Battle of La Arada The Battle of La Arada ( ) was fought on 2 February 1851 near to the town of Chiquimula in Guatemala , between the forces of Guatemala and an Allied army from Honduras and El Salvador . As the most serious threat to Guatemala ' s liberty and sovereignty as a Republic ; it was the most important military victory in the country ' s history as an independent state . Background . After Rafael Carrera returned from exile in 1849 , the Salvadorean ruler , Doroteo Vasconcelos granted asylum to the Guatemalan liberals , who harassed the Guatemalan government in several different forms : Don José Francisco Barrundia did it through a liberal newspaper that had been established with that specific goal ; Vasconcelos gave support during a whole year to a rebel faction " La Montaña " , in eastern Guatemala , providing and distributing money and weapons . By late 1850 , Vasconcelos was getting impatient due to the slowness of the progress of the war with Guatemala and decided to plan an open attack . Under that circumstance , the Salvadorean head of state started a campaign against the conservative Guatemalan regime , inviting Honduras and Nicaragua to participate in the alliance ; only the Honduran government led by Don Juan Lindo accepted . Meanwhile in Guatemala , where the invasion plans were perfectly well - known , President Don Mariano Paredes started taking precautions to face the situation , while the Guatemalan Archbishop , Don Francisco de Paula García Peláez ordered peace prayers in the Archdiocese . On January 4 , 1851 , Vasconcelos and Lindo met in Ocotepeque , Honduras , where they signed an alliance against Guatemala . The Salvadorean army had 4 , 000 men , properly trained and armed and supported by artillery ; the Honduran army numbered 2 , 000 men . The coalition army was stationed in Metapán , El Salvador , due to its proximity with both the Guatemalan and Honduran borders . Declaration of war . On January 28 , 1851 , the Salvadorean President sent a letter to the Guatemalan Ministry of Foreign Relations , in which he stated the following : The Guatemalan government responded laconically in the following terms : The Battle . The Allied army entered Guatemalan territory at three different places . On January 29 , a 500 - man contingent entered through Piñuelas , Agua Blanca and Jutiapa , led by General Vicente Baquero , but the majority of the invading force marched from Metapán . The Allied army of 4 , 500 men was commanded by the following : Additional troops were led by the Salvadorean General Ciriaco Bran y Carrascosa and by the liberal Guatemalan Generals José Dolores Nufio and Doroteo Monterroso . Guatemala was able to recruit 2 , 000 men led by : Carrera ' s strategy was to feign a retreat , forcing the enemy forces to follow the " retreating " troops to a place he had previously chosen ; on February 1 , 1851 , both armies were facing each other with only the San José river between them . Carrera had fortified the foothills of La Arada , its summit about above the level of the river . A meadow deep lay between the hill and the river , and boarding the meadow , a sugar cane plantation . Carrera divided his army in three sections : the left wing led by Cerna and Solares ; the right wing led by Bolaños . He personally led the central battalion , where he placed his artillery . Five hundred men stayed in Chiquimula to defend the city and to aid in a possible retreat , leaving only 1 , 500 Guatemalans against an enemy of 4 , 500 . February 2 , 1851 . The battle began at 8 : 30 AM , when Allied troops initiated an attack at three different points , with an intense fire opened by both armies . The first Allied attack was repelled by the defenders of the foothill ; during the second attack , the Allied troops were able to take the first line of trenches . They were subsequently expelled . During the third attack , the Allied force advanced to a point where it was impossible to distinguish between Guatemalan and Allied troops . Now , the fight became a melee , while the Guatemalan artillery severely punished the invaders . At the height of the battle when the Guatemalans faced an uncertain fate , Carrera ordered that sugar cane plantation around the meadow to be set on fire . The invading army was now surrounded : to the front , they faced the furious Guatemalan fire , to the flanks , a huge fire and to the rear , the river , all of which made retreat very difficult . The central division of the Allied force panicked and started a disorderly retreat . General Saget ordered a retreat for the division of General Cabañas . The Honduran division who was fighting alongside the Salvadorean in the center also retreated in panic . Soon , all of the Allied troops started retreating , but more than a retreat , it was an rout . Guatemalan historian , Francis Polo Sifontes , describes the scene after the battle : The 500 men of the rearguard under Colonel Navas were still fresh and pursued what was left of the Allied army , which desperately fled for the borders of their respective countries . The final count of the Allied losses were 528 dead , 200 prisoners , 1 , 000 rifles , 13 , 000 rounds of ammunition , many pack animals and baggage , 11 drums and seven artillery pieces . Polo Sifontes also noted : " . . . President Vasconcelos sought refuge in El Salvador , while two Generals mounted on the same horse were seen crossing the Honduran border . " Carrera regrouped his army and crossed the Salvadorean border , occupying Santa Ana , before he received orders from the Guatemalan President , Mariano Paredes , to return to Guatemala , since the Allies were requesting a cease fire and a peace treaty . Consequences . As an immediate result of the triumph of the Guatemalan Army at La Arada , a National Constituent Assembly enacted , on October 19 , 1851 , a Fundamental Letter of Government , called " Acta Constitutiva de la República " ( " Constitutive Act of the Republic " ) . It was brief ; of only 18 articles , but established the general principles of the Republic of Guatemala , which had been formed four years earlier . The battle of La Arada represented the dominance of Guatemala in Central America and ensured a period of restoration , security and economic progress . It also marked the beginning of Rafael Carrera ' s position as President for Life .