Battle of Guantánamo Bay The Battle of Guantánamo Bay was fought from June 6 to June 10 in 1898 , during the Spanish - American War , when American and Cuban forces seized the strategically and commercially important harbor of Guantánamo Bay , Cuba . Capturing the bay from the Spanish forces was instrumental in the following Battle of Santiago de Cuba and the subsequent invasion of Puerto Rico . Although overshadowed by the land and sea battles at Santiago , the establishment of the United States naval base at Guantánamo Bay and the rout of defending Spanish troops by American and Cuban forces was important in the final Spanish defeat . Background . Cuba had been in rebellion against Spain since 1895 . Soon after the rebellion began , two insurgent leaders — José Martí and General Máximo Gómez — had landed at beach of Cajobabo , between Guantánamo Bay and Cape Maisí , but after three years of fighting throughout the island , the rebels had only been successful in two provinces — Oriente and Camagüey . Following the explosion the of the battleship in Havana harbor in February 1898 , the U . S . declared war on Spain in support of the Cuban insurgents . Havana harbor was blockaded , and by the end of May the Spanish fleet was bottled up in Santiago Bay , west of Guantánamo Bay , by Rear Admiral William T . Sampson . In the U . S . , an army expeditionary force was rapidly being readied at the same time for action in Cuba . Thus , America was allied with the Cuban insurgents . Guantánamo Bay had a measure of commercial importance because of the sugar port of Caimanera on the western shore of the inner bay , some five statute miles ( 8 km ) from the sea . Spanish positions . Despite the nominal offensive position of the insurgents in the vicinity of Guantánamo Bay , Spanish regulars and guerrillas held Guantánamo City , the port of Caimanera and the railroad connecting the two cities , the large sugar mill s , and other outlying strong points . The Guantánamo garrison consisted of some 5 , 000 men under the command of General Felix Pareja . A Spanish blockhouse stood on the hill overlooking the village on Fisherman ' s Point near the entrance to the bay , and a fort on Cayo del Toro commanded the relatively narrow channel leading from outer to inner bay . The Spanish gunboat " Sandoval " was based at Caimanera on the inner bay , and a string of blockhouses defended the railroad to Guantánamo City , inland . The Cuban insurgents maintained coastal outposts from the mouth of the Yateras River , east of the bay , to a point west of Santiago , and were in undisputed possession of the western point at the entrance to the bay . Battle . Naval battle of Guantánamo Bay . The first successful U . S . foray against Guantánamo Bay occurred on 6 June , with the arrival of the light cruiser , captained by Commander Bowman H . McCalla , and the auxiliary cruiser s and , commanded by Willard H . Brownson . Commander McCalla had been detached by Admiral Sampson from the blockading fleet at Santiago and ordered to reconnoiter the bay for a naval base . The captain of " St . Louis " was to cut the cables which had their terminus in a small station on Fisherman ' s Point , and connected Cuba with Haiti and the outside world . On a previous occasion , " St . Louis " , on a similar mission , had been driven from the bay by the Spanish gunboat " Sandoval " . This time , as the three warships came into the bay at dawn , Spanish soldiers clustered about the blockhouse on the hill known today as McCalla Hill . The blockhouse and the village were speedily cleared by fire from " Marblehead " s six - pounder gun , along with a single shell . The Spanish gunboats " Alvarado " and " Sandoval " came down the channel from Caimanera to meet the attack but retired precipitately on discovering the caliber of guns against them . The one cannon of the fort on Cayo del Toro opened fire on " Marblehead " without effect until it was silenced . The telegraph cables leading east to Cap - Haïtien , west to Santiago , and the small cable in the bay connecting Caimanera and Guantánamo City with Cap - Haïtien were all successfully cut , and from 7 June - 5 July the town of Guantánamo had no communication with the outside world . Upon returning to the blockading fleet from the reconnaissance , " Marblehead " carried two Cuban officers who had been brought off to the ship from Leeward Point ( the western side ) of Guantánamo Bay . They had been sent to Admiral Sampson by General Calixto Garcia ( the same who figured with U . S . Lieutenant Rowan in the famous " A Message to Garcia " ) to report that the Cuban forces , whose outposts occupied positions on the coast from the mouth of the Yateras to a point west of