Battle of Palo Alto

Introduction

The Palo Alto Battle occurred on May 8^th, 1846, whereby a small American Army led by General Zachary Taylor won a decisive victory over the massive Mexican army. This battle marked the opening combat of the Mexican-American war. The Palo Alto battle, which occurred on the northern bank of the Rio Grande, belonged to the artillery corps that positioned themselves ahead of the Mexican front lines holding new field guns and matching innovative tactics (Jennings, 2021). Batteries by Taylor’s army smashed the Mexican infantry at the very onset of the battle. They proceeded to disrupt the further attempts by Mexicans to close the American lines set by Taylor. The victory that resulted from the same preserved America’s control over Texas and set the preconditions that helped America invade the Mexican territory even further. Palo Alto artillery corps victory proved that numbers did not matter as long as advanced artillery skills and preparation were in place, as the Mexican army had 18,882 regulars and 10,495 militia while Taylor’s artillery men were only 7, 365 (Jennings, 2021). This work uses the literature review methodology to show precisely how the Palo Alto battle started and the various advances that led to the American Success over Mexicans. It also entails how the same has so far influenced the culture of the American Army artillery.

Literature Review

The Palo Alto battle started at around 2 PM2 PM on the ^eighth day of May 1846. During this time, the Mexican cannon opened fire on the American Army, but the copper cannon by the Mexican could not strike Taylor’s army, which halted a half mile on the North. Taylor then ordered the three batteries led by Lieutenant Churchill William, Captain William Duncan, and Major Ringgold, commanders of the American army’s right, left, and center artillery positions, respectively, to combat the counterforce against Mexican lines (Jennings, 2022). This was the moment that proved the value of the modernization of artillery in the War Department as the American army updated the Model Bronze field guns at a range of 1500 yards suppressing the Mexican cannon. They also poured solid shots and exploded severe case shots into the various ranks of the Mexican infantry. Arista, the leader of the Mexican army, realized that he could not win the artillery contest, thus ordering a western flank attack by the larger force under General Torrejob Anastasio (Jennings, 2021). However, the 5^th infantry regiment in the U.S. team countered the attack with a two-gun section of 6-pounders in front, compelling Mexicans to retreat to their lines with a very high level of casualties (Stuart, 1998). Ringgold, the leader of the center battery, advanced his battery forward, intending to increase deadly pressure on Mexican infantry. At precisely 5 PM5 PM, 3 hours since the war began, Torejob began another flanking attack on the American right battery. At the same time, Arista ordered his artillery to counter Ringgold’s battery, which had closed to around 400 meters of the Mexican line. Mexican forces pushed the American army back, which mortally wounded Ringgold (Jennings, 2021).

As a result of the above, Arista sensed that this was a golden opportunity to order a final attack against American left using light Calvary and light infantry. His hope was then to move the 8^th U.S. infantry as a means of destroying American wagon train. However, the modernized artillery for the American army proved helpful when Duncan’s module battery raced to the exposed flank, firing canister shots into the Mexican ranks just as they made their move to emerging from the chaparral brush line (Jennings, 2021). Simultaneously, the 8^th U.S. infantry, aided by the 2^nd U.S. dragging, offered additional support to repel the Mexican assault dully. Duncan then completed the same actions by moving forward with his army to 300 yards from the right flank of the Mexicans so that they could directly fire into the ranks. This caused many causalities and exhaustion to the Mexican army, causing them to withdraw to the southern side of the battlefield where they camped that night. The Mexicans has 129 wounded soldiers and 102 dead by the end of the day, while the Americans had only five killed and 48 wounded (Jennings, 2021). This was a sharp contrast given that the Mexican army, as earlier mentioned, was massive with 18,882 regulars and 10,495 militia, while Taylors artillery men were only 7, 365 (Jennings, 2021). The following day was marked by the Battle of Resaca de la Palma, where the battle of Palo Alto had served to give the American army an advantage, allowing them to advance into other fronts of the Mexicans.

