The Battle of Buena Vista took place on February 23, 1847 and was a hard-fought battle between the invading US army, commanded by General Zachary Taylor, and the Mexican army, led by General Antonio López de Santa Anna.
Taylor had been fighting his way southwest into Mexico from the border when most of his troops were reassigned to a separate invasion to be led by General Winfield Scott. Santa Anna, with a much larger force, felt he could crush Taylor and re-take northern Mexico. The battle was bloody, but inconclusive, with both sides claiming it as a victory.
General Taylor's March
Hostilities had broken out between Mexico and the USA in 1846. American General Zachary Taylor, with a well-trained army, had scored major victories at the Battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma near the US/Mexico border and had followed up with the successful siege of Monterrey in September of 1846. After Monterrey, he moved south and took Saltillo. The central command in the USA then decided to send a separate invasion of Mexico via Veracruz and many of Taylor's best units were reassigned. By early 1847 he had only some 4,500 men, many of them untested volunteers.