Santiago were at the disposition of the U . S . Commander - in - Chief . Commander McCalla thereafter maintained close liaison with General Pedro Pérez , commanding the Cuban forces around Guantánamo City , through the latter ' s Chief of Staff , Colonel Vieta , and thus received valuable advice and assistance . Marine Assault Landing . With the decision to establish a base at Guantánamo Bay , the First Battalion of Marines , consisting of six companies of around 650 men ( four infantry and one artillery company ) , was ordered to proceed in the converted transport USS Panther , and join the fleet off Santiago . The First Battalion , under the command of Lt . Col . Robert W . Huntington USMC , had been undergoing battalion exercises while awaiting orders at Key West . The " Panther " reached Santiago on 9 June 1898 . That same day , in advance of the battalion landing , Navy Commander Bowman H . McCalla of the USS Marblehead , the officer in command of the landings , approved a camp site selected for the Marines by Lt . Col . Huntington . The site selected was a flat ridge on top of a hill , above the village on Fisherman ' s Point , and designated Camp McCalla . In addition to an artillery company equipped with a battery of four 3 - inch rapid - firing artillery pieces and a Model 1895 Colt - Browning machine gun , each marine was equipped with the Navy ' s new rapid - firing magazine rifle , the Model 1895 Lee Navy . Both the Colt machine gun and the Lee rifles used a new high - velocity smokeless powder cartridge , the 6 mm Lee Navy . The Marine battalion landed unopposed on 10 June with five of its six companies , leaving the artillery company aboard to unload the ship , as Commander Reiter , the captain of the " Panther " , had refused to authorize the use of ship ' s personnel for unloading duties . Reiter also refused to permit the unloading of the remainder of the Marines ' small arms ammunition , claiming that it was needed as ship ' s ballast . Lt . Col . Huntington sought assistance from Commander McCalla , who ordered Reiter to release the Marine ' s ammunition at once : " Sir , break out immediately and land with the crew of the " Panther " , 50 , 000 rounds of 6 - mm . ammunition , " McCalla ordered . " In the future , do not require Colonel Huntington to break out or land his stores with members of his command . Use your own officers and men for this purpose , and supply the Commanding Officer of Marines promptly with anything he may desire . " The Marines burned crude huts of the village and the remains of the blockhouse with all their contents to avoid the possibility of yellow fever . The Spanish had fled in such a hurry that clothing , money , jewelry and weapons had been left behind . The battalion raised the American flag , the first U . S . military unit to do so on Cuban soil , and sent out detachments for outpost duty . Lt . Col . Huntington ordered Company C to occupy a 150 - ft tall hill located some distance from the main Marine position , and which could not be supported by the main body at Camp McCalla . Two forward outposts were established , one at a road junction located several hundred yards ahead of the camp and known as the " Crossroads " , and one called " The Bridge " placed across a road a mile and a half from the American camp , where Spanish forces bringing artillery from Caimanera were expected . With the sea at their backs , a lack of mutual support between outposts , and the thorny scrub and cacti of the arid hills stretching in a dense tangle before them , the Marines had a less - than - ideal tactical position . Commander McCalla pointed out to Lt . Col . Huntington that his outposts were too far forward and could not be seen or supported in the dense undergrowth between the outposts and the main camp . Three of the companies stacked arms and returned to the ship to help with unloading operations . Shortly after sundown , the Marines had their first meal of coffee and hardtack . Soon afterwards the first alarm came . Voices were heard and lights seen in the thicket , but no attack came that night . Spanish forces defending the area were desperately short of food , and delayed attacking until the Marines had completed unloading their stores in hopes of seizing the American supplies . By daybreak , the Marines had completed unloading their stores and equipment , though the artillery pieces and their ammunition were left aboard ship . The remaining companies of the battalion came ashore , and Company C was withdrawn from its isolated hill outpost . The only sound in the thickets was the cooing of mourning dove s , a sound which Marines would later learn was a favorite signal call used by Spanish loyalist guerrilla forces . Lt . Col . Huntington was joined in the afternoon by Colonel Laborde of the Cuban army , who for several days had been with Commander McCalla as pilot on " Marblehead " , and now had been sent ashore to assist the Marines and provide intelligence about the enemy . Laborde reported the major Spanish force in the area had its headquarters at the " Well of Cuzco " , southeast of Fisherman ' s Point . The well provided the only fresh water in the area . This occupying force of about 500 soldiers and guerrillas , joined by the troops driven from the blockhouse on the bay , constituted the gravest threat to the U . S . base of operations . Laborde noted that seizing Cuzco Well and destroying it would inevitably force Spanish forces to retreat to all the way Ciudad Guantánamo ( Guantánamo City ) . As they spoke , firing began in the thicket in front of their position . Lt . Col . Huntington led most of his command forward . However , the thorny tangle of trees , underbrush , and cactus forced him to proceed with only one company . Battle of Camp McCalla . Although Huntington was now assured of naval gunfire support , Camp McCalla was tactically unsound . No attack had been expected , so no trenches were dug . The Marines ' artillery had not even been sent ashore . Located on the sands of the open beach , the Marine campsite proved an ideal target for snipers concealed in the brush . At daybreak ( 05 : 00 ) on Saturday , 11 June , Spanish guerrillas opened fire on the Marines at Camp McCalla from the surrounding brush . Firing a fusillade from their rapid - firing Mauser rifles , the guerrillas advanced towards the camp . After heavy fighting , and supported by the reserve company ( Company C ) the Marines drove the enemy back into the bush , pursuing the enemy until the chase was abandoned at dark . Two pickets on outpost duty , Privates William Dumphy and James McColgan , who were posted as an early - warning patrol 100 yards ahead of the " Crossroads " forward outpost were later found dead , shot and cut numerous times in the face and body . Their weapons , shoes , belts , and part of their clothing had been taken . This was the beginning of what Huntington ' s executive officer , Major Henry Clay Cochrane , later called " its 100 hours of fighting " . At Camp McCalla , the Marines dug in and began firing at the concealed Spaniards , aided by three 3 - inch field pieces and two additional 6 mm Colt - Browning machine guns which had been landed on 12 June by the . Gunfire from " Marblehead " passed overhead and impacted in the nearby hills . Wearing large palm leaves tied to their uniforms for camouflage , and firing smokeless powder cartridges , the Spanish forces were difficult to locate as they moved from bush to bush in the dense undergrowth . On the evening of 12 June , enemy forces came within fifty yards of Camp McCalla , and a desperate firefight began . Marines responded with their Lee straight - pull rifles , along with machine gun and artillery fire from the Marine 3 - inch field pieces . Perhaps deterred by the intense artillery and machine gun fire , the Spanish did not attempt to overrun the camp . Acting Assistant John Blair Gibbs and Sergeant Charles H . Smith were both killed in this exchange of fire . Marines later found several blood trails , but no bodies , as the guerrillas removed their wounded and dead to conceal their casualty figures . The next day , the Marines were reinforced by about 60 Cubans under Lieutenant Colonel Enrique Thomas . The Cubans had been equipped with rifles and white duck sailor uniforms by Commander McCalla from the " USS Marblehead " . Familiar with guerrilla tactics , the Cuban insurgents deployed in pairs in front of the camp , burning the brush and undergrowth as they advanced , thus denying to the enemy of cover . The " USS Marblehead " , which had provided shore bombardment on several occasions , steamed down the coast and shelled the well at Cuzco . Nevertheless , the Spanish attack was resumed at dusk , and two more Marines — acting Sergeant Major Henry Good and Private Goode Taurman — were killed . By nightfall on 13 June , the Marines were exhausted . They had not slept nor rested for 100 hours . Relief or reinforcements was impossible , since U . S . Army troops had yet to leave the U . S . The fighting continued for two more days . Battle of Cuzco Wells . Lt Col . Thomas of the Cuban rebel forces advised Colonel Huntington to attack the Spanish garrison at Cuzco Wells , consisting of four companies of Spanish infantry and two companies of loyalist guerrilla forces totaling some 500 men . By capturing and destroying the only nearby source of fresh water , it was hoped that the defending Spanish forces would be forced