According to Jennings (2021), a high fire overmatch was attained by Taylor’s batteries, owing to the highly skilled artillerymen. Other than that, the fire overmatch was caused by the events prior to the war, whereby the U.S. army had implemented modernization of their artillery arm in the previous decade. Notably, they did this to prepare for any potential conflicts despite having no expectations of war. The preparation program included the establishment of a mobile light field artillery arm, which moved fast and engaged at longer ranges with some of the latest advancements in cannon technology. The evolution that demanded a reinvention of the artillery corps between 1838 and 1844 offered the American army an asymmetric advantage over the Mexican army, whom they combated in the Palo Alto battle just two years after the evolution (Stuart, 1998).

However, the possession of the technological overmatch was not enough, as the pairing of new weaponry with the horse-centric battery invention tactic emphasized mobility and rapid fire. The presence of trained mid-grade and junior-grade officers who had high comprehension of the new system and its potential also added to the advantage of the American Army in the battle. In a nutshell, there was an alignment of form and function, which collaboratively gave the U.S. army the upper hand over Mexicans and set a precedent for the future.

Contribution to Modern artillery

The victory of the U.S. at the Palo Alto Battle and the preparation beforehand hold significant meaning and insight for the American army. The army continuously seeks to modernize its arsenal to retain its competitive advantage, which helped give it a win in the battle of Palo Alto. Similarly, as earlier mentioned, the collaboration of form and function formed a precedent whereby proper alignment of well-trained officers and a modern innovative arsenal motivates the U.S. army to continue the modernization imperative. The same is done to develop new generation weapons systems that denote an overmatch over those owned by potential adversaries. Jennings (2022) notes that the lessons from the Palo Alto Battle had several insights for the U.S. war department in the 21^st century (Jennings, 2021). The above led to the culture of a process-driven innovation and modernization agenda that would improve the fire capacity of the atrophied. The country adopts technological innovations and incorporates them into the military structure to help them in times of conflict. The same demands for leadership that understand the need to incorporate modernization as a culture.

Jennings (2022) also reports that Palo Alto helped the U.S. Army to learn the need to successfully create new tactics and organizations that would wield the aired weaponry. The nation started with a pilot company to help and then expanded to the U.S. artillery for full capacity. The institution combined new organizational structure and doctrine to enable enhanced mobility and long-range fires on the battlefield (Jennings, 2021). This newly acquired know-how called for the leaders to ensure that individuals had the necessary skills via the use of mounted rotated batteries. The same led to increased institution capacity and applies to date.

Conclusion

The Palo Alto battle happened within one day and became the source of great inspiration for the American artillery unit. On May 8^th, 1846, the Mexican army led by Atristi went against a small group of the American army led by Taylor with the help of the leaders of his three batteries Lieutenant Churchill William, Captain William Duncan, and Major Ringgold. The American army stood at an advantage, owing to the previous preparation in acquiring modern artillery and training its members on the necessary skills needed to use the same. While the Mexican massive team relied on the infantry and Calvary weaponry to attack, the American army stood at an advantage owing to their massive artillery and advanced skills leading to an early win that helped them even in the future context of the war against the Mexican Front.

References

Jennings, N. (2021). Modernizing for victory: U.S. army fires at the battle of Palo Alto, 1846. Infantry (Online), 110(2), 58-61. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/trade-journals/modernizing-victory-u-s-army-fires-at-battle-palo/docview/2593667801/se-2

Jennings, N. A. (2022). Improvised partnerships: U.S. joint operations in the Mexican- American war. Joint Force Quarterly: JFQ, (105), 86-94. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/trade-journals/improvised-partnerships-u-s-joint-operations/docview/2660149305/se-2

Stuart, R. C. (1998). Mr. Polk’s army: The American military experience in the Mexican war / on the prairie of Palo Alto: Historical archeology of the U.S.-Mexican war battlefield. Journal of the Early Republic, 18(1), 170-173. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/mr-polks-army-american-military-experience/docview/220959548/se-2