Page:Vol 6 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/82

62 five-months sojourn in the country, waiting, it was said, for his siege artillery. His army was near Amozoc early in March, and on the 10th Ortega declared Puebla under martial law. Four days later he invited families to leave the place at as early a day as possible, and notified foreign consular agents that an attack was impending. On the 16th the French were in front of Puebla at the hacienda de Álamos, and took possession of the Navajas and Amalucan hills, opposite and to the north of those of Loreto and Guadalupe. The next day they occupied those of El Tepozuchil and La Resurreccion, and pitched camps in Amalucan, Álamos, Navajas, and Manzanilla. Going round the position, they appeared on the Mexico road, occupying the San Juan hills, where Forey established his headquarters, and thus completing the line of siege. On the 21st they occupied La Noria and the church of Santiago. From that day began the actual fighting between besiegers and besieged, and five days later the bombardment with eight mortars and fifty heavy pieces of artillery, after two assaults on Fort Iturbide had been repulsed.

The army under Ortega at the beginning of the siege consisted of a little over 22,000 men. The general staff was as follows: quartermaster-general, Gonzalez Mendoza; chief of artillery, Paz; chief of engineers, Colonel Colombres; chief of medical department, Ignacio Rivadeneira; inspector-general, O'Horan. The division commanders were generals Berriozábal, Negrete, Antillon, Alatorre, La Llave, and Antonio Alvarez, who had charge of the cavalry.