Filibusters, the American “Pirates” of the Antebellum Era

[Tsalagidave]

Although people are familiar with the word “filibuster”, most don’t realize the origin of its meaning.  In 1850s America, the name had a completely different definition. In our vernacular, it came from the Spanish word “filibustero” (aka. free-booter or pirate).  In America’s case, these were individuals (mostly citizens of the US and European countries) that mostly invaded Latin American nations like Mexico, Cuba, and Nicaragua in direct violation of US neutrality laws. Their purpose was to cast off the old world conservative Spanish papist governments and replace them with a more democratic government like the US.
The leader of this movement was a man named William Walker. Biographical evidence suggests that Walker compensated for his small (5’4”) stature and mediocre appearance with a prodigal degree of intellect as well as calm, confident and charismatic personality.  The critical flaws with his leaderships were that Walker was an inept military tactician and many of his policies proved to cost him more support than it did in promoting his cause.  Although most of the filibusters were typified as young teens to thirties in age from San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and New Orleans, their best field commander (Henningsen) was an Englishman. Many of the filibusters were young men from Britain and continental Europe. Many of the allied opposition were also professionals from Great Britain and Europe.
This is one of the lost chapters in American history. It is namely overlooked because it wasn’t something that America officially endorsed. Although his allies even helped him win US recognition of the reformed nation of Nicaragua, it was revoked shortly thereafter.  Despite the protection given to Walker by powerful allies in the US government, his activities were essentially illegal and bitterly opposed by powerful enemies in the US government, especially the anti-slavery factions.  Walker showed anti-slavery sentiment in earlier years but he revoked Nicaragua’s ban on slavery in an effort to solidify support from America’s southern states. This appears have done more to taint the image of the great adventure to “spread liberty and freedom” in Central America.
The Filibusters (who were originally mercenaries supporting the Democraticos) eventually defeated the Legitimista regime. The ousted faction along with an allied coalition (Costa Rica, Honduras and El Salvador) were joined by financial & weapons backing from Cornelius Vanderbilt  and a mixed bag of American and European mercenaries. After about 2-brutal years of grinding war and epidemics of Cholera, Typhus, Yellow Fever and Malaria, the Walker regime was deposed by force in 1857. Walker launched following expeditions to recapture Nicaragua but the end result was his death at the hands of a Honduran firing squad in 1860.
In regards to the historical impression, people who read history like a comic book liken filibusters to the riff-raff of society that wanted nothing but to plunder this pristine country. However, a more moderate view should be taken to truly understand them.  Most were opportunists/adventurers lulled by the promise of wealth and land at the expiration of their term of service. Idealistically, they wanted to oust what they perceived as a freedom-hating  dogmatic papist  theocracy in dire need of reform. They saw Nicaragua as another Texas. Disillusion with poor living conditions, disease, privation and increasingly insurmountable combat odds led to massive desertions and the regime’s eventual defeat.  Walker saw Nicaragua as a prime opportunity to expand a slavery-based plantation system in hope of winning support from the Southern States.
I know that I am leaving a lot out. Many books have been written on this so you are getting the stripped-down cliff notes here.  For those interested, here is  what the uniform looked like along with a timeline of some of the events.
(*Disclaimer, I have barely touched the surface at researching this so my facts/figures will certainly change as I continue to find more period resources. I did not list all of the skirmishes here. The unrest in the region contributed to the loss of many official records. I had to rely on contemporary accounts, memoirs and believable newspaper reports to fill in the blanks until better resources come to light.)
Democraticico & Legitimista Conflict
Filibuster units: La Falange Americana (The American Phalanx)-Later ARN (Army of Nicaragua)
Drill: Scott’s
Black campaign shirt with US Surplus accouterments  along with hunting bags. Shirts mostly cotton flannel with cotton or canvas pants being preferred. Dark or black felt hats with red ribbon marked “EJERCITO DEMOCRATICO” (Democratic Army)  were common headwear. Later, it was changed to a blue ribbon marked "Nicaragua Independiente". Early members brought their own arms, typically rifles, revolver(s) and bowie knives. It was often typical on campaign for there to be little uniformity .
Important dates/engagements.
•   June 16, 1855: Vesta (155 ton brig) embarks William Walker and 58 mercenaries  at San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua during a torrential rainstorm
•   June 27, 1855: Filibusters have 4-resignations but are reinforced my 110 Nicaraguan Democraticos and more American troops at El Gigante Point. Charles Doubleday joins the expedition.
•   June 28, 1855: Army assembles in Tola to prepare morning assault on Rivas, Nicaragua.
•   June 29-30, 1855: First Battle of Rivas. Without additional support or pressing the attack, Walker’s troops withdraw breaking through enemy lines and retreating.  
o   Filibusters: 5 killed, 12 wounded (5 of which are captured and executed by Legitimistas).
o   Legitimistas: Approx. 30-50 troops killed & wounded
*August, 1855: Col. Valle arrives with 170 Nicaraguan and 100 American reinforcements. Cholera outbreak decimates the ranks.
•   August 23, 1855: Battle/Skirmish of El Sauce. (Filibuster victory, still researching casualty reports)
•   August, 1855: “False” mission to Honduras as a feint
•   August 29, 1855: Vesta carries Filibuster party to San Juan Del Sur
•   September 4, 1855: Battle of La Virgen.
o   Valle (Democratico): 2 killed, 3 wounded
o   Walker (Falange Americana): 2 wounded
o   Legitimista:  60 killed, 100 wounded *dozens reported dying of wounds
•   October 11, 1855: Legitimist Capital  Grenada taken by Walker in dawn attack
o   Filibusters: 1 Democratico  killed
o   Legitimistas: 3 killed
•   October 11, 1855: El Castillon “Virgin Bay Massacre” Ligitimistas & 150 European mercenaries in Castle-fortress fire on perceived Filibuster attack. 3 American “49er” emigrants, about 20 wounded. San Carlos (lake vessel) attacked: 1 woman & child  killed, another child lost foot.
•   November 4, 1855: ARN formed. 1st Rifle Bttn., 1st Light Infantry Bttn., Mounted Rangers
•   November 8, 1855: Ponciano Corral executed
•   November 23, 1855: President Rivas offers 250 acres to filibuster volunteers
•   December 17, 1855: 140 reinforcements arrive aboard steamer “Sierra Nevada” Walker puts into effect favoring shipping rights from Vanderbilt to Morgan and Garrison.
•   December 17, 1855: 140  reinforcements arrive on “Sierra Nevada”
•   January 1856: Cholera epidemic decimates Granada

