glossary

Hundreds of revolutionaries, officers, smugglers, reporters, secretaries, railway men, townspeople, lovers, friends, and foes enter and exit Pancho Villa’s biography. Some make appearances only once or a handful of times, often separated by months or years. This glossary focuses on just a few dozen of the most important to keep track of.

Luis Aguirre Benavides (1886–1976) Served as Villa’s secretary and close confidant, before deserting him in 1915 and writing a series of articles accusing him of corruption, which he later regretted.

Felipe Ángeles (1868–1919) A long-standing and well-respected officer in Porfirio Díaz’s military, Ángeles joined Villa’s forces in 1913 and served as his artillery expert and overall military and political confidant through 1915. After living in exile in the US for several years, Ángeles returned to join Villa in his guerrilla campaign, but left in mid-1919, convinced that Villa could not win the type of war he was fighting. After Ángeles turned himself in Carranza organized a show trial that gave the prisoner a global spotlight to criticize Carranza’s policies and to defend Villa. He was executed by firing squad on November 26, 1919.

José Hipólito Arango Arámbula (1881–1964) Fought alongside his brother, Pancho Villa, and served as financial chief for the Division of the North. Exiled to Cuba in 1916, but returned to join Villa in his later guerrilla campaigns. Survived to live in relative obscurity and poverty on a small military pension.

Nellie Campobello (1900–1986) Grew up in the heart of Villa’s territory and chronicled the Revolution in a memoir about her experiences titled Cartucho. Prominent journalist and artist in the years after the Revolution, co-founder of the Mexico City Ballet.

Lázaro Cárdenas (1895–1970) Colonel in the Constitutionalist forces, first fighting alongside and then against Pancho Villa after 1915. Later elected president from 1934 to 1940, implemented significant land reforms and nationalized foreign oil companies.

George C. Carothers (1874–1939) Native of San Antonio, Texas, Carothers served as US Consul in Torreón as well as President Woodrow Wilson’s envoy to Villa before working for Villa to purchase arms in the US.

Venustiano Carranza (1859–1920) Wealthy landowner who supported Madero’s revolt against Porfirio Díaz, serving as “First Chief” on behalf of the Constitutionalists after the defeat of Huerta’s coup in 1913. Carranza’s Plan de Guadalupe postponed social and economic reforms, leading to confrontations with Villa, Zapata, and other forces at the Aguascalientes Convention. After Villa’s battlefield defeats in 1915, Carranza served as president until 1920 (first de facto and then elected in 1917). When he attempted to impose his own successor in 1920, Constitutionalist generals revolted, forcing him to flee to Veracruz where he died under suspicious circumstances.

Manuela Casas (1905-??) Married Villa in 1922.

Agustín Casasola (1874–1938) Co-founder of Mexican Association of Press Photographers. Author of some of the Revolution’s most iconic photographs. The Casasola Archive of the National Photo Library contains 483,993 separate items, including works by many of Mexico’s most famous artists and photographers.

Manuel Chao (1883–1924) Worked as a teacher before the Revolution, joining Villa’s forces and serving as commander of the Division of the North’s artillery. Exiled after the Division’s defeat in 1915. Returned in 1923 to participate in revolt by supporters of De la Huerta. Captured and executed in June 1924.

Calixto Contreras (1862–1916) A Tamahumara Indian from Durango who was drafted into the Porfirian federal army for taking part in protests against land seizures, he joined Villa’s forces early on. Wounded in battle several times, rose to rank of general before being assassinated in July 1916.

Luz Corral (1892–1981) Villa’s first wife and mother of his first child, Luz Elena, who died at a young age. Corral maintained a relationship of sorts with Villa until his death, inheriting his house in Chihuahua and winning legal standing in Mexico courts. Ironically, Corral’s court victories relied in part on support from Villa nemesis-cum-president Álvaro Obregón whom she talked Villa out of executing in 1914. For many years, Corral maintained Villa’s house in Chihuahua, turning it into a museum, while advocating for recognition of his role in the Revolution until her death in 1981.

Enrique Creel (1854–1931) Scion of one of the richest families in Chihuahua and son-in-law of Luis Terrazas. Creel served as governor of Chihuahua between 1904 and 1911. Villa’s forces expropriated large portions of Creel’s land and wealth.

