Second Army Corps (Spanish–American War) about one month. The number of deaths and at Thoroughfare Gap was 34. Only two brigades of the 2d Army Corps saw combat in the Spanish–American War. They left for Santiago de Cuba to reinforce Gen. Shafter's army. An armistice having been reached between the U.S. and Spain ending the war’s fighting on August 12, 1898. The Separate Brigade, 3rd Division 2d Army Corps, under command of Brigadier General Henry M. Duffield, left Camp Alger June 15, 1898. They soon saw action in the Battle of the Aguadores, Cuba. After which the brigade was transferred to the Fifth Army Corps
Battle of Santiago de Cuba Spanish government sent their fleet under Admiral Pascual Cervera y Topete to defend Cuba and keep an open line of communication with the Spanish garrison there; Cervera opposed this strategy. He believed his squadron lacked the strength necessary to engage the American squadron, preferring instead to engage the Americans near the Canary Islands or to mount an attack against the American coast, but he was overruled by his superiors in Madrid. Cervera's own misgivings reveal the seriousness of the situation faced: Lacking a clear strategy, the Spanish may have hoped to end the war quickly in a "glorious defeat" against