO FORCE THE CHURCH

TO CONTRIBUTE MORE FUNDS.

IN RESPONSE, NATIONAL GUARD UNITS,

BACKED PARTLY BY THE CHURCH,

TOOK TO THE STREETS IN PROTEST.

MANY OF THE REBEL OFFICERS WERE FROM THE UPPER CLASS.

THE PEOPLE CALLED THEM POLCOS, AFTER THE POLKA,

THE DANCE THEN IN FASHION AMONG THE WEALTHY.

FOR MEXICO, THE POLCOS REBELLION

COULD NOT HAVE COME AT A WORSE TIME.

[MAN SPEAKING SPANISH]

Translator: THE POSSIBILITY OF CREATING A UNITED FRONT

AMONG THE DIFFERENT POLITICAL GROUPS IN MEXICO IS GONE.

SO, NOW ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE.

OBVIOUSLY, WHAT IS IN IMMINENT DANGER

IS THE VERY SURVIVAL OF THE COUNTRY AS A NATION.

THAT'S WHAT'S STAKE.

Narrator: EVEN AS THE GOVERNMENT WAS FALLING APART,

MEXICO FACED YET ANOTHER CRISIS.

OFF THE COAST OF VERACRUZ, GENERAL WINFIELD SCOTT

WAS PREPARED TO LAUNCH AN INVASION OF THE COUNTRY.

[BELL RINGING]

10,000 SOLDIERS ANXIOUSLY EYED THE COASTLINE.

IT WOULD BE THE FIRST MAJOR AMPHIBIOUS LANDING

EVER ATTEMPTED BY U.S. ARMED FORCES.

THE OPERATION WAS RISKY,

THE CONSEQUENCES OF FAILURE DEVASTATING,

AND SCOTT NEW THAT THE ODDS AGAINST HIM WERE OVERWHELMING.

Eisenhower: HE HAD TO LAND AN ARMY,

ESTABLISH A SUPPLY BASE,

MARCH 250 MILES INLAND,

SEIZE THE CAPITAL OF A HOSTILE NATION,

AND THEREBY BRING ABOUT A PEACE--

CONQUERING A PEACE, NOT CONQUERING A NATION.

NOW, THAT'S A VERY, VERY TALL ORDER,

AND IT WAS, AS I SAID BEFORE,

UNPRECEDENTED, PRACTICALLY, IN HISTORY.

Narrator: IN VERACRUZ,

THE COMMANDING OFFICER, GENERAL JUAN MORALES,

APPEALED TO MEXICO CITY FOR REINFORCEMENTS,

BUT THE GOVERNMENT COULD NOT RESPOND.

THE POLCOS REVOLT HAD PARALYZED THE CAPITAL.

Man: WHAT MADNESS HAD SEIZED THE MEXICANS,

TO PROVOKE A CIVIL WAR

WHILE A FOREIGN ENEMY WAS LORDING OVER OUR CITIES

AND OCCUPYING OUR TERRITORY?

VERACRUZ RESIGNED HERSELF TO HER FATE.

Narrator: ON THE MORNING OF MARCH 9, 1847,

THE DAY DAWNED CLEAR AND CALM.

SCOTT DECIDED THE TIME HAD COME.

U.S. SOLDIERS CLAMORED

OVER THE RAILS OF THE TRANSPORT SHIPS

INTO SURF BOATS SCOTT HAD DESIGNED FOR THE LANDING.

PACKED SHOULDER TO SHOULDER, THE MEN BRACED THEMSELVES

FOR WHAT THEY KNEW WOULD BE A TERRIBLE BATTLE ON THE BEACH.

AT 5:30 IN THE AFTERNOON,

A GUN SOUNDED FROM SCOTT'S FLAGSHIP.

THE INVASION BEGAN.

[MEN SHOUTING]

SOON, THE FIRST U.S. SOLDIERS

SCRAMBLED THROUGH THE SURF AND ONTO THE BEACH.

TO THEIR AMAZEMENT, NOT A SHOT WAS FIRED.

GENERAL MORALES AND HIS TROOPS

REMAINED BEHIND THE THICK, FORTIFIED WALLS OF VERACRUZ,

HOPING TO HOLD OUT UNTIL HELP COULD ARRIVE.

FOR THE NEXT 12 DAYS, SCOTT'S TROOPS SURROUNDED THE CITY

WITH BATTERIES OF HEAVY GUNS AND MORTARS.

