Callahan, James

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Western Oregon University Digital Commons@WOU Student Theses, Papers and Projects (History) Department of History 3-10-2004 "Viva Villa!" Pancho Villa's Motivation for Anti-American Attacks James Callahan Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.wou.edu/his  Part of the Latin American History Commons, Military History Commons, and the United States History Commons James CallahanHst. 351 , MW 13:00Research PaperMarch 10,2004"Viva Villa!"Pancho Villa's Motivation for Anti-American AttacksAt four o'clock in the morning on March 9, 1916 the small border town ofColumbus, New Mexico lay sleeping. A few army sentries, from the local garrisonof the 13th Cavalry, were on duty. Reports had reached the town that thenotorious Mexican revolutionary and bandit, Pancho Villa, ums camped with fivehundred men shortly across the border, however few expected anything tohappen in Columbus.l The night's silence was broken by a single gunshot,within several seconds there was another. The sound of galloping horseserupted with shouts of "Viva Villa!" Now the gunfire increased as five hundredmen thundered into the town, shooting wildly and setting fire to buildings. Theburning buildings gave off enough light to illuminate the raiders. They attackedfrom the east and the west in coordination. The U.S. troops soon rallied in the1 Clarence C. Clendenen The lJnited Sfafes and Pancho Vitta: A Study in llnconventionalDiplomacy (lthaca, New York: Comell Univemity Press, 1961), 238-239.north of town and began sweeping south through the town, greatly aided by amachine gun.2 Roughly an hour after the first shots were fired, the villistas fledthe tovvn, leaving over 100 Mexicans and 17 Americans dead.3Within a ureek, on March 15, 4,800 men lead by General John "BlackJack" Pershing entered Mexico in pursuit of Villa.a While the ensuing Americanexpedition would prove more an embarrassment to the United States than anyharm to Villa, it seems obvious that any attack on the United States would resultin retribution brought on the aggressor. Villa, with only 500 men and dwindlingsupport, could not have logically thought that his actions would go unpunishedor any successes would outweigh the cost. Scarred by almost six years of warand almost a life time as a bandit, Villa was too canny to have acted irrationally.Many reasons are given for Villa's actions. One says that Villa was driven byhatred of America. Another was to punish a merchant that took money from Villain exchange for guns and never delivered.u There is even one theory thatpurports Villa did so on behalf of the German government, who hoped to divertUnited States arm shipments from Britain.o However, Villa's motivations for theattack on Columbus, New Mexico was part of a series of violence directedtowards Americans in the hope that it would destabilize the Carranza2 Frank Tompkins, Chasing WIa: The Story BehiM the Stor7 of Pershing's Expedition lntoMexico (Hariisburg, Pennsylvania: The Military Service Publishing Company, 1934), 58-54.3 Friedrich Kalz, "Pancho Villa and the Attack on Columbus, New Mexico" (American HistoricalReview: Vol. S3lssue 1 (February 1978), p101), 101.%sepfr A. Stout, Jr., furder Conflict: Villistas, Canancistas and the Punitive Expdition 191*1920 (Iexas Christian University Press, 1999),44.5 friedricn Katz, The Life & fimes of Paneho WIIa (Stanfod, Califomia: Stanford UniversityPress, 't 998), 552.6 Katz, "Attack on Columbus," 127.government.The man that would come to be known around the world as FranciscoPancho Villa uas born Doroteo Arango in June 5, 1878 or 1879.7 Much of hisearly life remains shrouded in mystery and various myths and legends that havesprung up over the years have only served to complicate the matter even more.What \ e can ascertain, and what must be held as the most viable, comes fromhis memoirs. However, Villa could neither read nor write, so his memoirs werecompiled by Martfn Luis GuzmSn based on papers and stories from Villa.His family were peasant farmers on the Hacienda Gogojito, wtrich waslocated in the CanatlSn municipality, in the Shadow of the $iena Madres, in thestate of Durango. At some point, when is unclear, his father, Augustfn, passeda!!Ey and left the young Doroteo to tend the family farm.8 He was left as head ofthe household with his mother, tvlo younger brothers, Antonio and Hipolito, andtWo sisters, Marianita and Martina.s As head of the household, young Doroteolooked for uork on a neighboring ranch. But he did so without the permission ofthe hacienda owner, Don Arturo L6pez Negrete. For this crime, Doroteo waswlripped.lo One day, in 1894, he came home to find his sister, Martina, thentwelve, crying vrdrile his mother yelled at Don Arturo, .Leave my house, Seftor.7 Martin Luis Guzm6n, Memoirs of Pancho Wla (Translated by Haniet de Onis. Gloucester,Massachusetts: Peter Smith, 1969), 3 & Manuel A