Editing Spanish–American War (section)

==Caribbean theater==

===Cuba===
{{See also|San Juan Hill order of battle|El Caney order of battle}}
[[File:Cristobal-colon h63229.jpg|thumb|The Spanish armored cruiser {{ship|Spanish cruiser|Cristóbal Colón||2}}, which was destroyed during the Battle of Santiago on July 3, 1898]]
[[File:San Juan Hill by Kurz and Allison.JPG|thumb|Detail from ''Charge of the [[24th Infantry Regiment (United States)|24th]] and [[25th Infantry Regiment (United States)|25th Colored Infantry]] and Rescue of Rough Riders at San Juan Hill, July 2, 1898'', depicting the [[Battle of San Juan Hill]]]]

Theodore Roosevelt advocated intervention in Cuba, both for the Cuban people and to promote the Monroe Doctrine. While Assistant Secretary of the Navy, he placed the Navy on a war-time footing and prepared Dewey's Asiatic Squadron for battle. He also worked with [[Leonard Wood]] in convincing the Army to raise an all-volunteer regiment, the 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry. Wood was given command of the regiment that quickly became known as the "[[Rough Riders]]".<ref>{{Harvnb|Roosevelt|1899}}</ref>

The Americans planned to destroy Spain's army forces in Cuba, capture the port city of Santiago de Cuba, and destroy the Spanish Caribbean Squadron (also known as the Flota de Ultramar). To reach Santiago they had to pass through concentrated Spanish defenses in the San Juan Hills and a small town in [[El Caney]]. The American forces were aided in Cuba by the pro-independence rebels led by General [[Calixto García]].

====Cuban sentiment====
For quite some time the Cuban public believed the United States government to possibly hold the key to its independence, and even annexation was considered for a time, which historian Louis Pérez explored in his book ''Cuba and the United States: Ties of Singular Intimacy''. The Cubans harbored a great deal of discontent towards the Spanish government, a result of years of manipulation on the part of the Spanish. The prospect of getting the United States involved in the fight was considered by many Cubans as a step in the right direction. While the Cubans were wary of the United States' intentions, the overwhelming support from the American public provided the Cubans with some peace of mind, because they believed that the United States was committed to helping them achieve their independence.<ref>{{cite book|author=Mary Beth Norton|title=A People and a Nation, Volume II: Since 1865|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F0jAAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA582|page=582|year=2014|publisher=Cengage Learning|display-authors=etal|isbn=978-1285974682|access-date=October 31, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160527135756/https://books.google.com/books?id=F0jAAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA582|archive-date=May 27, 2016|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

====Action at Cienfuegos====
The first combat between American and Spanish forces in the Caribbean occurred on May 11, 1898, in the harbor near the city of [[Cienfuegos]].<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |title=Marines in the Spanish-American War 1895–1899 |publisher=History and Museums Division Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps |year=1998 |veditors=Shulimson J, Renfrow WJ, Kelly LtCol DE, Englander EA |location=Washington, D.C. |pages=11}}</ref> The city was the southern terminus for undersea communication cables that connected Cuba to Spain and other Spanish holdings in the Caribbean. American Naval officers needed to destroy these cables to cut communications into and out of Cuba, in preparation for later operations against the major city of Santiago.<ref name=":6">Shulimson J, Renfrow WJ, Kelly LtCol DE, Englander EA, eds. (1998). ''Marines in the Spanish-American War 1895–1899''. Washington, D.C.: History and Museums Division Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps. p.&nbsp;12.</ref> The {{USS|Marblehead|C-11|6}} and the {{USS|Nashville|PG-7|6}} were dispatched to cut these cables early on the morning of May 11. To cut the cables, two steam cutters, with a crew of eight sailors and six Marines each, and two sailing launches, with a crew of fourteen sailors each, maneuvered into harbor and within 200 feet from shore.<ref name=":6" />