ON MARCH 22, SCOTT SENT AN ULTIMATUM TO GENERAL MORALES.

MORALES REFUSED TO SURRENDER.

THE FOLLOWING DAY, A BATTERY OF 6 HEAVY NAVAL CANNONS

REPLIED WITH A VOLLEY OF EXPLODING SHELLS

THAT ARCHED HIGH INTO THE AIR

BEFORE RAINING DOWN ON THE CITY.

THE GUNS HAD BEEN PLACED

BY A 40-YEAR-OLD ARMY ENGINEER FROM VIRGINIA

NAMED ROBERT E. LEE.

As Lee: THE SHELLS THROWN FROM OUR BATTERY

WERE CONSTANT AND REGULAR DISCHARGES,

SO BEAUTIFUL IN THEIR FLIGHT

AND SO DESTRUCTIVE IN THEIR FALL.

IT WAS AWFUL. MY HEART BLED FOR THE INHABITANTS.

THE SOLDIERS I DID NOT CARE SO MUCH FOR,

BUT IT WAS TERRIBLE TO THINK OF THE WOMEN AND CHILDREN.

Narrat: THE SHELLING CONTINUED DAY AND NIGHT.

DEADLY FIRES BROKE OUT EVERYWHERE.

Man: THE SURGICAL HOSPITAL IN THE CONVENT OF SANTO DOMINGO

SUFFERED FROM THE FIRE.

DURING AN OPERATION ON A WOUNDED MAN,

A SHELL EXTINGUISHED THE LIGHTS,

AND WHEN OTHER LIGHTS WERE BROUGHT,

THE PATIENT WAS FOUND TORN IN PIECES

AND MANY OTHERS DEAD AND WOUNDED.

JOSE MARIA CASTILLO VELASCO.

Narrator: FOR 3 HARROWING DAYS AND NIGHTS,

U.S. GUNS POURED AN ESTIMATED 6,700 SHELLS INTO THE CITY.

[ARTILLERY SHELLS EXPLODING]

BY THE FOURTH DAY, PRIESTS NO LONGER DARED TO VENTURE OUT

TO MINISTER TO THE DEAD AND DYING.

FINALLY, THE PEOPLE COULD TAKE NO MORE.

VERACRUZ SURRENDERED.

IN MEXICO CITY, THE SATIRICAL PRESS

CRITICIZED THE GOVERNMENT AND THE MILITARY'S INABILITY

TO TURN BACK THE U.S. INVASION.

THE CAPITAL WAS STILL REELING FROM THE POLCOS REVOLT.

ONCE AGAIN, IT WAS SANTA ANNA

WHO WAS ABLE TO TEMPORARILY UNITE

THE COUNTRY'S DIVIDED LEADERSHIP.

THE PRESIDENT PROMISED TO PROTECT THE CHURCH

FROM ITS ENEMIES IN THE GOVERNMENT

IN EXCHANGE FOR A LOAN TO HELP FUND THE WAR.

THE SCHOLAR AND POLITICIAN JOSE FERNANDO RAMIREZ

CRITICIZED THE CHURCH'S LOAN AS TOO LITTLE AND TOO LATE.

As Ramirez: 2 MONTHS BEFORE, WITH THIS SUM OF MONEY,

THE CLERGY COULD HAVE UNDOUBTEDLY REDEEMED THEMSELVES.

THEY COULD HAVE SAVED VERACRUZ AND OUR NATION

AND AT THE SAME TIME, SAVED THE 300,000 PESOS

WHICH THEY USED IN A CIVIL WAR,

A WAR WHICH IS GOING TO COST US VERY DEARLY.

SANTA ANNA NOW FACED ANOTHER, EVEN MORE SERIOUS THREAT--

GENERAL WINFIELD SCOTT AND HIS ARMY

WOULD SOON BE ON THE MARCH TOWARD THE CAPITAL.

ON APRIL 2, AS CROWDS OF WELL-WISHERS LINED THE STREETS,

SANTA ANNA LEFT MEXICO CITY WITH 6,000 TROOPS.

BEFORE HIS DEPARTURE, HE ISSUED A PUBLIC PROCLAMATION,

WORDS HE HOPED WOULD FINALLY UNIFY THE NATION.

As Santa Anna: MEXICANOS, VERACRUZ CALLS FOR VENGEANCE.

FOLLOW ME AND WASH OUT THE STAIN OF HER DISHONOR.