to leave the area . Commander McCalla approved the plans , and the attack was scheduled for 08 : 00 the next day . Marine companies C and D , about 160 men , under Captain George F . Elliott , a future Commandant of the Marine Corps , joined by the fifty Cubans under Lt . Col . Thomas , would approach Cuzco along the cliffs by the sea . A smaller Marine force would advance by an inland valley , holding a picket line for the main force , with men in reserve to assist if necessary . The gunboat was assigned to support the attack from sea . The day was already hot when the combined U . S . - Cuban force began its march on 14 June . Colonel Laborde guided the main force , and a Cuban scout named Polycarpio guided a smaller force led by 2nd Lt . Magill . The march was slowed by rough terrain , vicious undergrowth , and increasing heat ; at one point , the captains of Companies C and D in the main column had fallen behind owing to heat exhaustion . It was almost 11 : 00 when the main force reached the steep , horse - shoe shaped hill around Cuzco valley ; the commanders of Companies C and D rejoined their units fifteen minutes later . About the same time , the Cubans , who were marching ahead of the Marine companies , were spotted by the enemy . A race for the crest of the hill began . The Marines and the Cubans reached the summit first , under heavy fire from the Spanish and guerrillas . The smaller Marine force approached on the double , using their 6 mm ( 0 . 236 - inch ) Lee rifle s to pour a deadly crossfire on the enemy flank . Three of the four M1895 Colt - Browning machine gun s accompanying the Marines were used by Company C in the fighting . According to Pvt . John Clifford of Company D , the machine guns were instrumental in supporting the Marine assault . This was the first known tactical use of machine gun fire for mobile fire support in offensive combat . The light weight of the Marines ' new 6mm Lee cartridge proved to be of considerable benefit , allowing each Marine and machine gun crew to transport large amounts of ammunition over the mountainous , jungled terrain . Midway through the battle , the Cuban rebel forces ran out of 6 mm cartridges , and were resupplied with an additional six clips ( 30 cartridges ) from the belts of individual Marines , yet none of the Americans ran short of ammunition , despite firing some sixty shots apiece in the battle . During this portion of the fighting , Captain Elliott had requested that " Dolphin " provide fire support to the Marines by shelling the Spanish blockhouse and nearby positions with her naval guns . Through a miscommunication of signals , however , the gunboat began unknowingly dropping shells in the direct path of a small force of fifty marines and ten Cuban irregulars led by 2nd Lt . Magill , who was attempting to flank the Spanish position and potentially cut off any avenue of retreat . Affixing his handkerchief to a long stick and braving the Spanish fire , Sergeant John H . Quick took up an exposed position on the ridge to immediately wigwag a flag signal to " Dolphin " to adjust her gunfire . War Correspondent Stephen Crane , who had accompanied the Marines , later described the scene in his war tale " Marines Signaling Under Fire at Guantanamo " : " Sergeant Quick arose , and announced that he was a signalman . He produced from somewhere a blue polka - dot neckerchief as large as a quilt . He tied it on a long , crooked stick . Then he went to the top of the ridge , and turning his back to the Spanish fire , began to signal to the " Dolphin " . Again we gave a man sole possession of a particular part of the ridge . We didn ' t want it . He could have it and welcome . If the young sergeant had had the smallpox , the cholera , and the yellow fever , we could not have slid out with more celerity . As men have said often , it seemed as if there was in this war a God of Battles who held His mighty hand before the Americans . As I looked at Sergeant Quick wig - wagging there against the sky , I would not have given a tin tobacco - tag for his life . Escape for him seemed impossible . It seemed absurd to hope that he would not be hit ; I only hoped that he would be hit just a little , in the arm , the shoulder , or the leg . I watched his face , and it was as grave and serene as that of a man writing in his own library . He was the very embodiment of tranquillity in occupation . He stood there amid the animal - like babble of the Cubans , the crack of rifles , and the whistling snarl of the bullets , and wig - wagged whatever he had to wig - wag without heeding anything but his business . There was not a single trace of nervousness or haste . To say the least , a fight at close range is absorbing as a