Fernando Montes de Oca (1829-1847) was one of the six Niños Héroes; historical figures in the history of Mexico for their participation in the events of the Battle of Chapultepec.
Courage, loyalty and honor. These are three qualities that have made a few great in the history of humanity, whether it is men or women, adolescents or defenseless children.
Battle of Chapultepec Source: N. Currier, via Wikimedia Commons
Hence, the name of Fernando Montes de Oca is so popularly known in Mexican society, for the exploits attributed to him in the framework of the War between Mexico and the United States of America between 1846 and 1848.
Montes de Oca, with only 18 years of age and 8 months as a cadet at the Military College of Mexico City, gave his life to defend his country. They were moments in which it was necessary to face the invading army that was advancing at accelerated steps through the Valley of Mexico to overthrow the Mexican troops, deployed in non-strategic places, the product of a mistaken military strategy.
His name appears along with 5 other cadets, and they are popularly known as the Niños Héroes. Precisely on this curious title, a series of myths and opinions have been woven that have caused controversy, especially between the political and scientific fields, since some facts presented to society do not fit with the existing evidence.
Hence, questions arise such as Why were only six considered heroes? Why was the Battle of Chapultepec the most important? However, what was never in doubt is the honor deserved by the brave soldiers and cadets who participated in the siege of September 13, 1847.
Biography
José Fernando Montes de Oca was born in Azcapotzalco, Federal District, Mexico, on May 29, 1829. His mother was Josefa Rodríguez and his father was José María Montes de Oca, an Army Captain, who died when Fernando was still young.
Although there are not enough records of the economic condition of his family, it is believed that in the absence of his father, a soldier dedicated to serving the country, Fernando asked to be enrolled in the Military College to emulate his example.
On January 24, 1847, at age 17, he began his academic term and service as a cadet. The institution provided him with food and clothing, as is normal for aspiring military men in this country; while his mother provided his shoes and other personal belongings.
Defense of the castle
His participation in the defense for his country took place between September 11 and 13, 1847, in the so-called Battle of Chapultepec, against the US troops who wanted to overthrow the fortifications of the Castle, headquarters of the Military College, before taking the City from Mexico.
The courageous action of Montes de Oca and 52 other classmates lies in the refusal to leave when Generals Mariano Monterde, director of the Military College and Nicolás Bravo, in charge of the defense of the Castle, gave the order to the 103 registered cadets to return to their homes, as the invading army far outnumbered them in number of soldiers and supplies.
The defense of this building was in charge at that time of 832 soldiers in the Castle and 400 additional by the San Blas Battalion, for a total of 1,232 soldiers in combat, compared to 7,180 of the enemy.
The work Commemoration of the epic feat of the child heroes: their origin, development and symbolism, describes with greater objectivity what that event meant:
“The cadets had nothing to do in that place, because Nicolás Bravo -who was entrusted with the defense of the castle-, seeing the lack of rifles and ammunition, ordered the students to return to their homes. What he really needed were already constituted and well-armed battalions, which (General) Santa Anna did not provide, making the defense of the hill almost impossible. Therefore, the decision to stay to defend the castle turned out to be an act of irresponsibility and disobedience, which cost the lives of some cadets and the captivity of most of them in the hands of the enemy ”.
For his part, Bércena - Díaz, affirms that the enemy attack began on September 12, 1847 with the bombardment of the defense walls, which demoralized the troops inside and caused some desertions.
This led to an imminent defeat of the cadet contingent with a balance of 6 young people killed, 4 wounded and 37 made prisoners of war. While the total number of Mexican soldiers killed in this feat was 600 dead. The rest were taken prisoner and others died in subsequent days from their wounds.
Death
José Fernando Montes de Oca died on the same September 13, 1847, when he tried to reinforce the active San Blas battalion along with other cadets in the vicinity of the Botanical Garden, at a time when the siege of the invading army had taken the Caballero Alto, the tower highest defense of the Castle of Chapultepec, and other positions of relevance.
Myths and controversies
Scientific records have validated that the ages of the Military College cadets ranged from 13 to 20 years. Unlike the official instructors who were a little older, but still young, there are only records of two younger cadets: Francisco Márquez, 13, and Vicente Ortega, 15, according to an official publication of the Mexican Chamber of Deputies.
On the other hand, from the six young martyrs cadets, a series of mystical and unproven romantic stories were added, which were gaining strength and adhesion throughout Mexican society.
To the point that the story of the six Niños Héroes has been widely disseminated in the school and preparatory education system, official acts and monuments as an absolute truth, and a transcendental milestone in the history of Mexico.
However, it has been questioned by some unions and researchers who follow the course of events, based on evidence from historical sources.
One of the widely extended versions attributed to Fernando Montes de Oca, was to believe that just before the Castle was taken, the cadet decided to take the flag of Mexico, wrap himself in it and throw himself out on one side of the building, to avoid giving up the national flag to the enemy.
However, this fact was also attributed on occasions to Juan Melgar and later to Juan Escutia. However, in this battle there is evidence that General Santiago Xicoténcatl, commander of the San Blas battalion, died in battle, wrapped in said national symbol.
In this regard, Doctor Placencia, in his research, puts into perspective one of the probable reasons for the origin of this myth.
The context in which this version was erected, three years after the end of the war, was in the midst of a set of policies to dignify and exalt the historical role of the Mexican Army in times of war. Rescuing the patriotic feeling and spirit of sacrifice to re-establish the military ranks, their morals, professionalism and loyalty. That is why he could affirm the following:
“The exaltation of the sacrifice of these individuals is more remarkable even when they die young, or almost children. Few things are as painful as seeing a funeral procession preceded by a small coffin ”.
That is why we conclude that the sacrifice of Montes de Oca, and that of the other cadets, won the respect, shock and affection of all the Mexican people, and on the other hand, the unison rejection of civil and political society for this military incursion.
The brave soldiers and cadets who participated in the siege of September 13, 1847 are all heroes, and thus they must go down in great history, with the backing of science and the memory of Mexicans.
Bibliographic references
- Free Universal Encyclopedia in Spanish (2004) Fernando Montes de Oca. University of Seville, Spain. Recovered from encyclopedia.us.es.
- Cuban Encyclopedia (2013). Fernando Montes de Oca. Ecured, Cuba. Recovered from: ecured.cu.
- Placencia de la Parra, Enrique (1995). Commemoration of the epic feat of the child heroes: their origin, development and symbolism. National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico Recovered from: historiamexicana.colmex.mx.
- Fundación Wikimedia, Inc. (2018) Battle of Chapultepec. Encyclopedia Wikipedia in Spanish, Florida, United States. Recovered from: es.wikipedia.org.
- Bárcena-Díaz, Leticia (2019) The child heroes of Chapultepec. Revista Vida Científica of the preparatory school, Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo, Mexico. Recovered from: repository.uaeh.edu.mx.
- Katty Bonilla (1999) The child heroes. La Lupa, Mexico. Recovered from: lalupa3.webcindario.com.
- Francisco Eli Sigüenza (2009) To the child heroes of Chapultepec. Honorable Chamber of Deputies, Mexico. Recovered from: diputados.gob.mx.