TO OUR SHAME, BE IT SAID,

WE OURSELVES HAVE PRODUCED THIS DEPLORABLE MISFORTUNE

BY OUR INTERMINABLE DISCORDS.

MEXICANOS, THE NATIONAL CAUSE IS INFINITELY JUST,

ALTHOUGH GOD APPEARS TO HAVE ABANDONED US.

THE HOUR OF SACRIFICE HAS SOUNDED ITS APPROACH.

YOUR FATE IS THE FATE OF THE NATION.

NOT THE AMERICANOS, BUT YOU WILL DECIDE HER DESTINY.

Narrator: IN EARLY APRIL,

SANTA ANNA ARRIVED AT HIS HACIENDA, EL ENCERO.

IN THE PAST, EL ENCERO HAD BEEN SANTA ANNA'S REFUGE

FROM THE WORLD OF POLITICS AND WAR.

NOW IT BECAME HIS MILITARY HEADQUARTERS.

THE ESTATE WAS 70 MILES UP THE NATIONAL ROAD FROM VERACRUZ,

DIRECTLY IN THE PATH OF SCOTT'S ADVANCING ARMY.

HERE, ON HIS OWN GROUND,

SANTA ANNA PLANNED TO MEET THE U.S. INVASION

AND DRIVE SCOTT'S ARMY BACK TO THE COAST,

WHERE YELLOW FEVER WOULD FINISH THE JOB.

NOT FAR FROM HIS HACIENDA,

IN THE RUGGED HILLS NEAR THE VILLAGE OF CERRO GORDO,

SANTA ANNA POSITIONED 12,000 TROOPS.

MEXICAN FORCES NOW BLOCKED THE ROAD TO MEXICO CITY

AT A POINT WHERE IT CUT BETWEEN STEEP HILLS ON ONE SIDE

AND A RAVINE THAT TUMBLED INTO A RIVER ON THE OTHER.

Eisenhower: IT'S ON HIGH GROUND,

FLANKS WELL PROTECTED ON THE RIVER ON THE RIGHT

AND SUPPOSEDLY IMPASSABLE TERRAIN ON THE LEFT.

HIS SELECTION OF THAT PIECE OF GROUND

WAS, I BELIEVE, CLOSE TO MASTERFUL.

Narrator: THE POSITION WAS STRONG,

BUT THE TROOPS WERE POORLY DEPLOYED.

SANTA ANNA'S OFFICERS WARNED THAT THE ENEMY

MIGHT TRY AND CIRCLE AROUND THEM.

ONE OF THE GENERAL'S MOST EXPERIENCED ENGINEERS,

LIEUTENANT COLONEL JUAN CANO, RECOMMENDED PLACING ARTILLERY

ON A NEARBY HILL CALLED LA ATALAYA.

SANTA ANNA RIDICULED THE ADVICE.

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

Translator: IN ALMOST ALL OF THE MILITARY OPERATIONS

THAT HE CONDUCTS THROUGHOUT HIS MILITARY CAREER,

ONE CAN SEE HIM IMPOSING HIS WILL ON OTHERS.

IT WAS ALSO A PRODUCT OF THIS ARROGANCE THAT DROVE HIM.

"I AM THE ONLY ONE, THE BEST."

AND THIS HAPPENS WHEN PEOPLE COME UNDER THE INFLUENCE

OF THAT TERRIBLE DRUG CALLED POWER.

Narrator: ON APRIL 14,

WINFIELD SCOTT REACHED THE PASS AT CERRO GORDO.

HIS TROOPS NUMBERED 8,500 AGAINST SANTA ANNA'S 12,000.

SOME OF SCOTT'S OFFICERS RECOMMENDED A FRONTAL ASSAULT.

INSTEAD, SCOTT LOOKED FOR A WAY

TO DO EXACTLY WHAT COLONEL JUAN CANO FEARED HE WOULD--

CIRCLE AROUND THE MEXICAN FORCES

AND CUT OFF THE ROAD BEHIND THEM,

BUT THE GROUND WAS UNFAMILIAR.

SCOTT ORDERED ONE OF HIS BEST ENGINEERS,

CAPTAIN ROBERT E. LEE, TO SCOUT THE AREA.

AT DAWN THE NEXT DAY, LEE SLIPPED QUIETLY OUT OF CAMP

TO FIND A PATH THROUGH THE STEEP RAVINES.