Walker Government vs. Central American Allies (Campaign of 1856-1857)
Filibuster Units: ARN (Army of the Republic of Nicaragua) 1st Rifle Battalion, 1st and 2nd Light Infantry, Mounted Rangers
The uniform was mostly civilian wear although the use of black shirts and possibly black coats persisted throughout the conflict.
A new uniform from San Francisco arrived around January 1857 consisting of blue flannel over shirts or “tunics”,  with a white numeral for the unit and letter for the company, a black felt hat and canvas leggings. Period accounts suggest uniformity was not strictly upheld for long. In the final months of the war, a company of red-shirted volunteers (Red Star Guard) were added. Although there is a lot of mention about soldiers bringing arms from home, there is also heavy documentation of Model 1842 Rifled Muskets (aka. American Minie Rifles), possibly some Mississippi Rifles, as well as percussion muskets and captured “Tower Muskets” and “1851 British Minie Rifles”.
Drill: Scott’s
The Campaign of 1856/1857 (Walker’s Filibuster aWar)
•   March 1, 1856: Juan Raphael Mora, President of Costa Rica raises an Army and invades Nicaragua to oust Walker (War declared on Walker)
•   March 4, 1856: Costa Rican Army embarks on campaign
•   March 11, 1856: Walker aware of the invasion
•   March 19, 1856: 240 Filibusters “Corps of Observation” under Louis Schlessenger  is surprised and routed at Santa Rosa. Schlessenger abandons them in the field and is leaves Nicaragua.
o   Filibusters: 58-60  killed, 18 captured (15 are executed)
o   Costa Ricans: 18-20 killed, unknown wounded
•   March 29-31, 1856: Morale is low among Filibusters. Mass drunkenness reported.
•   April 7, 1856: Costa Ricans surprise and route Filibuster detachment at La Virgen
o   9 Filibusters killed
o   Rivas abandoned and occupied by Costa Ricans
o   San Juan Del Sur abandoned and occupied by Costa Ricans
•   April 9, 1856: Army assembled at Granada (500 Filibusters + 100 Nicaraguans). They then march on Rivas getting reinforcements along the way.
•   April 10-11, 1856: Second Battle of Rivas 650 ARN launch pre-dawn attack with brutal house-to-house urban combat through the city. Unsupported filibusters are outnumbered, and driven from the city. (Legend of Juan Santamaria lost his life burning out Filibuster stronghold) Costa Ricans still celebrate the 11th of April (Once de Abril) as a great victory worthy of a national holiday.
o   Filibusters: 200 killed and wounded
o   Costa Ricans: 800 killed and wounded
•   Mid-April 1856: Costa Ricans throw bodies of filibuster dead into the city’s wells instead of burning or burying them. Resulting Cholera outbreak  kills 2200 Costa Rican troops. Of the original army of 3500 Costa Ricans, only 500 survive the campaign. Army dissolves and retreats to Costa Rica taking the epidemic with them . 10,000 Costa Rican citizens die in epidemic.
•   June 29, 1856: Walker elected President (Democratico Party)  He has an elite uniformed  guard of 50 Cuban Soldiers
•   June 1856: Other allied nations, (Guatemala, Honduras, & El Salvador).
•   September 1856: Pierre Soule reintroduces slavery to Nicaragua. Walker officially lifts the ban in the hopes of attracting more support from the pro-slavery states in the American South.
•   September 5, 1856: San Jacinto Hacienda, 2nd rifle battalion attacks Alliedforce to avenge the killing of Democratico  Capt. Herrera. 140 Indian Legitimist conscripts fire volley without effect. Filibusters make disorderly retreat after their leader (Capt. Jarvis) and a Legitimist private shoot/kill one another.