While the boats moved towards shore, the ''Marblehead'' and ''Nashville'' shelled Spanish trenches dug to protect the cables from sabotage attempts. They succeeded in destroying support buildings for the cables and drove the Spanish force back away from the beach. The boats' crews pulled one cable up and began trying to cut through its metal jacket while Spanish soldiers started firing from cover. Marine sharpshooters returned fire from the boats and the ''Marblehead'' and ''Nashville'' began firing shrapnel shells in an attempt to force the Spanish completely out of the area.<ref name=":6" /> The sailors finished cutting one cable and pulled up a second one to begin severing it too. Spanish fire began to take a toll on the Marines and sailors with multiple casualties in the small boats, but the Americans were still able to cut a second wire. They began working on the final wire and succeeded in partially cutting it until the still heavy Spanish fire and mounting casualties forced the Navy officer in command, Lieutenant E. A. Anderson, to order the boats to return to the cover of the larger vessels.<ref name=":6" />

In the almost three hours of combat, two men were killed, two mortally wounded, and four more seriously wounded and they succeeded in severing two of the three cables running out of Cienfuegos.<ref name=":7">Shulimson J, Renfrow WJ, Kelly LtCol DE, Englander EA, eds. (1998). ''Marines in the Spanish-American War 1895–1899''. Washington, D.C.: History and Museums Division Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps. p.&nbsp;13.</ref> This relatively brief fight significantly disrupted communications between Cuba, Santiago, and Spain and contributed to the overall American goal of isolating Cuba from outside support. It also provided a major boost to American morale because it was the first combat American servicemen had seen close to home. For their brave actions, all the Marines and sailors in the four small boats received the [[Medal of Honor]].<ref name=":7" />

====Land campaign====
[[File:Spanish Mauser 1893.png|thumb|The [[Mauser Model 1893]] rifle, used by the Spanish infantry and perceived to be superior to the Springfield Model 1892–99 used by the [[United States Army|U.S. Army]].<ref>{{cite web
|url=https://www.thearmorylife.com/the-30-40-u-s-krag-jorgensen-in-combat/|title=The .30-40 U.S. Krag-Jorgensen in Combat|date=n.d.|accessdate=December 10, 2024|publisher=The Armory Life|at=American Krags vs. Spanish Hornets}}</ref> Because of this, the U.S. Army later developed the [[M1903 Springfield]].{{efn|The  [[Springfield Model 1892–99]] was a [[Krag–Jørgensen]] rifle manufactured under license in the U.S. by the [[Springfield Armor]]. It was commonly referred to as a "Krag".}}]]
[[File:America's war for humanity related in story and picture, embracing a complete history of Cuba's struggle for liberty, and the glorious heroism of America's soldiers and sailors (1898) (14591603718).jpg|thumb|left|Charge of the [[Rough Riders]]]]
[[File:Charge of the Rough Riders at San Juan Hill.JPG|thumb|The Rough Riders in San Juan ([[Frederic Remington]])]]
The first American landings in Cuba occurred on June 10 with the landing of the First Marine Battalion at Fisherman's Point in [[Guantánamo Bay]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Today in History - June 10 |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/june-10/ |access-date=2025-02-19 |website=Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA}}</ref> This was followed on June 22 to 24, when the [[Fifth Army Corps (Spanish–American War)|Fifth Army Corps]] under General [[William R. Shafter]] landed at [[Daiquirí]] and [[Siboney, Cuba|Siboney]], east of Santiago, and established an American base of operations. A contingent of Spanish troops, having fought a skirmish with the Americans near Siboney on June 23, had retired to their lightly entrenched positions at [[Battle of Las Guasimas|Las Guasimas]]. An advance guard of U.S. forces under former [[Confederate States Army|Confederate]] General [[Joseph Wheeler]] ignored Cuban scouting parties and orders to proceed with caution. They caught up with and engaged the Spanish rearguard of about 2,000 soldiers led by General [[Antero Rubín]]<ref>[http://spanishamericanwar.info/cuba.htm#LasGuasimas The Spanish–American War in Cuba : Battle of Las Guasimas] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110510210235/http://spanishamericanwar.info/cuba.htm#LasGuasimas |date=May 10, 2011 }}.</ref> who effectively ambushed them, in the Battle of Las Guasimas on June 24. The battle ended indecisively in favor of Spain and the Spanish left Las Guasimas on their planned retreat to Santiago.