Eisenhower: IN THE COURSE OF HIS RECONNAISSANCE,

LEE GOT SO CLOSE TO THE MEXICAN LINES

THAT HE ALL OF A SUDDEN GOT TRAPPED THERE AT ONE POINT,

AND HE HAD TO LIE BEHIND A LOG FOR HOURS

WHILE THE MEXICANS SAT THERE

ON THE SAME LOG HE WAS HIDING BEHIND

AND CHATTED AND DREW THEIR WATER. HE WAS THAT CLOSE.

WE ALMOST LOST A GOOD OFFICER THERE,

BUT THE INFORMATION HE BROUGHT BACK

AS THE RESULT OF THAT WAS EXTREMELY VALUABLE.

Narrator: LEE'S DRAWINGS SHOWED SCOTT

THAT THERE WAS A WAY AROUND THE MEXICAN FLANK.

THAT NIGHT, SCOTT ORDERED GUNS PLACED ON THE HILL

SANTA ANNA HAD REFUSED TO FORTIFY HIMSELF, LA ATALAYA.

AT 7 A.M., THE U.S. BATTERY ON LA ATALAYA OPENED FIRE,

TAKING THE MEXICAN TROOPS COMPLETELY BY SURPRISE.

[MEN SHOUTING AND ARTILLERY FIRING]

Man: OUR WHOLE FORCE, WITH A LOUD SHOUT,

LEAPT THE BREASTWORK AND MET THE MEXICANS

AT THE POINT OF THE BAYONET.

HERE, FOR JUST ONE SHORT MINUTE,

ENSUED A KIND OF FIGHTING I HOPE I NEVER SEE AGAIN.

IT SEEMED LIKE MURDER

TO SEE MEN RUNNING BAYONETS INTO EACH OTHER'S BREASTS.

Narrator: BY 10 A.M., THE FIGHTING WAS OVER.

U.S. SOLDIERS TOOK MORE THAN 3,000 MEXICAN TROOPS PRISONER.

11 YEARS EARLIER, SANTA ANNA HAD BEEN CAPTURED IN TEXAS.

DESPERATE TO AVOID FALLING INTO ENEMY HANDS AGAIN,

HE RACED TOWARD THE SAFEST PLACE HE COULD THINK OF--

HIS HOME, EL ENCERO,

BUT U.S. CAVALRY FIRE FORCED HIM TO CHANGE DIRECTION

AND RUN TO WHEREVER HE COULD FIND A PLACE TO HIDE.

Man: SANTA ANNA, THE FIRST CHIEF OF OUR NATION AND OUR ARMY,

A FEW HOURS BEFORE ERECT AND PROUD,

WAS NOW HUMBLED AND CONFUSED,

SEEKING AMONG THE WRETCHED A REFUGE TO FLEE TO.

Narrator: U.S. SOLDIERS FOUND SANTA ANNA'S CARRIAGE

AND AN ARTIFICIAL LEG WITH ITS BOOT STILL ATTACHED.

NEWS OF THE DISCOVERY SPREAD QUICKLY TO THE UNITED STATES,

WHERE MINIATURE REPLICAS OF THE LEG

BECAME POPULAR SOUVENIRS.

TO GENERAL SCOTT, THE U.S. VICTORY SEEMED COMPLETE.

"MEXICO," HE WROTE, "NO LONGER HAS AN ARMY."

Eisenhower: WELL, CERRO GORDO SHOULD HAVE ENDED THE WAR.

IF YOU'D HAD A NATION THAT WAS LESS DETERMINED

AND A PRESIDENT WHO WAS LESS DETERMINED THAN SANTA ANNA,

PROBABLY ANYBODY IN THEIR RIGHT MIND

WOULD HAVE SUED FOR PEACE THEN.

THE MEXICAN ARMY WAS DESTROYED.

THE PATH WAS OPEN TO MEXICO CITY.

Narrator: SANTA ANNA HAD SUFFERED

ONE OF THE WORST DEFEATS OF HIS LIFE.

STILL, HE WOULD NOT GIVE UP.

EVEN AS SCOTT'S VICTORY MESSAGE

WAS MAKING ITS WAY TO WASHINGTON,

THE MEXICAN GENERAL SET ABOUT

REORGANIZING THE SCATTERED REMNANTS OF HIS ARMY.

Translator: HE WAS CAPABLE OF DEFYING

ALL OF THESE INCREDIBLE CHALLENGES.

SO HE SAYS, "ALL RIGHT, I HAVE TO DEFEND

THE VALLEY OF MEXICO, MEXICO CITY,"

AND HE SETS OUT.