•   September 14, 1856: San Jacinto Hacienda (2nd battle):  ARN & Mounted Rifles assault a now entrenched enemy in a direct frontal assault  against superior firepower. Filibusters are routed in disorder.-large scale desertions occur.
o   Filibusters: 27 killed (or wounded and killed by captors),  1 mortally wounded, 18 captured (all hanged Sept. 16)
o   Allies: 28 killed, ? wounded
•   October 11, 1856: Masaya, Nicaragua, Filibuster garrison sallies forth from Grenada to attack Allies in the center of Masaya. Allied army uses this as a feint to enter Grenada and attack the remaining Filibusters there.
o   Filibusters: 25 killed, 85 wounded
o   Allies (Gen, Zavala) 200 killed/wounded/captured
•   November 11, 1856: Puente Grande. Filibusters routed by Allied Minie Rifles and artillery. Casualties  (unknown)
•   November 15, 1856: Battle at Masaya
o   Allies:  25 killed, 50 wounded
o   Filibusters: ?
•   November 19, 1856: Protracted fighting at Masaya
o   Allies: 43 killed, 82 wounded
o   Filibusters: 100 killed & wounded
•   November 23, 1856: Ocean battle between Filibuster Navy (Schooner Grenada) vs. Costa Rican Navy (Once de Abril)
o   Costa Rica: Once de Abril explodes and sinks. 66 killed, 43 wounded (12 mortal) captured with the rest of the survivors
o   Flilbusters: 1 killed, 8 wounded
•   November 24-December 12, 1856: Grenada, Nicaragua (Filibuster capital city) falls to the allies after protracted fighting that began in October 11, 1856. Last stand at the Guadelupe Church before city burned by Filibusters as they retreated to join with 160-man rescue party led by Maj. John Waters. The filibuster rescue force broke through the allied lines with such ferocity that the Allied commander thought that there was a full counter attack and withdrew his army from the city. Surviving filibuster force retreats to the lake steamers and escape after leaving a message on a lance posted in the ground “Aque fue Grenada”  (Here was Grenada).
o   Filibusters:  110 killed and wounded, 120 dead from typhus and cholera,  40 desertions, 2 captured (fate unknown)
o   Allies: Hundreds killed wounded and missing (still researching for surviving records)
•   December 16, 1856: Filibusters occupy Rivas
•   December 22, 1856: 200 Costa Rican pathfinders under command of British mercenary Cmdr. Spencer attack 40-man Filibuster force under Capt. Thompson. Entire filibuster garrison is killed, wounded or captured.
•   December 22, 1856: Spencer’s Costa Ricans take Castle Point and San Juan Bay
•   January 1857: ARN receives new “blue shirt” uniforms from San Francisco. Morale low due to mundane diet of beef, tortillas, green fruit and guaro.
•   January 2, 1857: 30 Mounted Rangers  and 150 infantry clash with Costa Rican gunners on the lake steamer “La Virgen”. No reported casualties on either side.
•   January 16, 1857: General  Wheat  and Col. Sam Luckbridge + 220 filibusters expedition from Greytown down the mouth of the Sarapiqui river.
•   January 17, 1857: Battle of Hipp’s Point.  Filibusters retake Hipps and Cody’s points reopening the river.
o   Costa Ricans: 18 killed, ? wounded
o   Filibusters: Reported as “light” perhaps a few wounded/killed?
•   January 20, 1857: “Col.” Henry S. Titus and 180 “bleeding Kansas” pro-slavery ruffians arrive with their own armaments. There is immediate friction between them and the veteran filibusters.
•   January 30, 1857: Battle at San Jorge: Col. Henningsen’s attack was not supported by rival officer “Sanders”. He is forced to withdraw.
o   Filibusters: 80 killed/wounded in street fighting
o   Allies: (number of casualties not specified )
