Battle of Cieneguilla

March 30, 1854

Battle of Cieneguilla Metal points from the Cieneguilla Battle Site. From a USDA "Final Report on the Battle of Cieneguilla: A Jicarilla Apache Victory Over the U.A. Dragoons March 30, 1854"
Apache and Ute forces led by Apache war chief Flechas Rayadas or Striped Arrows lay a successful ambush for US Army dragoons. The battle lasted four hours until US military retreat. With 60 dragoons present, the U.S. suffered 22 killed and 36 wounded, along with a loss of 22 horses and much of the troops' supplies. It is considered a part of both the Jicarilla War and the larger Ute wars, both of which were anti-colonial struggles against westward expansion, and the Santa Fe trail.