The U.S. Army employed Civil War–era [[Skirmisher#American Civil War|skirmishers]] at the head of the advancing columns. Three of four of the U.S. soldiers who had volunteered to act as skirmishers walking point at the head of the American column were killed, including [[Hamilton Fish II (Rough Rider)|Hamilton Fish II]] (grandson of [[Hamilton Fish]], the Secretary of State under Ulysses S. Grant), and Captain [[Allyn K. Capron, Jr.|Allyn K. Capron]], whom Theodore Roosevelt would describe as one of the finest natural leaders and soldiers he ever met. Only [[Oklahoma Territory]] [[Pawnee people|Pawnee]] Indian, Tom Isbell, wounded seven times, survived.<ref name="Roosevelt, Theodore p. 572">Roosevelt, Theodore, ''The Rough Riders'', Scribner's Magazine, Vol. 25 (January–June), New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, p. 572</ref>

Regular Spanish troops were mostly armed with modern charger-loaded, 7mm [[Mauser Model 1893|1893 Spanish Mauser rifles]] and using [[smokeless powder]]. The high-speed [[7×57mm Mauser]] round was termed the "Spanish Hornet" by the Americans because of the supersonic crack as it passed overhead. Other irregular troops were armed with [[Remington Rolling Block rifle]]s in [[.43 Spanish]] using smokeless powder and brass-jacketed bullets. U.S. regular infantry were armed with the [[.30-40 Krag|.30–40]] [[Springfield Model 1892–99|Krag–Jørgensen]], a bolt-action rifle with a complex magazine. Both the U.S. regular cavalry and the volunteer cavalry used smokeless ammunition. In later battles, state volunteers used the [[Springfield model 1873|.45–70 Springfield]], a single-shot black powder rifle.<ref name="Roosevelt, Theodore p. 572"/>

On July 1, a combined force of about 15,000 American troops in regular infantry and cavalry regiments, including all four of the army's "Colored" [[Buffalo Soldier]] regiments, and volunteer regiments, among them Roosevelt and his "Rough Riders", the [[71st New York Infantry Regiment|71st New York]], the 2nd Massachusetts Infantry, and 1st North Carolina, and rebel Cuban forces attacked 1,270 entrenched Spaniards in dangerous Civil War-style frontal assaults at the [[Battle of El Caney]] and [[Battle of San Juan Hill]] outside of Santiago.<ref>[http://www.homeofheroes.com/wallofhonor/spanish_am/10_sanjuan.html The Battles at El Caney and San Juan Hills] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130714045841/http://www.homeofheroes.com/wallofhonor/spanish_am/10_sanjuan.html |date=July 14, 2013 }} at HomeOfHeroes.com.</ref> More than 200 U.S. soldiers were killed and close to 1,200 wounded in the fighting, thanks to the high rate of fire the Spanish put down range at the Americans.<ref>[http://www.homeofheroes.com/wallofhonor/spanish_am/11_crowdedhour.html The Crowded Hour: The Charge at El Caney & San Juan Hills] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514061523/http://www.homeofheroes.com/wallofhonor/spanish_am/11_crowdedhour.html |date=May 14, 2013 }} at HomeOfHeroes.com.</ref> [[Charles A. Wikoff]], a U.S. Army colonel who was killed in action, was the most senior U.S. Army officer killed in the Spanish–American War.<ref name=profile>[http://1-22infantry.org/commanders/wikoffpers.htm Col. Charles A. Wikoff profile at 1-22infantry.org] Retrieved January 11, 2007</ref> Supporting fire by [[Gatling gun]]s was critical to the success of the assault.<ref>{{Harvnb|Parker|2003}}</ref><ref>[https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/6888  ''History of the Gatling Gun Detachment''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060213123700/http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/6888 |date=February 13, 2006 }}, John Henry Parker at [[Project Gutenberg]].</ref> Cervera decided to escape Santiago two days later. First Lieutenant [[John J. Pershing]], nicknamed "Black Jack", oversaw the 10th Cavalry Unit during the war. Pershing and his unit fought in the Battle of San Juan Hill. Pershing was cited for his gallantry during the battle.

The Spanish forces at [[Guantánamo]] were so isolated by Marines and Cuban forces that they did not know that Santiago was under siege, and their forces in the northern part of the province could not break through Cuban lines. This was not true of the Escario relief column from Manzanillo,<ref>{{Cite web |date=1901-12-13 |title=Battles and Capitulation of Santiago De Cuba (Completed) |url=https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1899/january/battles-and-capitulation-santiago-de-cuba-completed |access-date=2025-02-19 |website=U.S. Naval Institute |language=en}}</ref> which fought its way past determined Cuban resistance but arrived too late to participate in the siege.