spectacle . No man wants to take his eyes from it until that time comes when he makes up his mind to run away . To deliberately stand up and turn your back to a battle is in itself hard work . To deliberately stand up and turn your back to a battle and hear immediate evidences of the boundless enthusiasm with which a large company of the enemy shoot at you from an adjacent thicket is , to my mind at least , a very great feat . One need not dwell upon the detail of keeping the mind carefully upon a slow spelling of an important code message . I saw Quick betray only one sign of emotion . As he swung his clumsy flag to and fro , an end of it once caught on a cactus pillar , and he looked sharply over his shoulder to see what had it . He gave the flag an impatient jerk . He looked annoyed . " When Sergeant Quick finished this message , the ship answered . Quick then picked up his Lee rifle and resumed his place on the firing line . For his gallant and selfless conduct during this action , Quick would later receive the Medal of Honor . " Dolphin " shifted her fire onto the enemy camp and blockhouse , and by 14 : 00 , the Spanish had broken and fled the blockhouse . Unfortunately , 2nd Lt . Magill ' s men were delayed sufficiently to prevent them from cutting off a Spanish retreat , though his men did capture the Spanish signaling station and its heliograph equipment . As the Spanish forces withdrew through a gully on the other side of the valley , Marines opened fire at a distance of 1 , 200 yards , firing volley after volley . The Spanish were unable to accurately return fire , allowing Marine Company B and the Cuban rebels to close the distance , firing as they advanced . The Spanish to first attempted to concentrate their fires on the Cubans and managed to kill two of them , but were forced back by marine rifle fire once again , at which point the remaining enemy , which up to that point had been withdrawing in good order , broke and scattered . Spanish Retreat . By 15 : 30 , the enemy had abandoned the battlefield , and all firing had ceased . Most of the Spanish had escaped , but a lieutenant and 17 enlisted men were captured , and the enemy suffered casualties of 60 killed and 150 wounded . They had left behind 30 modern 7mm Mauser rifles and ammunition . Two Marines and two Cuban rebels had been wounded , and two Cuban rebels killed , who were buried where they fell . The most serious casualties suffered by the Marines were from heat exhaustion , which disabled one officer and 22 men . Gunboat " Dolphin " took these aboard after the fighting was over for the trip back to Camp McCalla . The Spanish headquarters building ( blockhouse ) was burned , and the freshwater well at Cuzco was destroyed , thus ending its immediate usefulness , including to the Marines , whose officers would not let them drink from it prior to its destruction . Water was eventually brought up from the " USS Dolphin " after a wait of two hours . Spanish forces retreated in small groups of stragglers to Guantánamo , via Cayo del Toro and Caimanera . Apparently expecting the U . S . forces to follow up the victory , they fortified Dos Caminos , a small settlement at the crossing of two roads , and added several blockhouses to the number already erected on the rail line . The Spanish soldiers were apparently impressed by marine firepower ; upon arrival at Ciudad Guantánamo ( Guantánamo City ) , the surviving members of the Cuzco Wells garrison informed General Pareja that they had been attacked by 10 , 000 Americans . Camp McCalla saw no further attacks by Spanish or guerilla forces , and was disestablished on August 5 , 1898 . Meanwhile attention was soon focused on other areas of the bay . The Spanish were adding to their earthworks on Cayo del Toro , where they had three bronze guns and a modern Krupp gun . At Caimanera , on the bluff south of the village , were mounted three more of the guns , and the small gunboat " Sandoval " had a battery of one six - pounder and an automatic one - pounder Maxim gun . Aftermath . Bombardment of Fort Toro . Admiral Sampson decided to shell the fort of Cayo del Toro , and on 16 June he sent USS " Texas " and " Yankee " to join with USS " Marblehead " in this plan . Fire from the three ships temporarily dismounted two of the enemy ' s big guns , destroyed the buildings on the Cay , and drove the troops from all guns and trenches . Their combined firepower had reduced the Spanish fort to impotency within 15 minutes of initially engaging it . One enemy shell landed near the bow of the Marblehead , sinking within ten yards of the ship , but no hits were scored . Disaster jostled the U . S . ships as they steamed up the bay past Caracoles Point . As the Americans