May 24th, 1822 - The Battle of Pichincha

Conflict: Ecuadorian War of Independence

Combatants: Revolutionaries vs. Spanish and Royalists

Location: Ecuador

Outcome: Revolutionary victory

In the spring of 1822, Simon Bolivar dispatched 2,000 men under General Antonio de Sucre to trap the Spanish forces in the mountains near Quito, Ecuador. On May 24th, 1822, Melchor Aymerich, the governor-general of Quito, launched an attack on the revolutionaries who were arranged on the slops of the volcano Pichincha. De Sucre ordered a flank attack on the Spanish forces which blunted their assault and drove them back down the mountain. The Spanish were defeated and suffered losses of nearly 600 men. The revolutionary losses were about half as many.

Batalla de Pichincha libre by an unknown artist

Point of Interest:

• Aymerich surrendered on the following day and De Sucre occupied Quito.

• The victory at Pichincha ended Royalist resistance in the entire province.

Antonio José de Sucre by Arturo Michelena

Melchor de Aymerich by an unknown artist

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Sources:

Dupuy, Trevor N., Johnson, Curt, & Bongard, David L. (1992). The Harper's Encyclopedia of Military Biography. New York: Castle Books (HarperCollins).

Dupuy, R. Ernest & Dupuy, Trevor N. (1993). The Harper's Encyclopedia of Military History. New York: HarperCollins.