After the battles of San Juan Hill and El Caney, the American advance halted. Spanish troops successfully defended Fort Canosa, allowing them to stabilize their line and bar the entry to Santiago. The Americans and Cubans forcibly began a bloody, strangling siege of the city.<ref>{{Harvnb|Daley|2000|pp=161–71}}</ref> During the nights, Cuban troops dug successive series of "trenches" (raised parapets), toward the Spanish positions. Once completed, these parapets were occupied by U.S. soldiers and a new set of excavations went forward. American troops, while suffering daily losses from Spanish fire, suffered far more casualties from [[Hyperthermia|heat exhaustion]] and [[mosquito]]-borne disease.<ref>{{Harvnb|McCook|1899}}</ref> At the western approaches to the city, Cuban general Calixto Garcia began to encroach on the city, causing much panic and fear of reprisals among the Spanish forces.

====Battle of Tayacoba====
{{Main|Battle of Tayacoba}}
Lieutenant Carter P. Johnson of the Buffalo Soldiers' [[10th Cavalry Regiment (United States)|10th Cavalry]], with experience in special operations roles as head of the 10th Cavalry's attached Apache scouts in the [[Apache Wars]], chose 50 soldiers from the regiment to lead a deployment mission with at least 375 Cuban soldiers under Cuban Brigadier General Emilio Nunez and other supplies to the mouth of the San Juan River east of Cienfuegos. On June 29, 1898, a reconnaissance team in landing boats from the transports ''Florida'' and ''Fanita'' attempted to land on the beach, but were repelled by Spanish fire. A second attempt was made on June 30, 1898, but a team of reconnaissance soldiers was trapped on the beach near the mouth of the Tallabacoa River. A team of four soldiers saved this group and were awarded Medals of Honor. The {{USS|Peoria|1898|6}} and the recently arrived {{USS|Helena|PG-9|6}} then shelled the beach to distract the Spanish while the Cuban deployment landed 40 miles east at Palo Alto, where they linked up with Cuban General Gomez.<ref>{{cite book|title=Elihu Root Collection of United States Documents: Ser. A.-F.&#93;|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pxNQAAAAYAAJ|year=1898|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=pxNQAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22palo+alto%22&pg=PA691 691]|access-date=November 7, 2019|archive-date=October 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201012054754/https://books.google.com/books?id=pxNQAAAAYAAJ|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Schubert|first=Frank N.|title=Black Valor: Buffalo Soldiers and the Medal of Honor, 1870–1898|publisher=Scholarly Resources Inc.|author-link=Frank N. Schubert|pages=[https://archive.org/details/blackvalorbuffal00schu/page/135 135–39]|date=1997|isbn=978-0842025867|url=https://archive.org/details/blackvalorbuffal00schu/page/135}}</ref>

====Naval operations====
{{More citations needed section|date=January 2020}}
[[File:Santiago campaign 1898.gif|thumb|upright=2.05|The Santiago Campaign (1898)]]
[[File:US Navy Battleship USS Iowa BB-4 Crewmen Pose 1898.jpg|thumb|Crewmen pose under the gun turrets of {{USS|Iowa|BB-4|2}} in 1898.]]

The major port of [[Santiago de Cuba]] was the main target of naval operations during the war. The U.S. fleet attacking Santiago needed shelter from the summer [[Atlantic hurricane season|hurricane season]]; Guantánamo Bay, with its excellent harbor, was chosen. The [[1898 invasion of Guantánamo Bay]] happened between June 6 and 10, with the first U.S. naval attack and subsequent successful landing of [[U.S. Marines]] with naval support.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Shulimson |first=Jack |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cZ_fAAAAMAAJ |title=Marines in the Spanish American War |publisher=History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps, 1998 |year=1998 |location=Washington DC |pages=11 |language=en |access-date=December 23, 2021 |archive-date=September 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923144607/https://books.google.com/books?id=cZ_fAAAAMAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Trevor|first=Plante|date=13 December 2017|title=The First Marine Battalion in the Spanish-American War|url=https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1998/spring/spanish-american-war-marines-1.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210810131009/https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1998/spring/spanish-american-war-marines-1.html|archive-date=10 August 2021|access-date=23 December 2021|via=[[National Archives and Records Administration|National Archives]]}}</ref>

