José María Morelos had by this time in the war, made it his goal to conquer the mountainous region of south east Mexico.

He decided on Orizaba also in part because of the large sums of money and property in the city belonging to the Viceroyalty of New Spain.

In an effort to avoid a battle with such lopsided odds, Morelos sent a representative to discuss terms of surrender with the defending Spanish garrison who promptly refused his offer.

The rebel forces were there met with a strong barrage of artillery and musket fire causing relatively high casualties.

Morelos took direct command of the Santa Catarina column with which he was able to successfully take the Cerro del Borrego, one of the high ground areas surrounding the city.