While Yucatecan diplomacy in the United States failed to obtain American intervention, it did result in private donations of food, money, and importantly a unit of American volunteers. These mercenaries were mainly veterans of the Mexican War, recently mustered out of the 13th U.S. Infantry Regt. and led by Captain Joseph A. White who promoted himself to Colonel for the occasion. the Yucatecan government promised them Eight dollars a month pay and a land grant of 320 acres as part of a plan to settle more whites on the peninsula as well gain their military services. Many of the Americans had their own motives, seeking easy loot and power among "frightened latins", perhaps planning on some "empire building". Nelson Reed, the American historian of the war, called them the first filibusters. They would be disillusioned. Some 938 American volunteers landed at Sisal in the summer of 1848 and were soon committed to the fighting at Tekax in September. They would be parceled out among the First and fourth Divisions for the advance on Tihusuco. At Colonel White's insistence they finally fought as a unit in the heavy fighting around Calumpich. In action against the Maya the Americans had a lot to learn about bush fighting in the Yucatan. Arrogantly ignoring the advice of Ladino veterans the Americans, advancing down the jungle trails, were big, noisy, overconfident and rash. When they encountered an enemy barricade they disdained the fighting skills and tenacity of the Maya and chose to fix bayonets and launch a frontal charge with cold steel. The Indians did not run as expected and instead delivered a deadly musket volley at point blank range. Forty casualties were later brought out slung on the sides of mules. The bayonet charge became something of an American specialty. Still the Americans proved brave and aggressive soldiers and good marksmen. an Indio observer noted: "It was easy to kill the strange white men for they were big and fought in a line as if they were marching... [Not] as we do lying down and from behind trees and rocks ... they were brave men and shot keenly." After a few weeks of such fighting many of the American officers resigned. Those that stayed would see action at Peto, Ichmul, Santa Maria, and Tabi. After the siege of Tihosuco through the spring of 1849 where several massed Indian charges were repelled the Americans were posted to Valladolid. Here Colonel White and most of his men fed up with the fighting and arrears in their pay decided to quit and went home. The Americans had lost some 70 killed and 150 wounded in a year of fighting. A contingent of 140 decided to stay and fight on under Captain Kelly. This company went with the Expeditionary 7th Division to fight in Bacalar campaign. Back to Table of Contents -- Savage and Soldier Vol. XXIII No. 2 Back to Savage and Soldier List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 1992 by Milton Soong. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com