On April 23, a council of senior admirals of the [[Spanish Navy]] had decided to order Admiral [[Pascual Cervera y Topete]]'s squadron of four armored cruisers and three torpedo boat destroyers to proceed from their present location in [[Cape Verde]] (having left from [[Cádiz]], Spain) to the [[Spanish West Indies|West Indies]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=a3oDAAAAYAAJ&dq=Fernando+Mart%C3%ADnez+de+admiral&pg=RA3-PA64 Information from abroad: War notes, Issues 1–8] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180126185523/https://books.google.com/books?id=a3oDAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA3-PA64&lpg=RA3-PA64&dq=Fernando+Mart%C3%ADnez+de+admiral&source=bl&ots=xKrD0TCkuA&sig=NhdM206irX3yMWwWe-ipkVJRr0A&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjKrYOJmLPYAhVD3GMKHYN4CzIQ6AEIOzAI#v=onepage&q=Fernando%20Mart%C3%ADnez%20de%20admiral&f=false |date=January 26, 2018 }} (1899), [[Office of Naval Intelligence]], pp. 60–64</ref>

In May, the fleet of Spanish Admiral Pascual Cervera y Topete had been spotted in Santiago harbor by American forces, where they had taken shelter for protection from sea attack. A two-month stand-off between Spanish and American naval forces followed.

U.S. Assistant Naval Constructor, Lieutenant [[Richmond Pearson Hobson]] was ordered by Rear Admiral [[William T. Sampson]] to sink the [[Collier (ship)|collier]] {{USS|Merrimac|1894|6}} in the harbor to bottle up the Spanish fleet. The mission was a failure, and Hobson and his crew were captured though Hobson soon became a national hero for leading what was widely reported as a suicide mission. Upon release, Hobson was presented with the Congressional Medal of Honor and promoted to [[Captain (United States O-6)|Captain.]]{{efn|Hobson resigned his commission after his request to retire as a [[Captain (United States O-6)|naval captain]] was refused, prompting [[United States Secretary of the Navy|Secretary of the Navy]] [[William Henry Moody]] to reconsider and allow him to retire.<ref name=Hobson>{{cite news|url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn93067846/1903-02-11/ed-1/seq-1/|title=Hobson Will Get Out|newspaper=The Watchman and Southronvia=University of South Carolina|date=February 11, 1903|page=1|access-date=October 17, 2022|archive-date=October 17, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221017233017/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn93067846/1903-02-11/ed-1/seq-1/|url-status=live}}</ref> He was elected in 1907 from [[Alabama]] to the [[U.S. House of Representatives]]. In 1934, his naval retirement rank was advanced to [[Rear Admiral (United States)|rear admiral]].}}

The [[Battle of Santiago de Cuba]] on July 3, was the largest naval engagement of the Spanish–American War. When the Spanish squadron finally attempted to leave the harbor on July 3, the American forces destroyed or grounded five of the six ships. Only one Spanish vessel, the new armored cruiser {{Ship|Spanish cruiser|Cristóbal Colón||2}}, survived, but her captain hauled down her flag and [[scuttled]] her when the Americans finally caught up with her. The 1,612 Spanish sailors who were captured and sent to [[Seavey's Island]] at the [[Portsmouth Naval Shipyard]] in [[Kittery, Maine]], where they were confined at [[Portsmouth Naval Prison|Camp Long]] as [[prisoners of war]] from July 11 until mid-September. The Americans treated Spain's officers, soldiers, and sailors with great respect. Ultimately, Spanish prisoners were returned to Spain with their "honors of war" on American ships. Admiral Cervera received different treatment from the sailors taken to Portsmouth. For a time, he was held at Annapolis, Maryland, where he was received with great enthusiasm by the people of that city.<ref>{{cite news|title=Cervera at Annapolis|agency=Chicago Tribune|date=July 17, 1898}}</ref>

====U.S. withdrawal====
[[Yellow fever]] had spread quickly among the American occupation force, crippling it. A group of concerned officers of the American army chose Theodore Roosevelt to draft [[Round-Robin Letter (Spanish–American War)|a request]] to Washington that it withdraw the Army, a request that paralleled a similar one from General Shafter, who described his force as an "army of convalescents". By the time of his letter, 75% of the force in Cuba was unfit for service.<ref name="Vincent J. Cirillo 2004">Vincent J. Cirillo. 2004. ''Bullets and Bacilli: The Spanish–American War and Military Medicine''. Rutgers University Press.</ref>

