Battle of Pagsanjan
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Pagsanjan was a small skirmish between the 1st Battalion of Sharpshooters, under the command of Brigadier General Charles King
, and Philippine Nationalists led by Col. Pedro Caballes during the Laguna Campaign of the Philippine-American War
.
On April 11, 1899, upon capturing Santa Cruz
, General Henry W. Lawton then sought out to capture the town of Pagsanjan from the Filipinos. The expedition began at 6 a.m.
A battalion
of sharpshooters was sent ahead of the command as an advance guard, and as they came within 1.5 miles (2 km) of Pagsanjan, they were fired upon by a small force of Filipinos from hastily built breastworks blocking the road.
The sharpshooters returned fire and caused considerable losses to the Filipinos. An artillery
piece was then brought up and fired two shrapnel rounds into the breastworks, which were soon abandoned by most of the Filipinos. Some Filipinos remained in the breatsworks after the bombardment and were driven out as well after the sharpshooters gave the breastworks another heavy volley.
General Lawton and his command then went on to capture Pagsanjan with no further resistance. The next day, Lawton's command succeeded in capturing Paete
and the Laguna Campaign was over and deemed a success.
Charles King (general)
Charles King was a United States soldier and a distinguished writer.-Biography:...
, and Philippine Nationalists led by Col. Pedro Caballes during the Laguna Campaign of the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
.
On April 11, 1899, upon capturing Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz, Laguna
Santa Cruz is a 1st class urban municipality in the province of Laguna, Philippines. It is also the capital town of the province of Laguna. According to the latest census, it has a population of 101,914 people in 19,627 households and with a growth rate of 1.37%)...
, General Henry W. Lawton then sought out to capture the town of Pagsanjan from the Filipinos. The expedition began at 6 a.m.
A battalion
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
of sharpshooters was sent ahead of the command as an advance guard, and as they came within 1.5 miles (2 km) of Pagsanjan, they were fired upon by a small force of Filipinos from hastily built breastworks blocking the road.
The sharpshooters returned fire and caused considerable losses to the Filipinos. An artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
piece was then brought up and fired two shrapnel rounds into the breastworks, which were soon abandoned by most of the Filipinos. Some Filipinos remained in the breatsworks after the bombardment and were driven out as well after the sharpshooters gave the breastworks another heavy volley.
General Lawton and his command then went on to capture Pagsanjan with no further resistance. The next day, Lawton's command succeeded in capturing Paete
Battle of Paete
The Battle of Paete was a small battle fought between American forces, commanded by General Henry W. Lawton, and Philippine nationalists on April 12, 1899, during the Philippine-American War.-Background:...
and the Laguna Campaign was over and deemed a success.