In 1814, the first First Battle of San Mateo was fought

It was February 28, 1814, when the Liberator Simon Bolivar and his patriotic Army defeated the royalist forces of José Tomás Boves in the incredible First Battle of San Mateo, a fight that lasted more than ten hours in the streets of the town, on the river, on the roads, on the heights.

At this important meeting of the Venezuelan War of Independence, Boves' injuries forced him to retire, leaving between 800 and a thousand dead and wounded on the battlefield. Victims of this action were, among others, the distinguished patriots Manuel Villapol and Vicente Campo Elías.

The Battle of San Mateo is described by the Venezuelan military historian, General Héctor Bencomo Barrios, in one of his many works on homeland history, as follows: “In the early hours of February 28, the realists attacked. Boves, with the main column, charged against the right; while Morales charged against the center, and another small column against the left. To counter Boves' attack, Bolívar employed the Barlovento battalion (Vicente Campo Elías), at the same time he repulsed Francisco Tomás Morales with rifle and artillery fire. From the Republican left, Lieutenant Colonel Gogorza counterattacked the realist right and put it in retreat. The fight was decided in favor of Bolívar when he launched a counterattack on the forces of Boves, who withdrew to the other side of the Aragua River.”

Mazo News Team