•   February 4, 1857: San Jorge Titus & Lockridge storm San Jorge. Allied general Maximo Juarez wounded in face. Reports indicate casualties on both sides but do not clarify on numbers.
•   February 6, 1857: 1 Cpt. & 19 Mounted Rangers desert and return to the US
•   February 16, 1857: Action at El Castillo. 140 Filibusters push back allied picket force into the castle ramparts.  Col. Titus demands unconditional surrender but is fooled by Spencer
o   Allies: 1 Cpt. & 1 Cpl. Killed
o   Filibusters: no losses
•   February 17, 1857: Titus routed by Allied relief force and driven 20 miles downriver. Titus is humiliated and he abandons his mission. His men leave with him.
o   Col. Titus command: 70 killed and wounded
o   Allies: Unknown
•   March 7, 1857: 70 California recruits arrive wearing uniform of red over shirts of the type popular in the California gold fields.  There are no more black shirts or black dye so they are christened the “Red Star Guard” (*Note, unit will lose 50% over the next month)
•   March 16, 1857: Fighting at St. Jorge while Allies attempt to take Rivas.
o   Allies: 327-500 killed, 600 wounded (many would die of wounds later)
o   Filibusters: 2 killed, 21 wounded *Note: walker was unable to bury so many casualties so it was decided to burn the bodies rather than risk another cholera epidemic that devastated the Costa Rican army one year earlier.
•   March 23, 1857: Massed Allied attack on Rivas: Hundreds of allied casualties  with light filibuster casualties.
•   March 24, 1857: Massed Allied attack on Rivas: Hundreds of allied casualties  with light filibuster casualties.
•   April  1, 1857: Castle Point, after numerous attempts to break through and reach Walker’s forces to the West, 2/3 of eastern force decides to head east to cross isthmus via Panama and rejoin Walker on the west coast. 1/3 of force decides to head home to the US.
•   April 2, 1857: (per April 1, 1857 note.) Steamer “Scott” explodes due to sabotage. 60 filibusters killed, 25 wounded. Almost entire surviving Eastern force heads home to US.
•   April 11, 1857: 250 Costa Ricans launch attack through South end of Rivas Plaza against filibuster artillery
o   Costa Ricans: Dozens killed, about 200 captured
o   Filibusters: no reported number. Believed light or none
•   April 11, 1857: 500 Guatemalans under Zavala repelled at the northern suburbs with heavy losses. No exact number of Guatemalan casualties. No recorded Filibuster casualties
•   April 11, 1857: 250 Legitimist Nicaraguans under Martinez repelled at the city’s western approach with heavy losses.
•   Overall  casualties from the 3-part fight in Rivas on April 11, 1857:
o   Allies: 480 killed, 220 prisoners (150 disarmed and paroled)  70 retained to dig graves and be paroled later.
o   Filibusters: 3 killed, 9 wounded
•   April 14, 1857: Walker learns that he has lost all of his forces in the east of the country and that there is absolutely no chance of re-opening the transit road or connecting with the Atlantic coast.  His regime has also lost all support in the US. His war and the time of his Republic of Nicaragua are now over.
•   April 23, 1857: While American newspapers publicize the smashing victory Walker achieved on March 16, women, children and non-combatant citizens are evacuated onto US Navy ships to leave their newfound homes in Nicaragua forever.
•   May 1, 1857: Walker surrenders to Cmdr. Davis aboard the US Navy vessel St. Mary’s and is returned to the US to face criminal charges in violation of the US neutrality act.
There is so much more to the story but this is a quick article to get you acquainted with an almost forgotten chapter in American history.

