History

• Banner advertising Roosevelt's Rough Riders
  
  Theodore Roosevelt led the volunteer cavalry unit that came to be known as the "Rough Riders" during the 1898 war with Spain. They came from the southwest region of the United States as part of the First U.S. Volunteer Cavalry.
  
  

Misconceptions

• The Rough Riders had a support role in the charge on San Juan Hill, with African-American regulars taking the brunt of the casualties in the front ranks.
  
  

Significance

• The myth that the Rough Riders led the charge had the effect of lifting Roosevelt to the president's seat on his "reputation" gained during the Spanish-American War.
  
  

Fun Fact

• On arriving in Cuba, Roosevelt and his troops actually fought on foot, as their horses had been forgotten in Florida.
  
  

Theories/Speculation

• The Rough Riders did fight bravely at times in the war against Spain, but controversy still swirls around the reality of their reputation, the roles they played in the war and the use of this reputation by Roosevelt for his own political gain.