HE SETS OUT TO DO THE IMPOSSIBLE.

Narrator: FOR SANTA ANNA, THE DISASTER AT CERRO GORDO

WAS ALREADY NOTHING MORE THAN A MEMORY.

THE DEFENSE OF MEXICO CITY WOULD GIVE HIM ANOTHER CHANCE

TO PROVE HIMSELF A SOLDIER OF THE PEOPLE.

THE WAR WAS FAR FROM OVER.

Man: DEAR FATHER, WHAT COULD HAVE POSSESSED YOU

TO SEND ME WAY OFF HERE?

YOUR NOTIONS OF MILITARY GLORY ARE ALTOGETHER TOO EXALTED.

THERE IS NO FUN IN CUTTING THROATS.

I'VE TRIED IT.

I AM OBLIGED TO MOTHER FOR HER ADVICE,

BUT IT'S NO USE TO READ THE BIBLE

IN THE MIDST OF SWORDS AND BAYONETS.

EITHER I AM OR THAT BOOK IS WRONG.

ANONYMOUS LETTER PUBLISHED IN YANKEE DOODLE.

Narrator: AS THE WAR WITH MEXICO DRAGGED ON,

VOICES OF PROTEST BEGAN TO APPEAR

IN U.S. NEWSPAPERS, PAMPHLETS, AND MAGAZINES.

MOST PEOPLE STILL SUPPORTED THE WAR,

BUT MANY HAD EXPECTED THE FIGHTING

TO BE OVER WITHIN A FEW MONTHS.

NOW, WITH COSTS AND CASUALTIES MOUNTING,

OPPOSITION POLITICIANS ATTACKED THE PRESIDENT,

DENOUNCING WHAT THEY CONTEMPTUOUSLY CALLED "MR. POLK'S WAR."

POLK FOUGHT BACK,

QUESTIONING THE PATRIOTISM OF THOSE WHO CRITICIZED HIM.

As Polk: A MORE EFFECTUAL MEANS COULD NOT HAVE BEEN DEVISED

TO ENCOURAGE THE ENEMY AND PROTRACT THE WAR

THAN TO ADVOCATE AND ADHERE TO THEIR CAUSE

AND THUS GIVE THEM AID AND COMFORT.

Narrator: MUCH OF THE OPPOSITION CAME FROM ANTISLAVERY FORCES,

WHO BELIEVED THAT THE WAR WAS PART

OF A SOUTHERN SCHEME TO EXPAND SLAVERY.

AMONG THOSE WHO OPPOSED THE PRESIDENT

WAS THE ABOLITIONIST LEADER AND FORMER SLAVE FREDERICK DOUGLASS.

As Douglass: THE DETERMINATION OF OUR SLAVEHOLDING PRESIDENT

TO PROSECUTE THE WAR

AND THE PROBABILITY IN HIS SUCCESS

IN WRINGING FROM THE PEOPLE MEN AND MONEY TO CARRY IT ON

IS MADE EVIDENT BY THE PUNY OPPOSITION ARRAYED AGAINST HIM.

NONE SEEM WILLING TO TAKE THEIR STAND

FOR PEACE AT ALL RISKS.

Narrator: ANOTHER OUTSPOKEN CRITIC OF THE WAR WITH MEXICO

WAS THE THEN LITTLE-KNOWN MASSACHUSETTS WRITER HENRY DAVID THOREAU.

IN AN ESSAY LATER CALLED ON CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE,

THOREAU CHALLENGED AMERICANS TO FOLLOW THEIR CONSCIENCE.

As Thoreau: WHEN A SIXTH OF THE POPULATION OF A NATION

WHICH HAS UNDERTAKEN TO BE A REFUGE OF LIBERTY ARE SLAVES

AND A WHOLE COUNTRY IS OVERRUN AND CONQUERED

BY OUR FOREIGN ARMY AND SUBJECTED TO MILITARY LAW,

I THINK IT IS NOT TOO SOON

FOR HONEST MEN TO REBEL AND REVOLUTIONIZE.

THIS PEOPLE MUST CEASE TO HOLD SLAVES

AND TO MAKE WAR ON MEXICO.

Narrator: BUT THE PROTESTS OF ANTIWAR ACTIVISTS LIKE THOREAU

HAD LITTLE INFLUENCE ON THE GENERAL PUBLIC,

AND THE EMBATTLED PRESIDENT

NOW SEEMED MORE DETERMINED THAN EVER.