Machado, Jr., Centaur af the filorth: FranciscoVilta, the Mexican Revohrtion, and Northem Mexico (Austin, Texas: Eakin Press, 1988) supporl1878 while KaV, Life & Ttmes,3 argues for 1879. This discrepancy in years, 1878 or 1879, isbased on anecdotalevidence from Villa himself. lt is quite possible that he didn't even knowwhat year he was bom in.8 Haldeen Braddy, Cock of the Walk: The Legend of Pancho Wta (Albuquealue, New Mexico:Universoty of New Mexico Press, 1955), 16.e Guzm6n, Memoirs,S.10 Braddy, 17.Have you no shame?"l1 With his sister dishonored by the Don, Doroteo ran tohis cousins house and fetched either his own pistol or his cousins.lz Shootingthree times, the most serious wound inflicted on the Don was a wounded foot.13While Don L6pez Negrete was carried home, Doroteo fled on horseback to theSierra de la Silla.Due to, as Villa claims, his youthful inexperience, Doroteo was sooncaught by three men. The morning before his execution, a guard lead himoutside to grind a banel of nixtamal.1a Doroteo killed the guard with the pestle ofthe metate and fled back into the mountains. At this point, to avoid furthercapture, Doroteo decided to change his name. His father, Augustin Arango, wasthe illegitimate son of Jes0s Villa, so Doroteo adopted his paternal grandfather'ssurname. He became Francisco Villa and, in time, became known as PanchoVilla, a celebrated outlaw of the Villa famity.15For his protection, Villa joined lgnacio Pana and Refugio Alvarado, twoveteran outlaws. He soon earned their respect by stealing a fine horse from infront of a saloon in broad daylight.16 The life of an outlaw suited Villa. He likedthe freedom and ease it offered over the arduous work of a farmer. The band ofoulaws did well. Within a week they had stolen a mule train and Villa had11Guzm6n, Memoirs,S.12 Kalz, Lite & fimes, 3 says it is his cousin's gun, while Guzm6n, Memoirs,3 says it was Villa'soun.rt Katz, Llfe &Trmes,3.1a Guzm6n, Memoirs,4.15 Braddy, 8.16 Guzmdn, Memoirs,6.pocketed 3,000 peso$.17 The bandifos rustled cattle and rohbed payrolls andshipments of money from mines in Durango and Chihuahua. One sucl't hold-upresulted in netting the group 50,000 pesos apiece.18 This allowed Villa to take avacation from the outlaw business to spend time with his family. The 50,000p6sos, although a vast fortune at the time, did not last long for Villa, only eight toten months.'e He spread the wealth to his family, giving his mother 5,000 pesosand other members of his family 4,000 apiece. He also started a tailor shop for avery poor man, Antonio Retana, so he could support his large family.m lt washere that Villa began to be compared to Robin Hood for his taking from the richand giving to the poor attitude. On several occasions, Villa tried to leave banditrybehind him, but the discriminatory eocial system of Mexico forced Villa back tocrime.2lBy 1g10, the Porfiriato of Porfirio Diaz raras drawing criticism for itsdictatorial rule. Behind Francisco Madero, those opposed to Diaz rule wereuniting and agitating for reform or revolution. From their base in San Antonio,Texas lhe maderisfas made appeals to the difierent strata of society to oust Diazand replace him with Madero. Don Abraham Gonz6lez, a banker who lost his jobwhen the banks of Chihuahua were consolidated, was charged with organizingan army in Mexico's biggest state. Gonz6lez, wlto had done business with Villaby buying some cattle of unquestioned origin, asked him to ioin the revolution.17 lbid. Atthough, Machado claims it was 5,000 pesos, 13.18 Katz, Life &Tinres,4.1s Guzm6n, Memoirs, S.2a tbid.2l Machado, 14.Villa agreed to, he saw it as a continuation of the struggle he had been wagingagainst "the exploiters, the persecutors, [and] the seducers" on behalf of the"persecuted and humiliated."22The fighting vyas relatively brief. Madero became president in November1911 and between June 1911 and January 1g12,Vi1la had a period of peace'23Mexico, houever, was still feeling tremors of revolution. To the south, EmilianoZagatadenounced Madero and in the north, Pascual Orozco, Jr. was baiting histime till he could strike at the new president. With the coup by Victoriano Huertaon February 19, Villa once again took up the cause of revolution against Huerta.Within four months they had overthrown the dictator and the forces under Villa'scommand numbered an impressive 90,000 men.2a Villa allied himself with Zapatain a "sovereign Revolutionary Convention."2s Despite their best efforts, therevolutionary armies of Villa and Zapata urere defeated routinely by forces loyalto Venustiano Carranza. Villa was forced to continue the fight as a guerilla.Felipe Angeles, Villa's chief strategist, Conceded on September 8, 1915that Villa recognized that his army was now no more than a band of marauders.26A month later, most of Villa's commanders had fled to the United States. Up tillnow, Villa had had a favorable relation with the United States. The press