-Dave

[Caleb Hobbs]

Great information here, Dave. I look forward to your next installment.

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Some Filibusters made it to British Columbia for the gold rush in 1858, and were instrumental in causing "The Canyon War" which was our one foray into White on Red open warfare.

[Advertising]

[Tsalagidave]

Yep, Canada also had filibuster attempts. Mexico, Cuba and Central America were the primary targets of this movement. Like the American Civil War, you just can't paint it in black & white as to trying to identify a "good guy" or "bad guy".  Filibusters could have been seen as liberators bringing the ideals of America's constitution to a struggling region or as opportunistic invaders imposing their will on an already sovereign nation.

Below are newspaper clippings from my collection.
This is of the disastrous defeat of the Allies where they lost at least 600 killed and about the same wounded. Filibuster losses were counted at 2 killed, 21 wounded.

[Tsalagidave]

After the battle of San Jorge (St. George), Walker's men burnt the bodies of the dead to avoid another devastating cholera epidemic such as the one that decimated the Costa Ricans and their country the previous year.

[Tsalagidave]

Here is an illustration of the battle between the Filibuster vessel "Grenada" vs. the Costa Rican Navy's "Once de Abril" which sank with a great loss of life.

[The Elderly Kid]

One of the lesser-known filibusters was the Henry Crabb Expedition of 1857. Seeking to seize land in Sonora by taking advantage of a minor civil war going on in northern Mexico, Crabb set out from California with about 100 volunteers, with recruiters promising to send hundreds more shortly. The reinforcements never arrived and the force was surrounded by the Mexican Army. After an 8-day standoff, the survivors, around 50, surrendered. The victors settled the matter in the grand old Mexican fashion: the survivors were lined up against a wall and shot. After losing half their country to the U.S. ten years earlier, the Mexicans were in no mood for funny stuff from the norteamericanos. Cormac McCarthy drew heavily on the Crabb filibuster for "Blood Meridian," though his Captain White expedition sets out from Texas in 1849 and is wiped out by Comanches, not the Mexican army. But in the Crabb filibuster, as in BM, the only survivor was a 14-year-old boy, spared by the Mexicans because of his youth.

[Tsalagidave]

The Crabb campaign was arguably the worst of the attempts on Mexico. Before setting his sights on Nicaragua, Walker took on Baja/Sonora in an unsuccessful attempt and was nearly wiped out himself. The Mexican army learned from this and resolved not to let the next incursion get off so easily.

-Dave

[Tsalagidave]

I am actually  putting together a series of impressions for this. I'd like to do an early-mid & late war version. Doubt it will ever really catch on but its worth representing at historical fairs since this chapter has been almost completely forgotten even in historical circles.

-Dave

[Professor Marvel]

Excellent work, Dave.

one of his contemporaries, a Samuel Brannon, went Filibustering to overthrow the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1851, essentially for his own commercial gain.

http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/3635590?uid=3739816&uid=2129&uid=2&uid=70&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21103785488593

not a lot has changed in ~260 years, nicht wahr?

yhs
prof marvel

[Tsalagidave]

I found some interesting information on the Red Star Guard. It also clarifies a few more details about the various engagements in late March of 1857.

The Red Star Guard arrived in Rivas Nicaragua on March 7, 1857. There were 70 men under Captain Stewart and were placed under command of Major. Stephen S. Tucker (formerly US Mounted Rifles). They all wore the traditional red-flannel mining shirts sold commonly in the California Mining Districts and went into action on March 16, 1857 in Rivas Nicaragua.