As Polk: I DECLARED TO THE CABINET

THAT NO ALTERNATIVE WAS NOW LEFT

BUT THE MOST ENERGETIC CRUSHING MOVEMENT

OF OUR ARMS UPON MEXICO.

I WOULD NOT ONLY MARCH TO THE CITY OF MEXICO,

BUT I WOULD PURSUE SANTA ANNA'S ARMY WHEREVER IT WAS

AND CAPTURE OR DESTROY IT.

SET BENEATH THE TWIN VOLCANIC PEAKS

OF POPOCATEPETL AND IZTACCIHUATL,

PUEBLA DE LOS ANGELES, WITH 60,000 RESIDENTS,

WAS MEXICO'S SECOND-LARGEST CITY.

LOCATED MIDWAY BETWEEN VERACRUZ AND THE CAPITAL,

PUEBLA WAS FAMOUS FOR ITS MANY BEAUTIFUL CHURCHES.

NOW IT FOUND ITSELF IN THE PATH OF WAR.

ON MAY 15, 1847, THE FIRST U.S. TROOPS ARRIVED.

Man: AT 12:00 PRECISELY,

THE VANGUARD OF THE INVADING ARMY

ENTERED THE SOUTH GATE AND MARCHED TO THE GRAND PLAZA

FRONTING THE CATHEDRAL.

THEY STACKED THEIR ARMS

AND SUPPLIED THEMSELVES WITH WATER FROM A FOUNTAIN.

A CAROLINA VOLUNTEER.

Man: THE STREETS WERE SWARMING WITH THE MULTITUDE

AS FAR AS THE EYE COULD REACH.

OUR LITTLE ARMY OF 4,000 WAS COMPLETELY LOST

IN THE CROWDS THAT PRESSED AROUND US,

EXAMINING US PRETTY MUCH AS THEY WOULD

THE ANIMALS IN A MENAGERIE.

CAPTAIN KIRBY SMITH.

Narrator: WITH THE OCCUPATION OF PUEBLA IN PLACE,

SCOTT TOOK THE TIME TO REST AND REORGANIZE HIS TROOPS.

SOME TOOK ADVANTAGE OF THE OPPORTUNITY

TO WALK THE STREETS OF THE BEAUTIFUL OLD CITY.

MANY A NEW ENGLAND CONGREGATIONALIST OR OHIO METHODIST

WAS ASTONISHED BY THE OPULENCE OF A POBLANA CHURCH.

AND AT CHOLULA, JUST OUTSIDE PUEBLA,

U.S. SOLDIERS MARVELED AT THE SIGHT

OF A GIGANTIC PYRAMID MORE THAN A THOUSAND YEARS OLD.

IT WAS RAISED BY THE TOLTEC PEOPLE

TO HONOR THEIR GOD QUETZALCOATL.

LATER, THE SPANIARDS BUILT A CATHOLIC CHURCH ON TOP.

MANY OF THE SOLDIERS HAD READ ABOUT CHOLULA

IN A POPULAR BOOK CALLED THE CONQUEST OF MEXICO BY WILLIAM PRESCOTT.

Man: MANY SOLDIERS CARRIED COPIES OF THE BOOK WITH THEM.

THEY USED IT AS A KIND OF GUIDEBOOK,

AND THEY WANTED TO VISIT ALL OF THE SITES

THAT CORTES HAD BEEN IDENTIFIED WITH

THAT THEY'D READ ABOUT IN PRESCOTT'S BOOK.

Man: ¶ I KNOW WHEN OUR FLAG HAS BEEN UPHELD ¶

¶ AND CRUSHED LIES EACH PRESUMER... ¶

Narrator: INSPIRED BY THEIR ROLE

IN WHAT THEY SAW AS A GRAND HISTORICAL DRAMA,

U.S. SOLDIERS PICNICKED ATOP CHOLULA

AND DREAMED OF GLORY.

[MEN SINGING]

Man: TO CONQUER THE DESCENDANTS OF THE SPANISH CONQUERORS

AND TO PLANT THE FLAG OF OUR YOUNG REPUBLIC

UPON THE CAPITOL REARED CENTURIES AGO

ABOVE THE RUINS OF MONTEZUMA'S PALACES--

WHAT PROSPECT MORE CAPTIVATING TO THE YOUTHFUL IMAGINATION.

Narrator: BUT THERE WERE OTHERS, LIKE LIEUTENANT JOHN PECK,

WHO LOOKED AHEAD AND SAW THAT IF GLORY CAME,

IT WOULD COME AT A PRICE.