Porfirio Díaz (1830–1915) Mexican general who rose to prominence in the war against France, he assumed the presidency between 1876 and 1911, a period known as the Porfiriato. Díaz’s rule modernized Mexico to a limited degree under the guidance of technocrats known as científicos, but the landed oligarchy’s power remained untouched and the vast majority of Mexican campesinos, Indigenous peoples, workers, and women languished in extreme poverty. Forced into exile in France in 1911 after claiming victory in a fraudulent election.

Plutarco Elías Calles (1877–1945) Early supporter of Madero, appointed police commissioner and then granted rank of general under Carranza government. Defeated Villa at the Battle of Agua Prieta in 1915. Served as Minister of Commerce, Labor, and Industry under Carranza, but led a revolt against him alongside generals Obregón and Calles in 1920. Elected president in 1924.

Rodolfo Fierro (1885–1915) Railway worker turned revolutionary. Fierro rose to the rank of general in the Division of the North, serving as one of Villa’s most daring and brutal commanders. Often blind drunk, Fierro stood out as exceptionally violent, even for his times, executing large numbers of prisoners, pushing his relationship with Villa to the brink on several occasions. Drowned along with his horse during a treacherous retreat, reportedly weighed down by gold stuffed into his pockets and saddle bags.

Lázaro de la Garza (??–1939) De la Garza was appointed by Villa to run the Division of the North’s Finance Agency and to purchase weapons in the United States. Originally a faithfull Villista, by 1918 De la Garza had enriched himself off the back of the Revolution, building himself a large mansion in Beverly Hills and refusing to return to Mexico.

Abraham González (1864–1913) Born into wealth and educated in the United States, González joined Madero’s campaign, emerging as the leader of the Anti-Reelectionist Party in the state of Chihuahua. Acquainted with Villa’s reputation as an competent organizer and skilled gunman before the revolution, he recruited Villa to fight on behalf of Madero. Villa considered González a pillar of the revolution and a mentor. After Díaz resigned, González joined Madero’s cabinet in 1911 as the Secretary of Internal Affairs. He returned to serve as governor of Chihuahua during Pascual Orozco’s Colorados militia mutiny only to be arrested during Victoriano Huerta’s coup and executed in March 1913.

Pablo González Garza (1879–1950) Constitutionalist general allied with President Carranza, but passed over for supreme military command by Álvaro Obregón. Villa accused him of lethargy and incompetence in the campaigns against Huerta’s forces. Charged with attacking Zapata’s troops in the south and, later, organizing his assassination.

Roque González Garza (1885–1962) Aide to President Madero who joined Villa’s forces after Huerta’s coup, being promoted to general and participating in all key battles. Served as the presiding officer of the Aquascalientes Convention, assuming the Presidency on behalf of the Conventionists after Constitutionalist president Carranza was forced out of Mexico City in December 1914 by Villa and Zapata’s combined forces. Went into exile in the wake of the Carranza’s subsequent victories.

Martín Luis Guzmán (1887–1976) Rode with Pancho Villa in 1914 and later became one of Mexico’s leading novelists. His works include a biography of Villa titled Memorias de Pancho Villa.

Rosalío Hernández (1861-1942) One of Villa’s most trusted and active commanders in the Division of the North in charge of the Camargo’s Faithful brigade.

Maclovio Herrera (1879–1915) From a family of miners, Herrera joined in Madero’s revolution and united with Villa’s forces against Huerta’s coup. He became a brigadier general in the Division of the North and fought with Villa until they split after the Aguascalientes Convention when Herrera refused to take up arms against Carranza. Defeated Villista forces in several engagements in 1915 before being accidentally shot and killed by his own troops in April 1915.

Victoriano Huerta (1850–1916) Mexican general who organized a military coup to overthrow the democratically elected government in February 1913 and execute President Francisco I. Madero. Huerta’s rule provoked intense resistance, forcing the initially supportive US government to turn on him by sending Marines to occupy Veracruz to safeguard its business interests. Revolutionary forces united against him under the Constitutionalist banner, defeating his army at the Battle of Zacatecas and forcing him to resign and leave for exile in Spain in July 1914.

Adolfo de la Huerta (1881–1955) A music student born to a middle class family, De la Huerta organized a branch of Madero’s Anti-Reelectionist Party and then took up arms in 1913 against Huerta’s coup. Served as Carranza’s secretary before breaking with him in 1920. After Carranza’s death, De la Huerta served as interim president until Obregón’s election that same year. During that time, De la Huerta negotiated Villa’s surrender and amnesty.