proceeded slowly , a lookout on " Marblehead " reported that the starboard propeller was foul of a buoy . The engine was stopped , and the propeller was cleared of the " buoy " , which turned out to be a contact mine . The mine was successfully disarmed . Afterward , it was learned that the ships had passed through a field of 18 such mines , or torpedoes , on the trip up the bay and through the same field on the return trip , without injury of any kind . A few days after the attack on Cayo del Toro , the mine field was thoroughly explored , and 14 mines were recovered . Their failure to explode on contact was attributed to mechanical faults , plus a healthy growth of barnacles on the contact levers . The minesweeping operation , carried out without specialized equipment , involved two steam launches and two whaleboats from " Marblehead " and " Dolphin " . A launch and whaleboat side by side , connected to the other launch and whaleboat by a rope with a chain drag in the center , swept the channel . When the drag met an obstruction , the boats came together and crossed the ends of the drag . The boats were then hauled carefully up to the mine , which was brought to the surface and disarmed . Twice the drag brought up two mines together . While sweeping for mines , the boats had been fired on from Hicacal Beach , where 250 Spanish infantry were posted to guard the mine field . It was determined to rout the last enemy force remaining in the vicinity of the bay , and on 25 June Lt . Col . Huntington led two companies of Marines and 40 Cubans in an amphibious assault on Hicacal Beach . It proved to be a bloodless encounter , since the Spanish had left a day or two earlier . Santiago Campaign . With Guantánamo Bay successfully occupied , US interest centered on operations at Santiago . An American expeditionary force of 17 , 000 officers and men under Major General William R . Shafter was landed east of the city at the small ports of Daiquirí and Siboney between 22 and 25 June , without opposition . A week later , on 1 July , the historic battles of El Caney and San Juan Hill ended in victory for U . S . forces , opening up the approaches to Santiago itself . On the morning of 3 July , a demand was sent to the Spanish commander , General Arsenio Linares , to surrender or suffer bombardment of the city as an alternative . On the same morning , the Spanish fleet under Admiral Pascual Cervera sallied forth from Santiago Bay , only to meet with complete destruction at the hands of the U . S . fleet . Major Spanish resistance at Santiago was at an end , although it was not until 15 July that a preliminary agreement was signed . U . S . forces occupied the city on 17 July . The 7 , 000 Spanish troops at the city of Guantánamo — only away — did not march to the aid of Linares ' besieged army , because prior to the cutting of his communications , General Pareja had been directed by his superiors to hold the city of Guantánamo at all costs . This was so ordered because the Spanish feared that the Guantánamo valley might be used as an invasion route by U . S . forces , as the English had once used it to advance on Santiago . After the Navy cut the cables and established a base at Guantánamo Bay , General Pareja remained in complete ignorance concerning the course of the war because the Cuban insurgents maintained such a tight ring about the city that not one messenger got through their lines . Fifteen were caught and executed as spies . None of General Linares ' frantic requests for aid reached Pareja . The threat posed by U . S . Naval forces and a battalion of Marines at Guantánamo Bay , plus the stranglehold on land communications by 1 , 000 Cuban insurgents , effectively pinned down an army of 7 , 000 men which might have changed the outcome of the fighting at Santiago . Less than a week after the surrender of Santiago , the base at Guantánamo Bay was used to launch the invasion of Puerto Rico , to the east . Three thousand five hundred troops under General Miles sailed from the Bay on 21 July . This was the last important event in the Spanish - American War phase of Guantánamo Bay ; on August 12 , the war ended with the signing of the peace protocol and an armistice . The new U . S . Naval Base was not formalized by lease agreement between the U . S . and Cuba until five years later , when in 1903 it was acquired as a " coaling and Naval station " , but its worth was already proven . Lt . Col . Huntington ' s Marine First Battalion , which had reembarked aboard the USS Resolute during the siege and surrender of Santiago , sailed for the United States , and after a stop at New York , arrived at Portsmouth Harbor , disembarking her marines on the evening of 24 August 1898 .