As Peck: OUR FORCE IS SMALL, NOT QUITE 10,000,

WITH AN INADEQUATE SIEGE TRAIN AND SMALL SUPPLY OF AMMUNITION.

I AM CONFIDENT WE CANNOT BE BEATEN,

BUT WE MUST OPPOSE GREAT ODDS AND DECIDE BY THE BAYONET.

Narrator: IN APRIL OF 1847, PRESIDENT JAMES K. POLK

MADE ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT DECISIONS OF THE WAR.

HE WOULD SEND A DIPLOMAT

TO TRAVEL WITH WINFIELD SCOTT'S ARMY.

HIS NAME WAS NICHOLAS TRIST.

HE WAS SECOND IN COMMAND AT THE STATE DEPARTMENT.

HE HAD SERVED AS U.S. CONSUL IN CUBA

AND WAS FLUENT IN SPANISH.

TRIST WAS ALSO WELL-CONNECTED IN WASHINGTON.

HE WAS MARRIED TO THOMAS JEFFERSON'S GRANDDAUGHTER

AND HAD WORKED CLOSELY

WITH PRESIDENTS ANDREW JACKSON AND JAMES MADISON.

THE DIPLOMAT'S ASSIGNMENT WAS TO ACCOMPLISH

WHAT THE INVASION SO FAR HAD BEEN UNABLE TO ACHIEVE--

SUCCESSFUL NEGOTIATIONS WITH MEXICO.

Pletcher: UNFORTUNATELY, HE WAS A MAN WITH A VERY THIN SKIN

AND A MAN OF... A RATHER HOT TEMPER

AND A COMPULSIVE WRITER

WHO WROTE LONG DISPATCHES AND LONG LETTERS

IN WHICH HE SAID MANY THINGS THAT HE SHOULD NOT HAVE SAID.

Narrator: ON MAY 6, 1847,

NICHOLAS TRIST DISEMBARKED AT VERACRUZ.

ALMOST IMMEDIATELY, HE MANAGED TO OFFEND WINFIELD SCOTT.

TRIST SENT A SEALED PEACE PROPOSAL

TO SCOTT'S HEADQUARTERS,

INSTRUCTING SCOTT TO PASS IT ON TO MEXICAN OFFICIALS,

BUT TRIST DID NOT BOTHER TO INFORM THE GENERAL

OF THE PROPOSAL'S DETAILS, AND SCOTT WAS INCENSED

AT THE THOUGHT OF BEING BYPASSED.

As Scott: THE SECRETARY OF WAR PROPOSES TO DEGRADE ME

BY REQUIRING THAT I, THE COMMANDER OF THIS ARMY,

SHALL DEFER TO YOU,

THE CHIEF CLERK OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE.

THE QUESTION OF AN ARMISTICE OR NO ARMISTICE

IS MOST PECULIARLY A MILITARY QUESTION

APPERTAINING OF NECESSITY

TO THE COMMANDER OF THE INVADING FORCES.

THE SAFETY OF THIS ARMY DEMANDS NO LESS.

GENERAL WINFIELD SCOTT.

Narrator: TRIST'S REPLY TOOK 6 DAYS TO COMPOSE

AND FILLED 30 PAGES.

As Trist: THE COURSE DETERMINED UPON BY OUR GOVERNMENT

IS WHAT ANY MAN OF PLAIN COMMON SENSE

WOULD TAKE FOR GRANTED THAT IT MUST BE,

AND IT IS NOT WHAT YOUR EXUBERANT FANCY

AND OVERCULTIVATED IMAGINATION WOULD MAKE.

As Scott: IF YOU DARE TO USE THIS STYLE OF ADDRESS AGAIN

OR INDULGE YOURSELF IN A SINGLE DISCOURTEOUS PHRASE,

I SHALL THROW BACK THE ORDERS AND INSTRUCTIONS

WITH THE CONTEMPT AND SCORN WHICH YOU MERIT AT MY HANDS.

Narrator: FOR MORE THAN A MONTH,

SCOTT AND TRIST REFUSED TO SPEAK TO ONE ANOTHER,

AND THE PEACE PROPOSAL REMAINED UNDELIVERED.

FRUSTRATED, TRIST RESORTED TO HAVING A BRITISH DIPLOMAT

PASS THE DOCUMENT TO SANTA ANNA.

