Battle of La Flor The Battle of La Flor was fought in May 1928 between the United States Marines , their Nicaraguan National Guardsmen allies , and a force of Sandinista rebels . It occurred at a hill north of the La Flor coffee plantation and ended with a rebel victory when the Americans and Nicaraguan National Guard troops were forced to withdraw . Battle . As part of the Coco River Campaign , United States Marine Corps Captain Robert S . Hunter was in command of a patrol along the Cua River . Besides the captain , there were thirty - eight Marines and guardsmen as well as United States Navy Corpsman Oliver L . Young . The men came from the garrison s of Quilalí , Matagalpa and Corinto plantation . On 13 May , at about 3 : 40 pm , Captain Hunter was leading his men through a ravine when they were attacked by an advance guard of rebels positioned on a hill next to the Bocaycito River which links up with the El Cua River . The ambush was eventually beaten off so the Marines and Guardsmen continued on to the hill where the enemy fire had came from . The Sandinistas then commenced another attack , numbering at least seventy - five men , and in the fight Corporal William R . Williamson was hit with a bullet and killed . The corporal was carrying a Thompson submachine gun so Captain Hunter moved forward to retrieve it in order to open fire on the attackers . After picking up the weapon and returning fire , Hunter was struck in the neck by a bullet , and then once again in the shoulder . The captain could barely speak at this point so he wrote notes and instructions to his men on paper while the corpsman tried to tend to Hunter ' s wounds and that of another Marine private . The battle continued for about fifty minutes before the rebels retreated to take up positions along the trail leading back south . At that point , the Marines and Guardsmen captured the hill and began fortifying the position in case of another attack . However , all remained quiet and there was no more fighting that day . On 14 May , First Lieutenant Earl S . Piper assumed command and he chose to retreat in order to evacuate the wounded . Since the Sandinistas occupied areas along the trail , the only way to escape was by breaking through enemy lines to the south , back towards La Flor and Quilalí . Lieutenant Piper sent a reconnaissance patrol out and , when they returned without making contact with the rebels , Piper began his retreat . However , the Marines and Guardsmen had not made it very far down the hill when they were attacked again . Another forty - five minute battle was fought , during which the wounded Captain Hunter attempted to rejoin the fight before being put back on his stretcher . Expert firing from the patrol ' s machine guns and hand grenades thrown by Sergeant Gerald R . Brown successfully forced the rebels to retreat again , leaving the trail to La Flor open . By 10 : 30 am , a Marine reconnaissance aircraft located the battlefield , but the fighting was already over . Piper had broken through enemy lines without sustaining additional casualties and he arrived at La Flor Plantation the following morning . Aftermath . Upon arriving at La Flor the Marines and the Guardsmen began fortifying the area , but were not attacked . Lieutenant Piper reported the following : " " Realizing that Capt . Hunter could not be moved for several days and that we could not move without reinforcements we asked for same and also rations , when planes appeared at 1100 and when we found it was impossible to arrange a pick - up at this place . " " On 16 May , when the aircraft returned they confirmed that reinforcements were on their way and , on 17 May , they dropped additional medical supplies . The pilots also suggested that Captain Hunter be evacuated via the Coco River , which Piper agreed was the best solution . Hunter was still regaining his strength so Piper decided to march for the river on 18 May , but the captain died of his wounds at 3 : 25 am on the same day and was buried at the plantation . The Battle of La Flor was one of the few victories of the Sandinistas during the American occupation , despite the fact that the Marines and Guardsmen defeated all of the rebel attacks . Captain Hunter would later receive the Navy Cross for his bravery in battle , as did Corpsman Young , who treated Hunter ' s wounds while under accurate enemy fire . Hunter ' s remains were later reburied in the United States in 1929 . Casualties of the Marines and Guardsmen amounted to two dead , including Hunter , and one wounded , while the Sandinistas lost five killed .