Martín and Pablo Lopez (??-1916) Brothers who served with Villa in the later days of his campaigns. Villa saw them as his sons, although there was no blood relation. Both participated in the Battle of Columbus. Pablo carried out the executions of nineteen American mining employees and executives in Santa Isabela, Chihuahua in 1916. He surrendered to Constitutionalist forces and was executed in June 1916. Martín was killed in battle in September of that same year.

Francisco I. Madero (1873–1913) A wealthy Mexican landowner and liberal politician, Madero financed a presidential bid in 1910 as leader of the Anti-Reelectionist Party. President Díaz arrested Madero and declared himself victor, but Madero escaped and called for an insurrection to begin in November 1910 in his Plan de San Luis Potosí. Betrayed and executed by Victoriano Huerta in a coup in February 1913.

Raúl Madero (1882–1982) Younger brother of President Francisco I. Madero and one of Villa’s closest political and military allies.

Manuel Madinabeytia (1888-??) Longtime commander in Villa’s forces, who split with him in 1918 and joined forces with the Constitutionalists, serving as the military commander of Mexico City.

Juan N. Medina (1883–1925) Named Division of the North’s Chief of General Staff, Medina participated in key battles against Huerta and Carranza in 1913 and 1914. Named military commander of Torreón in 1915, exiled after Villa’s defeats that same year. Returned to join the Mexican Army in 1922 with the rank of colonel.

Álvaro Obregón (1880–1928) Although he did not join Madero’s initial revolt, Obregón joined Madero’s troops against the Orozco revolt in 1912. During the ensuing Huerta coup, Obregón rose through the ranks and gained a reputation as a capable military leader. When Villa split with Carranza after the Aguascalientes Convention, Obregón led Carranza’s most effective military forces, losing an arm in battle against the Division of the North in 1915. Led revolt against Carranza alongside generals De la Huerta and Calles before being elected president in 1920.

Pascual Orozco (1882–1915) Born to a family of moderate means, Orozco worked as a muleteer and a miner. Rose up in response to Madero’s call for insurrection and played a leading role in the revolutionary forces’ victory over the government at Ciudad Juarez in the spring of 1911. Yet Orozco soon revolted against Madero’s government, issuing his own Plan Orozquista in March 1912, which criticized the slow pace of reform under Madero. However, the majority of revolutionaries opposed Orozco’s Colorados forces, including Pancho Villa who took the lead in suppressing the rebellion, and he was forced to sue for peace. His subsequent decision to join Victoriano Huerta’s coup government after Madero’s assassination destroyed his reputation for good. Killed trying to return to Mexico in August 1915 by American forces after being accused of stealing horses.

Toribio Ortega Ramírez (1870–1914) Leader of the Anti-Reelectionist Party in the Ojinaga region, he was one of the first revolutionaries to gather armed fighters in response to Madero’s call for insurrection in 1910, seizing a small town called Cuchillo Parado. Ortega became one of the Division of the North’s most important generals and one of Villa’s closest confidants. He contracted typhoid fever while fighting in Zacatecas and died soon after being transported to Chihuahua in July 1914.

Orestes Pereyra (1861–1915) A mechanic from Zacatecas, Pereyra joined Villa’s forces alongside Tomás Urbina. He attained the rank of brigadier general within the Division of the North and fought by Villa’s side until he was taken prisoner and shot in November 1915.

John J. Pershing (1860–1948) President Woodrow Wilson ordered Gen. Pershing to invade Mexico with the aim of capturing and killing Pancho Villa in what became known as the Punitive Expedition in March 1916. Pershing’s 10,000 troops failed to pin down and destroy Villa’s forces over the course of multiple engagements and were eventually forced to withdraw in February 1917 after armed clashes between Carranza’s own troops and Pershing’s men threatened to provoke a deeper crisis.

Ambrose Pierce (1842–1913??) Civil War veteran and renowned American author and journalist, at the age of seventy-one, Pierce crossed into Mexico to observe the Revolution first hand. Accompanied Villa’s troops through the Battle of Tierra Blanca in December 1913 and disappeared soon after, never to be seen again.

