After
a raid on U.S. soil by the men of Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa,
President Woodrow Wilson responded by ordering a punitive expedition into
Mexico to capture Villa dead or alive.
During the Mexican Revolution, Francisco "Pancho" Villa
fought alongside revolutionary leader Venustiano Carranza, but when their
common enemy, Mexican President Victoriano Huerta, was eliminated, the
two turned on one another and Villa led a rebellion against Carranza.
In 1915, President Wilson officially recognized Carranza's
presidency, angering Villa, and on March 9, 1916 a group of his men raided
Columbus, New Mexico, killing several American citizens.
President Wilson thus ordered a military expedition
into Mexico to find Villa. General "Black Jack" Pershing led the group,
which featured the U.S. military's first major use of motorized vehicles.
Pershing pursued Villa for 11 months through Chihuahua, only to have the
mission aborted before completion, although it was enough to anger Carranza
and strain Mexico-U.S. relations.
Villa was able to continue his activities in Northern
Mexico until coming to terms with the new government in 1920, only to
be assassinated in 1923. General Pershing would later gain fame by leading
the American Expeditionary Forces during World War I. |
Pancho
Villa Information
- Gives a short bio of Villa and analyzes his possible reasons for attacking
the US.
The
Punitive Expedition - View photos from General Pershing's famous expedition
into Mexico and Pancho Villa's raid on Columbus, New Mexico.
Motorized
Warfare in Mexico - Article explores the role of George S. Patton
during the Punitive Expedition to Mexico.
Pershing's
Planes - Offers a report on the air squadron that joined General Pershing
on the aborted expedition to Mexico.
Organizing
the Punitive Expedition - Article from Huachuca Illustrated delves
into the US's reaction to Pancho Villa's raids on New Mexico. |
