It is a high, steep mountain on the northern edge of the vast chain called the Cordillera Central. What a sight awaited Columbus and his men as they looked down upon the valley in the early light of dawn. Reports vary, and the numbers probably grew over time, as often happens with legendary battles, but somewhere between 30,000 and 100,000 Ta nos, the combined forces of Manicaotex and Guarionex, were gathered at the foot of Santo Cerro, ready to do battle with the Spaniards and Guacanagar 's men. The Spaniards descended to do battle and, despite their Indian allies, their cavalrymen, arquebuses, and advanced fighting strategies that had been polished throughout 800 years of fighting Moors back in Spain, they could not gain any headway against the Ta no warriors. Outnumbered and out fought, the Spaniards were beaten back and back, up the steep mountain.
Sources vary about how many days the battle lasted.
That night, said the witnesses, the Spaniards wailed and prayed, dreading the dawn and the deaths that they were certain awaited them. Certain defeat was avoided by a series of miracles that occurred during the night, or so eyewitnesses reported. In the early hours after nightfall, enemy Indians tried to burn down the Spaniards' cross, but they could only scorch it, despite all the dry firewood they piled around it. Unsuccessful in burning down the hated Christian symbol, they tried to pull the cross down, using thick vines of the bejuco plant, but couldn't pull it down. Frustrated, they tried to chop the cross down with their stone axes, but were also unsuccessful.