took aliking to him and painted him as an eccentric character. Throughout the22 Guzmfun, Menwirs,21.23 Machado, 26.2a John Womack, Jr., "Pancho Villa: A Revolutionary Life" (Joumalof the Historical Sogietv: Vo!2 lssue 1 (January 2002), P21),23.25 tbid.26 Marlr Cronlund Anderson, Pancho Wlla's Revolution by Headlines (Norman, Oklahoma:University of Oklahoma Press, 2OOA},42.Revolution thus far, Villa had gone out of his way to protect American businessinterests in the areas his forces operated. There was even talk in the highestlevels of the government of supporting Villa's efforts against Carranza.2THowever, President WoodrowWilson balked at backing Villa. On October 19,the United States officially recognized the Carranza government. Upon learningof this, Villa was thrown into an anti-American tirade. He felt betrayed by theUnited States and vovrred to be through with them.28By the end of the month, Villa was stealing American cattle and trying tocoerce loans from four different American mining operations in Chihuahua. Villasoon unleashed his villrsfas to take direct action against America. On January10, 1916, After the United States recognized the Carranza government, theAmerican owned and operated La Cusi Mining Company decided to reopen itsoperations in Chihuahua. Taking a train from El Paso to the city of Chihuahua,Charles R. Watson, the general manager, and his staff transferred trains.Several hours out of the city, near Santa Ysabel, the train was stopped by one ofVilla's colonels, Pablo L6pez, and his men. The villistas robbed all thepassengers of the train then hustled the Americans outside. L6pez was heard tosay to the other passengers, "lf you want to see some fun, watch us kill thesegringos."2'With a shout of "Viva Villa!" the villistas shot the Americans. Watsontried to run, but he too was gunned down. One American, Thomas B' Holmes,managed to escape, but, in all, 17 Americans had been executed by Villa's27 lbid.28 lbid,49.2e clendenen,225men.3o The degree to which Villa himself played a role in the Santa Ysabelmassacre is unclear. L6pez is reported to have fingered Villa as behind it, andeven that Villa was watching the wlrole thing. However, this is according to theCarranza government before L6pez was executed.The $anta Ysabel massacre and the kidnapping and execution of abookkeeper from the Hearst Ranch in Babicora, Chihuahua the ne)d day,January 11, by viltistas all point to a concentrated anti-American effort inChihuahua, the bed of Villa support. These actions, combined with the attack onColumbus, New Mexico, were directed to show how little control Carranza hadover Villa's tenitory. The inability of Carranza's forces to bring Villa in, and thebelief that they were too incompetent to do so, precipitated Americanintervention in Mexico.sl Villa hoped that the U.S. vrould withdraw support ofCarranza if he could prove how unstable the country was.t2 However, as historyproved, it did not. Villa evaded Pershing and outlived the Cananza government.But old wounds heal slowly and on the morning of July 20,1923, Villa wasassassinated, his body riddled with nine bullets, as he was driving his car.sn tbid,226.sl Stout, 23.32 Anderson, 43.s Katz, Life & Times. 765-766.BibliographyAnderson, Mark Cronlund. Pancho Villa's Revolulion bY !-leadlines. Norman,Oklahoma: University of Qklahoma Press, 2000.Braddy, Haldeen. gock,of th.e YValk The Leoend of,PanchoYilla. Albuquerque,New Mexico: Universoty of New Mexico Press, 1955.Clendenen, Clarence C. The United $tateS and Pqnchp Villa: A Study inUnconventional, Diplomacv. lthaca, New York: Cornell University Press,1961.Guzmdn, Martin Luis. The Eaole and the Serpent. Translated by Haniet de Onis.Gloucester, Massachusetts: Peter Srnith, 1969.*--. Memoirq of,Panqho Villa. Translated by Virginia H. Taylor. Austin, Texas:University of Texas Press, 1965.l(atz, Friedrich. Thq Life & Tiryres of Pancho Vill?. Stanford, California: StanfordUniversity Pre$s, 1998.---. oPancho Villa and the Attack on Columbus, New Mexico." AmericanHistorical Review: Vol.83 lssue 1 (February 1978), p101.Machado, Manuel A., Jr. Cqntaur of the l'lorth: Fr,Snciscp.villa, the Mexi,cqnRevolution. and No!'thern Mexigq. Austin, Texas: Eakin Pre$s, 1988.$tout, Joseph A., Jr. Fordgr Conflict: Villistas. CqnaFqistqs at'ld the PunitivPEpedition, 1,915-1920. Texas Ghristian University Press, 1999.Tompkins, Frank. Chpsino Yilla:, The Story Behind the Storv of Pe,r9hino'sExpedition lnlo Mexico. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: The Military $ervicePublishing Company, 1 934.Womack, John, Jr. -Pancho Villa: A Revolutionary Life." loumal of the HistoricalSocietv: Vol. 2 lssue 1 (January 2AA2\, p21.

Viva Villa!  Pancho Villa\u27s Motivation for Anti-American Attacks

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Viva Villa! Pancho Villa\u27s Motivation for Anti-American Attacks

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