To the Editor:

As a boy growing up, I remember my father, an artist, spending so much time in his studio. And while working, he continuously played his favorite records, which I grew up listening to and will always remember. I was introduced at this early age to Gilbert and Sullivan musicals and Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story. My favorite songs were by the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem — most especially their live 1962 concert recording at Carnegie Hall in New York City.  

There is an excellent tavern and restaurant up the road from where I live. At some point recently, I happened to discover there a computerized jukebox that can search for almost any song imaginable.  I cried for joy when I first played some of my favorite songs. (Yes, in case you guessed, I am of mostly all of Irish descent and in fact lived there for awhile when very young.)

The only problem was my music was not so popular with the owner who flew out of the kitchen every time I played “Free Born Man” and turned the volume way down.  Frustrated I was beyond the beyonds.  It took a while for me to solve this problem but solve it I did.

I purchased on eBay a stack of Irish CDs. (They used to be called “records.”)  Driving to and from the restaurant, which I often refer to as the “Miracle of Knox,” I began playing my Irish tunes as the car had a CD player — another amazing discovery.

One time, I recall listening to this album and realized the Spanish songs I was hearing didn’t sound as Irish as they should be. Upon close inspection of the CD cover, I learned the production was by a very well-known Irish group called the “Chieftains” and their friend Ry Cooder. I found an insert inside that explained the story and history of Los San Patricios, which happened also to be the title of this marvelous CD which I also had overlooked.

Far away from Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (where my brother Paul lives and works), in fact several thousand miles away, there exists a monument in Clifton, Connemara, on the west coast of Ireland, birthplace of John Riley, leader of Los San Patricios. Erected by the Mexican government, the statute was given to the Irish government in perpetual thanks for the bravery, honor, and sacrifice of the Batallon de San Patricio.

In 1846, a war grew out of unresolved border conflicts between Mexico and Texas.  During this United States War Against Mexico (from 1846 to 1848), John Riley led a group of several hundred immigrant soldiers — mostly Irish Catholics — who deserted the U.S. Army, changed sides, and joined the Mexican Army.

“Preferring to fight with the Catholic Mexicans against the Protestant Americans, the San Patricios were the only group of deserters in American history to band together in the service of a foreign enemy.”

Most served in an artillery unit where their experience helped immensely the inexperienced Mexican soldiers. These “San Patricios” were responsible for the toughest battles encountered by the United State in its invasion of Mexico. General Santa Ana said, if he had 200 more, he would have won the war.

The war went poorly for Mexico, ending in total defeat. In the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Mexico agreed to cede vast land tracts of what is now most of the American Southwest, leaving a lasting bitterness towards the United States.

Los San Patricios also fared poorly. Most were killed during the conflict. Many were captured, charged with treason, and hanged in the largest mass execution in the history of the United States.

Survivors in U.S. Army custody at the end of the war were given 50 lashes and branded with a “D” on their cheek or thighs.  John Riley was branded on both cheeks after the first “D” was backwards.  They were thought of as traitors by the U.S but revered and honored by Mexico and Ireland.

Mexico celebrates the Batallon de San Patricio on two separate days: Sept. 12, the anniversary of the executions, and March 17, Saint Patrick’s Day.

There is a plaque at San Jacinto Plaza in the San Angel District of Mexico City with an inscription that reads: “In memory of the Irish soldiers of the heroic San Patricio Battalion, martyrs who gave their lives for the cause of Mexico during the unjust US invasion of 1847.”

The annual celebration on Sept. 12 includes an honor roll call of the fallen soldiers as the crowd attending collectively chants after each name, “Murió por la patria!” (He died for the country!)

For decades, the U.S. Army denied the existence of Los San Patricios and covered up the Army’s abhorrent behavior, crimes, and cruelty. As recently as 1999, the distribution of a romanticized film depicting the battalion, “One Man’s Hero,” was cancelled by MGM studios and not shown in the United States.

With my brother working in Mexico for the past three years, and my discovery of Los San Patricios and their history in the in the war with the United States, I had this unexpected, poignant revelation that my brother Paul now has this opportunity on Saint Patrick’s Day, to celebrate with his Mexican friends in a more patriotic and meaningful manner than the boisterous partying and traditional parades that occur in the United States. The only problem, Paul told me, was his Spanish was not so good; he didn’t have many friends and he worked six-and-a-half days a week.  

Quite unexpectedly, I found through Facebook an unlikely friend in Cabo who is more familiar and insightful about Los San Patricios than I — much to my surprise and delight.  I shared with Luis my thoughts and spoke of my brother, Paul.  Luis decided it would be OK to start a Cabo chat group honoring Los San Patricios.

It is my hope that my new friends and their friends who are interested could get together now and then, especially on March 17, to socialize and celebrate. My brother Paul will certainly be surprised to hear about such a group. Perhaps he will be able to drop by. He does work these long hours.

I know my nephew, Billy, who also lives in Cabo, would be more than willing to participate, especially if partying is involved.  And my Mom of 66 years, Bette, who is in Cabo for awhile now, would be interested in meeting everyone.

Most likely, I’ll miss all the Cabo San Lucas get-togethers and celebrations as I’m at the Home Front many thousands of miles away. I do have a plan though to celebrate Los San Patricios on Sept. 12 and honor Mexico.

In a public ceremony at Lormits Park, I will raise the Mexican flag for a day, joining all the other already flying flags of Ireland; I’ll read out loud the names of the martyrs one by one to the crowd as they cheer “Murió por la patria!”

Ed Cowley

Altamont