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Teddy Roosevelt, Rough Rider card art from Lost Chapters (Garnet, Character)
Card art: Teddy Roosevelt, Rough Rider

Teddy Roosevelt, Rough Rider: Garnet Character

Teddy Roosevelt was a Rough Rider in the Spanish-American War of 1898. He resigned as Assistant Secretary of the Navy to serve as lieutenant colonel of the 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry, and on July 1, 1898, he led charges up Kettle Hill in the Battle of San Juan Heights in Cuba, which earned him a Medal of Honor more than a century later.

Cost
4 crystals
Type
Character · Free Spirit
Power / Health
4 / 3
Color
Garnet (Rebels, Pirates & War)
Rarity
Rare
Set
Liberty & Lightning (Set 1)
Keywords
Swift

Swift

While you control The Rough Riders, gets +2/+0.

Asthmatic-turned-adventurer who charged up San Juan Hill, through the White House, and into conservation history.

Real history

The real history

In April 1897 President William McKinley appointed Theodore Roosevelt Assistant Secretary of the Navy. Trouble with Spain over Cuba was growing. Early in 1898 the battleship USS Maine exploded in Havana harbor, killing 262 American sailors. The cause was never settled, but the disaster pushed the country toward war.

The United States declared war on Spain on April 25, 1898. That day Roosevelt was appointed lieutenant colonel of the First U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, and on May 6 he resigned his Navy post. Colonel Leonard Wood commanded the new regiment, which was soon known as the Rough Riders. Its officers sorted through some 23,000 applications. The unit was first set at 780 men and quickly raised to 1,000, and Roosevelt traveled to San Antonio, Texas, to gather volunteers from New Mexico, Arizona, Oklahoma and Indian Territory.

In Cuba the Rough Riders fought at Las Guasimas on June 24, losing 7 men killed and 34 wounded. Their great test came on July 1 at the Battle of San Juan Heights. About 6,600 American troops attacked roughly 4,500 Spanish defenders. On a horse named Texas, Roosevelt led a series of charges up Kettle Hill. The cavalry division lost 375 killed and wounded out of about 2,300 officers and men. Roosevelt would call it the great day of his life.

When Wood was promoted, Roosevelt became colonel of the regiment. That November he was elected governor of New York. The Medal of Honor did not come in his lifetime. After decades of effort by the Theodore Roosevelt Association and members of Congress, President Bill Clinton awarded it to him after his death at a White House ceremony on January 16, 2001.

Sources

  1. T. R. the Rough Rider: Hero of the Spanish American War, Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site, National Park Service
  2. The Life of Theodore Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt Center at Dickinson State University
  3. Medal of Honor Awarded to Theodore Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt Center at Dickinson State University

Checked against these sources on October 2, 2026. Spot a mistake? Report an error. How we check facts.

How the card plays

Teddy Roosevelt, Rough Rider costs 4 crystals and is a 4/3 Rare Garnet Free Spirit with Swift, so he can charge the turn he arrives. While you control The Rough Riders, he gets +2/+0 and becomes a 6/3.

He is legal under Blackbeard, and his Swift charge switches on the Garnet cards that check whether a character of yours charged this turn. Charge with him first, then play Bartholomew Roberts to make your rival discard a random card, or Spoils of War to draw 2, gain a crystal this turn and force a discard.

His bonus needs The Rough Riders, an Emerald card, so that pairing only works under a Leader that can use both Garnet and Emerald. When The Rough Riders arrives, it gives your other characters Swift and +1/+0 for the turn, so Roosevelt charges as a 7/3.

  • Playable in decks led by Edward Teach "Blackbeard", and by any Traveler Leader whose colors include Garnet.
  • In the Blackbeard starter deck (1 copy). Deck code: LC2-Aj4BPwFAAUEBQgFDAUQCRQFGAkcBSAFJAkoBSwFMAU0BTgFPAlACUQFSAVMCVAFVAVYBVwFYAVkBWgFbAVwBXQJeAW9C
  • Works with The Rough Riders.
  • A deck holds up to 3 copies of this card.

Questions about Teddy Roosevelt

Did Teddy Roosevelt charge up San Juan Hill or Kettle Hill?

Kettle Hill is where Roosevelt led his famous charges on July 1, 1898. It was part of the San Juan Heights, and the Theodore Roosevelt Center describes him leading the charge up both Kettle Hill and San Juan Hill that day, which is why the whole fight is often called the Battle of San Juan Hill.

Who commanded the Rough Riders?

Colonel Leonard Wood commanded the regiment at first, with Roosevelt as his lieutenant colonel. When Wood was promoted, Roosevelt became colonel.

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