July 1, 1898 · Cuba Theater
July 1, 1898
El Caney was a small fortified village on the heights northeast of Santiago de Cuba, held by approximately 520 Spanish soldiers under the determined General Joaquín Vara de Rey. American planners believed it would fall in two hours; it held out for nearly ten. Brigadier General Henry Lawton's division of 6,600 men assaulted the stone fort, stone church, and blockhouse network throughout the blazing July day. Vara de Rey was mortally wounded rallying his men and died the following day. Even American officers who had opposed him expressed admiration for the defense. The village finally fell late in the afternoon, hours behind schedule.
Commanders