On August 7, the American invasion force started to leave Cuba. The evacuation was not total. The U.S. Army kept the black Ninth U.S. Cavalry Regiment in Cuba to support the occupation. The logic was that their race and the fact that many black volunteers came from southern states would protect them from disease; this logic led to these soldiers being nicknamed "Immunes". Still, when the Ninth left, 73 of its 984 soldiers had contracted the disease.<ref name="Vincent J. Cirillo 2004"/>

===Puerto Rico===
{{Main|Puerto Rico campaign}}
[[File:Spanish troops leaving Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, to engage the American forces at Hormiguero, Puerto Rico, 08-10-1898 - NARA - 533437.tiff|thumb|Spanish troops before they departed to engage the American forces at [[Hormigueros, Puerto Rico]]]]

On May 24, 1898, in a letter to Theodore Roosevelt, Henry Cabot Lodge wrote, "Porto Rico is not forgotten and we mean to have it".<ref name="Puerto Rico">{{cite web |title=Spanish-American War in Puerto Rico |url=https://npgallery.nps.gov/pdfhost/docs/NRHP/Text/64500545.pdf |website=National Park Service |publisher=United States Department of the Interior |access-date=30 July 2019 |archive-date=February 11, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170211073515/https://npgallery.nps.gov/pdfhost/docs/NRHP/Text/64500545.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

In the same month, Lt. Henry H. Whitney of the United States Fourth Artillery was sent to Puerto Rico on a reconnaissance mission, sponsored by the Army's Bureau of Military Intelligence. He provided maps and information on the Spanish military forces to the U.S. government before the invasion.

The American offensive began on May 12, 1898, when a squadron of 12 U.S. ships commanded by Rear Adm. William T. Sampson of the United States Navy attacked the [[archipelago]]'s capital, [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]]. Though the damage inflicted on the city was minimal, the Americans established a [[blockade]] in the city's harbor, [[San Juan Bay]]. On June 22, the [[cruiser]] {{ship|Spanish cruiser|Isabel II||2}} and the [[destroyer]] {{ship|Spanish destroyer|Terror||2}} delivered a [[Second Battle of San Juan|Spanish counterattack]], but were unable to break the blockade and ''Terror'' was damaged.

The land offensive began on July 25, when 1,300 infantry soldiers led by [[Nelson A. Miles]] disembarked off the coast of [[Guánica]]. The first organized armed opposition occurred in [[Yauco]] in what became known as the [[Battle of Yauco]].{{citation needed|date=January 2023}}

This encounter was followed by the [[Battle of Fajardo]]. The United States seized control of [[Fajardo]] on August 1, but were forced to withdraw on August 5 after a group of 200 Puerto Rican-Spanish soldiers led by Pedro del Pino gained control of the city, while most civilian inhabitants fled to a nearby lighthouse. The Americans encountered larger opposition during the [[Battle of Guayama]] and as they advanced towards the main island's interior. They engaged in crossfire at [[Battle of the Guamani River Bridge|Guamaní River Bridge]], [[Battle of Coamo|Coamo]] and [[Battle of Silva Heights|Silva Heights]] and finally at the [[Battle of Asomante]].<ref name="Asomante" /> The battles were inconclusive as the allied soldiers retreated.

A battle in [[San Germán]] concluded in a similar fashion with the Spanish retreating to [[Lares, Puerto Rico|Lares]]. On August 9, 1898, American troops that were pursuing units retreating from Coamo encountered heavy resistance in [[Aibonito]] in a mountain known as ''Cerro Gervasio del Asomante'' and retreated after six of their soldiers were injured. They returned three days later, reinforced with artillery units and attempted a surprise attack. In the subsequent crossfire, confused soldiers reported seeing Spanish reinforcements nearby and five American officers were gravely injured, which prompted a retreat order. All military actions in Puerto Rico were suspended on August 13, after U.S. President William McKinley and French ambassador [[Jules Cambon]], acting on behalf of the Spanish government, signed an [[armistice]] whereby Spain relinquished its sovereignty over Puerto Rico.<ref name="Asomante"/>