Secretary Tracy relieves Commander Reiter over the Barrundia Affair, January 1891 (1891)

Secretary of the Navy Benjamin Franklin Tracy censured and relieved Commander George Cook Reiter of USS Ranger following the Barrundia Affair. Reiter, the senior U.S. naval officer at San José de Guatemala, delayed asylum for General Juan Barrundia, who was killed by Guatemalan officers aboard the SS Acapulco. The incident occurred in Guatemalan waters, contradicting the legacy row's location of Panama City.

Episodes

Background and detail

Background. General Juan Martín Barrundia, a former Guatemalan Secretary of War, sought political asylum in the United States while aboard the American-flag ship SS Acapulco at a Guatemalan port. Commander George Cook Reiter, the senior U.S. naval officer present at San José de Guatemala, delayed Barrundia's asylum request to seek permission from the Guatemalan government, which never arrived.

The Barrundia Affair. Guatemalan officers boarded the SS Acapulco and killed Barrundia during a gunfight while he resisted arrest. This incident, known as the Barrundia Affair, brought national attention to USS Ranger and its commander, Reiter, in 1890. The event occurred in Guatemalan waters, specifically at Puerto San José.

Relief of Commander Reiter. Secretary of the Navy Benjamin Franklin Tracy, who served from 1889 to 1893, censured and relieved Commander Reiter of his ship on account of the Barrundia Affair. The legacy row's location of Panama City is contradicted by sources placing the incident at San José de Guatemala.

People involved

Sources

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