During the 1912 Nicaraguan revolution, rebel General Benjamín Zeledón fortified Coyotepe Hill—a 500-foot elevation commanding the vital railroad between Managua and Granada. After Zeledón refused U.S. and government surrender demands, Marine Major Smedley Butler's battalion returned from capturing Granada to shell the position. In the pre-dawn hours of October 4, Butler coordinated with Marine Colonel Joseph Pendleton's forces in a multi-pronged assault that overwhelmed the rebel stronghold. Zel