John Reed (1887–1920) Reed was a well-known radical journalist when he traveled to Mexico to report on the Revolution in 1914 for Metropolitan Magazine. Reed’s reports were subsequently published as Insurgent Mexico in 1914. Reed went on to report on the Bolshevik Revolution in Ten Days that Shook the World and help found the Communist Labor Party in the US in 1919.

Austreberta Rentería (1891–1982) Rentería married Villa two years before his assassination in 1921 and lived as his spouse after his amnesty and retirement to the Canutillo hacienda where she gave birth to a son. After Villa’s death, she successfully petitioned to receive a government pension as one of Villa’s war widows.

José Isabel Robles (1891–1917) Raised his own troops to combat Huerta’s coup and then joined Villa’s Division of the North. Split with Carranza during the Aguascalientes Convention, siding with Villa’s forces, but later reconciled with Carranza, leading troops on his behalf in the south. After once again rebelling against Carranza, he was executed in April 1917.

Trinidad Rodríguez (1892–1914) Joined Villa’s forces during Victoriano Huerta’s coup and rose to the rank of general. Commanded troops in all key engagements, serving as one of Villa’s principal military advisers, especially in the decisive victory at Zacatecas. Injured in combat, died in June 1914.

Soledad Saeñez (1896–1996) Married Villa in 1919. Was recognized as Mexico’s Congress as Villa’s “official” spouse after many years of legal disputes in 1946.

Jesús Solar Barraza (1879–1851) Constitutionalist officer who fought against Huerta’s coup. Became regional deputy in Durango in 1922. Key organizer and participant in plot to assassinate Pancho Villa in 1923.

Felix Sommerfeld (1879–??) German intelligence officer who became the chief weapons procurement agent for the Division of the North after the split between Carranza’s Constitutionalists and Villa’s Conventionists.

Juana Torres (1897–??) Married Villa in 1913 at the age of sixteen and gave birth to a daughter, Juana María Villa, in 1915.

Luis Terrazas (1829–1923) Patriarch of Terrazas-Creel clan, richest in Chihuahua at the time of the Revolution. Combined holdings included seven million acres and more than a half-million cattle, sheep, horses, and mules. Served as governor of Chihuahua between 1879 and 1904. Abducted and ransomed by Villa.

Silvestre Terrazas (1873–1944) Distant relation of oligarch Luis Terrazas. Publisher of El Correo de Chihuahua and liberal crusader against Porfirio Díaz. Strong supporter of Madero and political advisor to Villa. Served as revolutionary Secretary of Governor of Chihuahua under Villa’s forces in 1914 and 1915.

Tomás Urbina (1877–1915) Pre-revolutionary associate of Villa, laborer, bricklayer, cowboy and cattle thief who rose to rank of general. Along with Fierro Rodolfo, he became one of Villa’s can-do commanders. Often literally his right-hand man, Urbina is seated next to Villa in the famous picture of Villa and Zapata in the National Palace in 1914. Executed by Fierro in September 1915 after surrendering his forces to the Constitutionalists and betraying Villa.

Baudelio Uribe (??-1918) One of Villa’s most vicious commanders. Adopted the practice of cutting off one ear of prisoners and subsequently releasing them with the warning that they would be executed if caught taking up arms against the Revolution. Killed in a skirmish in May 1918.

Juan B. Vargas (1890–1947) One of Madero’s earliest military commanders. Commander of Villa’s shock cavalry troops, Los Dorados.

Emiliano Zapata (1879–1919) Took part in the revolt against Porfirio Díaz in 1910 and formed the Liberation Army of South in Morelos under the banner of the Plan de Ayala, which called for major land reform. Madero sent Victoriano Huerta to attack Zapata’s forces. While he failed to suppress the Zapatistas, Huerta did manage to overthrow and assassinate Madero. Zapata and Villa joined forces against Huerta, but also against the more mainstream Constitutionalist forces led by Carranza and Obregón. In December 1914, the Liberation Army of the South and the Division of the North occupied Mexico City, driving Carranza out. However, Villa and Zapata were not able to consolidate their advantage, and Carranza’s forces won out in a series of bloody battles in 1915, disbanding the Division of the North and forcing Zapata to retreat to his stronghold in Morelos. Constitutionalist Gen. Pablo González organized Zapata’s assassination in April 1919.