They were armed with weapons from the steamer "Grenada" that were reported to be "Minie Muskets" by William Walker in his 1860 book. These were more than likely British m1842 muskets that were rifled or the  .70 m.1851 Minie Musket; both of which were quite common in that region and typically generalized as "Minie Muskets" throughout the conflict.

They made their breastworks in the Rivas town plaza 70-80 yards left of an in advance to the location of the church.
While they were finishing construction, they were attacked directly by the Costa Rican Infantry coming into the town through the Plantain Fields. After heavy fighting, they fell back to the church. Of the 71 men engaged, 2 were KIA with 4 Mortally Wounded in addition to roughly half the group "hurt" in some way shape or form. Tucker was wounded in his right hand.

On the morning of March 25, 1857, they were relocated to the south end of the town where they held off an assault of 600 conscripts under Fernando Chamorro. During the savage house-to-house fighting, they managed to trap an entire company of allied troops in a building, compelling them to surrender after the trapped allies suffered many casualties.

They would continue to fight throughout the bloody month of April before surrendering to US troops along with the other surviving members of Walker's Filibuster army to be transported back to the US and face criminal charges in violation of the US Neutrality Act. Most of the charges were dropped thanks to the efforts of Walker's political Allies in the Democratic Party.

Walker would write a book and attempt twice more to regain Nicaragua before he was arrested by the British Navy and turned over to Honduran authorities who promptly executed him in 1860.

-Dave

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Above, I mentioned that some Filibusters made it to British Columbia in 1858. They were key players in The Canyon War along the Fraser River. There is supposed to be a book on the way, but until then, here is a wiki article. Perhaps historians of the filibuster campaigns in Central America will recognize some names;

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraser_Canyon_War

[Jake C]

I had the chance to go to Costa Rica with a buddy of mine who had family there. He told me the story of William Walker. It seems that in Costa Rica he's thought of almost fondly, kind of like what he was trying to do was so out there that it was kind of charming.

Thanks for posting, it sure was an interesting read!

[Tsalagidave]

From reading the Wiki, it appears that little research was done on this to date but the actual records are out there waiting to be read, and cited.

The only name that rung a bell was Thompson.  There was a Col. Thompson of the ARN who was mentioned as guarding the Transit Road near the mouth of the Serapini River. This may be the same guy but I can't be sure. There were however a lot of French and Germans who filibustered in Central America. A lot of this can be attributed to the Young Hegelian movement that influenced William Walker and likely did so with many of the French and German soldiers as it was so popular on the European Continent.

I myself know very little about this campaign in Canada so I can't speak on it with any authority unless I do more research on  it.

I have Walker's accounts (pub. in 1860) and Doubleday's memoirs as well so I may want to drudge through it a piece and see what comes up.

Thanks for the insight Charles.

-Dave

[Tsalagidave]

I had the chance to go to Costa Rica with a buddy of mine who had family there. He told me the story of William Walker. It seems that in Costa Rica he's thought of almost fondly, kind of like what he was trying to do was so out there that it was kind of charming.

Thanks for posting, it sure was an interesting read!

Trum, you are one of the few Americanos who knows of the Filibuster War in Central America. No doubt, your Costa Rican friends told you all about Juan Santamaria. He was a national hero fighting against the Filibusteros.

-Dave

[Jake C]

Trum, you are one of the few Americanos who knows of the Filibuster War in Central America. No doubt, your Costa Rican friends told you all about Juan Santamaria. He was a national hero fighting against the Filibusteros.

-Dave

He did indeed. It's a fascinating story, that's for sure.

[Tsalagidave]

I was reading an the Nov. 1, 1856 edition of El Nicaraguenese and found a mention confirming both in name and description that the "American Minie" M1842 Rifled Muskets were the typical issue arm of the ARN.  It was noted by Henningsen who was in charge of the Army's ordinance. 

Other good sources are William Walker's "The War in Nicaragua" (1860) published months before Walker was handed over to Honduran authorities and executed.  Another is Abner Doubleday's "Reminiscences of the Filibuster War".  The regime even had their own newspaper ( El Nicaraguenese) of which some copies still exist.

-Dave