Pancho Villa was undeniably one of the most beloved leaders of the Mexican Revolution. Coming from a modest sharecropping family, he climbed out of poverty to emerge as a courageous military commander and a symbol of defiance against injustice. His renowned achievements on the battlefield—including against many American soldiers—and his unwavering commitment to social justice transformed him into a folk hero and a revered figure in Mexico.
Pancho Villa’s early life
Francisco “Pancho” Villa was born José Doroteo Arango Arámbula on June 5, 1878, in San Juan del Rio, Mexico. His early life was relatively uneventful. He occasionally attended local schools but spent most of his time working with his family as a sharecropper. This increased after his father’s death, along with various jobs as a bricklayer, railway foreman, butcher, and muleskinner.
At 16, Arámbula decided to forge his own path and moved to Chihuahua. However, his stay there was short-lived. He learned that Agustín López Negrete, a hacienda owner, had attacked his sister, prompting him to return to his hometown to seek retribution.
He reportedly killed the man, stole his horse, and began a life on the run as a bandit, adopting the name “Arango.” Arrested for theft in 1898 and again in 1902, Arámbula narrowly escaped execution due to his connections with influential figures. Instead, he was conscripted into the Federal Army. His time there was brief, as he killed one of his officers, took his horse, and deserted his post.
Becoming Pancho Villa
Yet again wanted by the law, José Doroteo Arango Arámbula assumed the name that would go down in history: Francisco “Pancho” Villa. He continued life as a bandit for a number of years, before he was convinced to join the cause of Francisco Madero, who was working to depose President Porfirio Díaz from power.
Thus began the Mexican Revolution, with Villa operating as a bandit leader for Madero’s uprising.
Villa proved himself a formidable and charismatic commander, and it didn’t take long for he and his men to capture a train of Federal Army soldiers, the city of San Andrés and a hacienda. He engaged in battles at Naica, Camargo, Pilar de Conchos and Tecolote, winning the first three.
On orders from Madero, Villa was assigned to “deal with” certain members of the Mexican Liberal Party. After accomplishing this, he was made a colonel of the revolutionary force.
Another coup d’etat
In 1911, Francisco Madero was named president, but a resolution to Mexico’s unrest was still far away. More revolutionaries arose under Pascual Orozco, and Pancho Villa agreed to continue fighting for the new president.
Madero was soon assassinated, supposedly by his own military commander, Gen. Victoriano Huerta, who took control of the government. Villa, who’d had a contentious relationship with the military man, decided to fight against him. He served in the Constitutionalist Army of Mexico, under the command of Venustiano Carranza, despite initially disagree with Madero’s decision to name the man as Mexico’s Minister of War.
Villa, however, proved to be too big of a threat to Carranza, given his battlefield prowess saw him appointed as the provisional governor of Chihuahua in 1913. He was ordered to lead an attack on the town of Zacatecas, in an effort to move him away from Mexico City, so Carranza could establish himself as the new Mexican leader.
Concerned he was going to make himself a dictator, Villa and Gen. Emiliano Zapata turned their forces on Carranza, instead.
Guerrilla leader
In the subsequent years, the pair’s forces continued to clash with those under Venustiano Carranza, led by expert tactician Álvaro Obregón. By 1915, following many engagements, Pancho Villa had a significantly diminished force of about 200. Around the same time, the United States decided to declare its support for Carranza as the leader of Mexico.
Despite having few men, Villa retaliated by attacking the American town of Columbus, New Mexico on March 9, 1916. This, along with an earlier killing of 17 Americans in Santa Isabel, prompted US President Woodrow Wilson to send an expedition over the border to capture Villa, under the leadership of Gen. John J. Pershing.
Although they searched endlessly for him, the Americans were never able to locate Villa, as his knowledge of the terrain was far superior. He also received assistance from locals, who revered him. He was known to care deeply for the poor and often provided them with supplies and food when he was able.
Villa evaded US capture for nearly 11 months, when the Americans withdrew from Mexico. While Pershing claimed the expedition had been a success, Wilson said the opposite to the public.
Pancho Villa’s death and legacy
Until 1920, Pancho Villa continued some small-scale attacks. It wasn’t until Venustiano Carranza was assassinated on May 21, 1920 that things changed for the guerrilla leader. Adolfo de la Huerta was named Mexico’s interim president, and the pair negotiated a peace deal. In return for calling off his forces, Villa was granted a 25,000-acre property just outside of Chihuahua. He moved there with his wife, María Luz Corral de Villa, and his remaining fighters.
Although he had 50 personal bodyguards, the former revolutionary was assassinated on July 20, 1923. It’s generally believed he was killed on the orders of Álvaro Obregón, who’d since been elected president.
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Rumor says Villa was interested in entering politics. With an election coming up in 1924, Obregón wanted to ensure there’d be no rivalry to his rule. Nonetheless, Villa’s legacy remains deeply ingrained in Mexican history and culture.