BY NOW, SANTA ANNA WAS IN MEXICO CITY,

BUT HE WAS IN NO POSITION TO RESPOND TO THE PROPOSAL.

THE MEXICAN CONGRESS HAD PASSED A LAW

MAKING IT AN ACT OF TREASON

FOR ANY OFFICIAL TO NEGOTIATE WITH THE UNITED STATES.

IT WAS A MEASURE AIMED DIRECTLY AT SANTA ANNA.

Pletcher: SANTA ANNA WAS FACING OPPOSITION FROM HIS OWN GENERALS,

AND SOME OF THEM WERE ACCUSING HIM

OF SELLING OUT THE COUNTRY

OR BEING WILLING TO SELL OUT TO THE AMERICANS.

CONSIDERING SANTA ANNA'S PAST HISTORY,

THIS WAS NOT AN UNREASONABLE SUPPOSITION

BECAUSE SANTA ANNA WAS ALWAYS OUT FOR THE MAIN CHANCE.

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

Translator: IT WAS A CURIOUS SITUATION, RIGHT?

ON THE ONE HAND, THERE WAS A FEAR

OF THIS IMPORTANT FIGURE, SANTA ANNA,

WHO COULD DECLARE HIMSELF DICTATOR

ANWITH ONE SWEEP OF THE PEN, ABOLISH CONGRESS.

BUT ON THE OTHER HAND, THEY KNEW THAT THE ONLY PERSON

WHO COULD PULL ALL OF THE REMAINING FORCES TOGETHER

WAS SANTA ANNA.

Narrator: IN PUEBLA, THE PRIVATE WAR

BETWEEN NICHOLAS TRIST AND WINFIELD SCOTT WAS COMING TO AN END.

IN LATE JUNE, TRIST FELL ILL WITH DYSENTERY

SOON AFTER SENDING SCOTT A CONCILIATORY LETTER.

THE MESSAGE SATISFIED SCOTT,

WHO RESPONDED WITH A GIFT FOR THE SICK DIPLOMAT.

As Scott: MY DEAR SIR, LOOKING OVER MY STORES,

I FIND A BOX OF GUAVA MARMALADE,

WHICH, PERHAPS, THE PHYSICIAN MAY NOT CONSIDER IMPROPER

TO MAKE PART OF THE DIET.

YOURS VERY TRULY, WINFIELD SCOTT.

Narrator: WHEN TRIST RECOVERED AND THE 2 MEN FINALLY MET,

THEY DISCOVERED THEY LIKED ONE ANOTHER

AND QUICKLY BECAME FAST FRIENDS,

BUT SCOTT NOW FACED A SERIOUS CRISIS.

HIS ARMY'S SUPPLY LINES STRETCHED 200 MILES

THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS TO VERACRUZ.

WAGON TRAINS MOVING ALONG THE NATIONAL ROAD

WERE UNDER CONSTANT ATTACK BY BANDITS AND GUERRILLA FIGHTERS.

SCOTT'S SOLUTION WAS BOTH SIMPLE AND DARING.

HE WOULD CUT HIS SUPPLY LINES TO THE COAST.

FROM THIS POINT ON, HIS ARMY WOULD LIVE OFF THE LAND.

THE DECISION ASTONISHED AN OLD ACQUAINTANCE

WHO HAD BEEN FOLLOWING SCOTT'S CAMPAIGN FROM ABROAD--

THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON,

VICTOR OVER NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO.

As Wellington: SCOTT IS LOST.

HE HAS BEEN CARRIED AWAY BY HIS SUCCESSES.

HE CAN'T TAKE MEXICO CITY,

AND HE CAN'T FALL BACK ON HIS BASES.

HE WON'T LEAVE MEXICO WITHOUT THE PERMISSION OF THE MEXICANS.

Narrator: BUT FOR SCOTT, AS FOR CORTES,

WHO HAD BURNED HIS BOATS AT VERACRUZ 300 YEARS EARLIER,

THERE WOULD BE NO TURNING BACK.

[MAN SHOUTING ORDERS]

ON AUGUST 5, 1847,

HE ORDERED HIS ARMY TO MARCH ON MEXICO CITY.

As Scott: I RESOLVED NO LONGER TO DEPEND ON VERACRUZ,

BUT TO RENDER MY LITTLE ARMY A SELF-SUSTAINING MACHINE.

WE HAD TO THROW AWAY THE SCABBARD

AND TO ADVANCE WITH THE NAKED BLADE IN HAND.