Atlas of Battles

battle, notable, nineteenth century

Battle of Palo Alto

Battle of Palo Alto was a battle fought on 8 May 1846 at Brownsville, in what is now Texas, United States. It was part of the Mexican-American War, which ran from 1846 to 1848. The recorded result: American victory; Retreat of Mexican Army south to near the Rio Grande; Set the stage for the Battle of Resaca de la Palma the following day. Recorded strength: 2,288; 8 artillery pieces against 3,709; 12 artillery pieces.

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Битва при Пало-Альто
Битва при Пало-Альто. Adolphe Jean-Baptiste Bayot / Carl Nebel, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought8 May 1846
WhereBrownsville, Texas, United States26.020N, 97.465W
OutcomeAmerican victory; Retreat of Mexican Army south to near the Rio Grande; Set the stage for the Battle of Resaca de la Palma the following day
BelligerentsUnited StatesagainstMexico
Casualties and losses9 killed; 47 wounded; 2 missingand102 killed; 129 wounded; 26 missing
Part ofMexican-American War1846 to 1848

Where it sits in the Mexican-American War

Battle of Monterrey, 1846Siege of Fort Texas, 1846Battle of San Pasqual, 1846Capture of Santa Fe, 1846First Battle of Tabasco, 1846Siege of Los Angeles, 1846Blockade of Veracruz, 1846Thornton Affair, 1846Battle of Palo Alto, 1846Battle of Resaca de la Palma, 1846Battle of Monterey, 1846Battle of Yerba Buena, 1846Battle of Dominguez Rancho, 1846Battle of Natividad, 1846Capture of Tucson, 1846Battle of Chapultepec, 1847Siege of Veracruz, 1847Battle of Buena Vista, 1847Battle of Mexico-city, 1847Battle of La Paz, 1847Battle of San José del Cabo, 1847Second Battle of Tabasco, 1847Battle of Rio San Gabriel, 1847Battle of La Mesa, 1847Second Battle of Mora, 1847Battle of the Sacramento River, 1847Battle of Cerro Gordo, 1847First Battle of Tuxpan, 1847Second Battle of Tuxpan, 1847Third Battle of Tuxpan, 1847Battle of Churubusco, 1847Battle of Contreras, 1847Battle of Molino del Rey, 1847Siege of Puebla, 1847Battle of Mulege, 1847Battle of Huamantla, 1847Skirmish at Matamoros, 1847Siege of La Paz, 1847Siege of San José del Cabo, 1848Battle of Santa Cruz de Rosales, 1848Skirmish of Todos Santos, 184818461848Battle of Palo Alto, 1846
41 placed engagements of the Mexican-American War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date8 May 1846
PlaceBrownsville, Texas, United States
26.020N, 97.465W
KindBattle, nineteenth century
Strength2,288; 8 artillery pieces3,709; 12 artillery pieces
Casualties and losses9 killed; 47 wounded; 2 missing102 killed; 129 wounded; 26 missing
Commanders
Battle of Palo AltoBattle of Palo AltoBattle of Resaca de la PalmaBattle of BrownsvilleSiege of Fort TexasBattle of MatamorosBattle of Palmito RanchBattle of BrownsvilleEdinburgSan FernandoFalfurriasReynosaMcAllen100 km26.020N, 97.465W
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1846

Combat data (CDB90)

Attacker: US ARMYDefender: MEX ARMY
Strength2,2886,000
Casualties48 (2.1%)400 (6.7%)
Mission accomplishment, 1 to 1062
Outcomeattacker won
Duration1 day
Front width1.2 km1.6 km
Attacker advanced1.8 km

From the US Army Concepts Analysis Agency Database of Battles (CDB90, battle 157), public domain, in the CC0 tidy edition by Jeffrey B. Arnold. Figures are the database's estimates, compiled in 1990 from published histories, and may differ from the Wikipedia infobox above.

Battle of Palo Alto is one of 3,507 engagements of the 19th century in the atlas and one of 1,148 in present-day United States (58 in Texas).

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q2736004, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Palo Alto, revision 1370628472, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.