Battle of Caloocan

Battle of Caloocan
Part of the Philippine–American War
An illustration of the battle
Date February 10, 1899 Location Caloocan, Manila Result American victory
Belligerents
United States	Philippine Republic
Commanders and leaders
Arthur MacArthur Jr. Harrison Gray Otis Frederick Funston	Antonio Luna Paco Román
Strength
3,312 1 protected cruiser 1 monitor	~5,000
Casualties and losses
6 killed 61 wounded	Unknown

The battle of Caloocan was one of the opening engagements of the Philippine–American War, and was fought between an American force under the command of Arthur MacArthur Jr. and Filipino defenders led by Antonio Luna in February 1899. American troops launched a successful attack on the Filipino-held settlement of Caloocan on February 10, which was part of an offensive planned by MacArthur Jr. Occurring a few days after an American victory near Manila on February 4–5, the engagement once again demonstrated the military superiority that American forces held over the Philippine Revolutionary Army. However, it was not the decisive strike that MacArthur had hoped for, and the war continued for another three years.

From 1896 to 1898, Filipino revolutionaries led by the Katipunan waged the Philippine Revolution against Spanish colonial rule. Despite providing assistance to the revolutionaries, the United States decided to annex the Philippines in the 1898 Treaty of Paris. On February 4, American troops fired on a Filipino detachment, sparking war between the U.S. and the newly-established Philippine Republic. Over the following days, American commanders in the region made plans to attack Caloocan. On February 10, American forces launched a three-hour bombardment of the settlement; immediately afterwards, a large U.S. force advanced towards Caloocan. Aided by a surprise attack, American troops successfully stormed the city.

The capture of Caloocan placed sections of the Manila-Dagupan Railroad along with large amounts of rolling stock into the hands of U.S. forces. However, as the majority of Luna's troops were able to retreat intact and were soon able to regroup elsewhere, the battle did not have the decisive impact that American military commanders had initially hoped for. On February 22, Filipino forces launched an attack on American positions on Manila but withdrew after two days of fighting. Later, allegations that U.S. troops had committed atrocities such as summarily executing Filipino prisoners of war during the battle were investigated by a Senate Committee on the Philippines, which chose not to pursue the matter further.