The battles of the Mexican-American War include all major engagements 
and most reported skirmishes, including the Battle of Palo Alto, and the 
Battle of Resaca de la Palma, which took place prior to the official start 
of hostilities.


Background
The Mexican-American War lasted from 1846 until 1848. It grew out of 
unresolved border disputes between the Republic of Texas and Mexico 
after the annexation of the former by the United States nine years after 
the Texas Revolution. It ended in 1848 with the Treaty of Guadalupe 
Hidalgo in which Mexico surrendered a vast tract of land that amounted 
to over half its national territory to the United States for the sum of USD 
$15 million.

List of battles
Key 
(A) – American Victory 
(M) – Mexican Victory 
(I) – Inconclusive 

1846

Battle Date Engagement remarks Result 
Thornton Affair April 25/26 Skirmishing in the disputed borderlands of South 
Texas. (M) 

Siege of Fort Texas May 3-9 Mexican Army besieges American outpost. (I) 

Battle of Palo Alto May 8 Mexican Army under Mariano Arista in the disputed 
land between the Rio Grande (Río Bravo) and the Nueces River engage an 
American army attempting to lift the aforementioned Siege of Fort Texas. (A) 

Battle of Resaca de la Palma May 9 Arista is defeated by Zachary Taylor. (A) 

Occupation of Matamoros May 18 U.S. troops occupy Matamoros, Tamaulipas, 
with no resistance. More than 300 sick and wounded Mexicans captured in the 
hospitals. Also abandoned were 5 spiked guns. (A) 

Battle of Monterey[1] July 7 U.S. Navy occupies Monterey, California. (A) 

Occupation of Camargo, Tamaulipas. July 14 – (A) 

Battle of Cañoncito early August Stephen Watts Kearny defeats Manuel Armijo 
on the way to Santa Fe, New Mexico. (A) 

Battle of Santa Fe August 18 Kearny occupies Santa Fe, New Mexico. (A) 

Battle of Monterrey[1] September 21-23 Zachary Taylor forces Pedro de Ampudia 
to surrender Monterrey. (A) 

Siege of Los Angeles September 22-30 Led by Gen José Mariá Flores, 
Californios and Mexicans retake Los Angeles. (M) 

Battle of Chino September 26-27 Californios defeat and captured 24 Americans, 
led by Benjamin D. Wilson, who were hiding in an adobe house in Rancho Chino, 
near present day Chino, California. (M) 

Battle of Dominguez Rancho October 7 Californios, led by José Antonio Carrillo, 
defeat 203 US Marines led by U.S. Navy Captain William Mervine. (M) 

First Battle of Tabasco October 24-26 Commodore Perry makes a demonstration 
against Tabasco (I) 

Occupation of Tampico, Tamaulipas November 14 Occupation by the U.S. 
Navy. (A) 

Occupation of Saltillo, Coahuila November 16 Occupation by the U.S. Army. (A) 

Battle of Natividad November 16 Town located in northern California. (A) 

Battle of San Pasqual December 6 Californeros and Presidial Lancers defeat 
Stephen Watts Kearny. (M) 

Battle of El Brazito December 25 Also called the "Battle of Temascalitos" in 
Spanish. Mexican forces attack El Brazito, New Mexico. U.S. forces were led 
by Col. Alexaner W. Doniphan. (A) 


1847


Battle Date Engagement remarks Result 

Battle of Santa Clara, California January 2 Fought in California. (A) 

Battle of Rio San Gabriel January 8 Part of a series of battles for control of Los 
Angeles. (A) 

Battle of La Mesa January 9 Last conflict before U.S. forces enter Los Angeles. (A) 

Battle of Cañada January 24 Sterling Price defeats Insurgents in New Mexico. (A) 

Battle of Mora January 24/February 1 After a failed attack by American Forces led 
by Israel Hendley on January 24, on February 1 another expedition armed with 
cannon succeeded in razing the village of Mora in New Mexico. (A) 

Siege of Pueblo de Taos February 3/4 Rancheros and Mexican Militia surrender to 
U.S. forces thus ending the Taos Revolt. (A) 

Battle of Buena Vista February 22/23 Antonio López de Santa Anna engages 
Zachary Taylor south of Saltillo in one of the largest battles of the war. (I) 

Battle of the Sacramento February 28 Alexander W. Doniphan captures 
Chihuahua. (A) 

Battle of Embudo Pass January 29 Last insurgent stand before the Siege of 
Pueblo de Taos. (A) 

Siege of Veracruz March 9-29 Beginning with Marine landings, U.S. forces 
besiege and gradually encircle Mexican Marines and Coast Guard in vicious 
twenty-day siege. (A) 

Battle of Cerro Gordo April 18 Dubbed the "Thermopylae of the West." (A) 

Battle of Tuxpan April 18 Commodore Perry seizes the port city of Tuxpan 
on the Gulf coast. (A) 

Occupation of Perote April 22 54 Guns and mortars, and 500 muskets captured.  

Skirmish at Las Vegas, New Mexico June 6 – (A) 

Second Battle of Tabasco June 16 Commodore Perry captures Villahermosa, 
the last port city on the Gulf coast. (A) 

Battle of Contreras (also known as Battle of Padierna) August 19 Santa Anna 
fails to support the Mexican line at a critical moment; turns victory into rout. (A)
 
Battle of Churubusco August 20 Regular Mexican troops and San Patricios 
under Manuel Rincón hold a fortified monastery against Winfield Scott; just 
over half of the San Patricios are killed or captured, the rest retreat with the 
rest of the Mexican forces in the area. (A) 

Battle of Molino del Rey September 8[2] Americans lose nearly 800 men in 
an attempt to take a suspected cannon foundry: "They fell in platoons and 
companies." (A) 

Battle of Chapultepec September 13 Scott assaults Chapultepec Castle. 
Los Niños Héroes pass into legend. Some captured San Patricios members 
executed the day before battle. (A) 

Battle for Mexico City September 13/14 Fierce fighting for Mexico City. (A) 

Siege of Puebla September 14 Mexican forces begin the siege of Puebla, Puebla. – 

Fall of Mexico City September 15 U.S. forces enter Mexico City. (A) 

Battle of Mulegé October 2 Mexican forces led by Captain Manuel Pineda 
defeated a small detachment of American forces near Mulegé, Baja 
California Sur. (M) 

Battle of Huamantla October 9 U.S. relief column is able to reach Puebla. (A) 

Siege of Puebla October 12 Siege of Puebla lifted. (A) 

Skirmish at Atlixco October 19 Also known as the "Atlixco Affair" (I) 


1848


Battle Date Engagement remarks Result 

Battle of Santa Cruz de Rosales March 16 Sterling Price advances into 
Chihuahua after the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was already signed. (A) 


From January to August Mexican partisans continued to resist the U.S. 
Army of Occupation. Formal fighting, however, had ceased by the end of 
January.





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