Commander in Chief of the French Forces, Bazaine decided to lead the siege of Oaxaca City in person and by the end of January 1865, the besieging forces numbered seven thousand men. The use of artillery began on 4 February, and an assault was ordered for the 9th. The amassing of forces inspired a panic in Diaz' men and not willing to engage in a hopeless last stand, he surrendered, and was later sent to Puebla to be imprisoned, where he would escape seven months later and raise armies in the southern state of Guerrero. Back in France, Forey, the former commander in chief of French forces in Mexico criticized Bazaine for not immediately executing Diaz. The former Republican General José López Uraga sent a letter to Diaz hoping to win him over to the imperialist cause, arguing that guerrilla warfare was devastating the country and assuring Diaz that the independence of Mexico was secure under Maximilian. Diaz rejected this offer.
