Mexican Expedition

The Mexican Expedition, originally referred to as the Pancho Villa Expedition, and officially as the Punitive Expedition, U.S Army, was an undeclared war, fought between the three Revolutionary factions of Mexico: The Constitutionalists, under Venustiano Carranza, the Villistas, under Pancho Villa, allied with the Zapatistas, under Emiliano Zapata, and the U.S Army set out originally to retrieve Pancho Villa, and escalating with the Battle of Parral (April 12th, 1916) and the Battle of Veracruz (April 19th, 1916), and ending with the American withdrawl from Mexico, finally ending in the Seventeenth of March, 1917.

Background
The Mexican Revolution, beginning in 1910, started with the rebellion against longtime Mexican dictator Diaz. In 1911, Diaz was ousted by a combined force of Peasant Revolutionaries Zapata and Villa, along with support from Madero. Madero then requested that the rebels stand down and return home, without rewarding them for the assistance in overthrowing and exiling Diaz. The Revolution was back on. A man named Victoriano Huerta eventually overthrew Madero in 1913, but this only caused further instability, as Madero's democracy was replaced by a dictatorship, much like Diaz. Governor of Coahuila, Venustiano Carranza, rose up to defend the Mexican Constitution against this dictator, beginning the third phase of the Mexican Revolution. The size of the Federal Army under Huerta rose to 250,000, further plunging Mexico into warfare. The port city of Veracruz was siezed in April 1914 by Douglas MacArthur. By mid-July, reeling from defeats in the field, Huerta resigned, and was captured by the American forces, where he died six months later. The Convention of Aguascalientes was called to attempt to reach a comprimise, with influental general Obregon attempting to establish a lasting peace. This broke down quickly. Obregon allied with Carranza, and Villa and Zapata moved to take Mexico City. The two revolutionaries joined forces, but were driven out by Obregon. Returning to the north and south respectively, Villa was defeated by Obregon in the Battle of Celaya. Carranza was then recognized as the legitimate Mexican Government, and with U.S support, Villa was further crippled at the Second Battle of Aguia Puerta.

Provoking American Intervention (March 9th, 1916, March 29th, 1916)
Raid on Colombus Now outmatched by Obregon and Carranza, Villa attempted to gain supplies from small border villages in the U.S. with that in mind, he ordered a raid on Columbus, New Mexico, to steal essential supplies for his war effort against Obregon and Carranza. The attack went poorly however, with Villista forces taking three times the losses the Americans did. Woodrow Wilson approved a punitive expedition into Mexico to capture Villa, appointing John J. Pershing to lead the expedition.

Entrance into Mexico
6,600 men under Pershing marched into the Mexican state of Chihuahua, setting up a base of operations in Colonia Dublan, by March 17th. The next day, March 18th, Pershing sent two cavalry regiments in pursuit of Villa. He also ordered reinforcements for 3,400, meaning the entire American National Guard and Army were committing to the expedition.

Villa refuses to fight
Villa, with a six-day head start on the Americans, was certainly advantaged in mobility, especially with Carranza forbidding Pershing from using the railways. Villa, however, stopped his retreat to attack a Constitutionalist garrison. He won the battle, and stayed overnight to celebrate.

Dodd nearly captures Villa
George A. Dodd, one of Pershing's commanders, managed to suprise the Villistas. However, the forced march that allowed him to reach Villa prevented him from moving fast enough to trap the Villista forces and especially Villa himself. 75 Villistas were killed, however, but Villa escaped into the mountains yet again.

Escalating Tensions
When the U.S recognized Carranza and his Constitutionalists as the legitimate Mexican government, the relationship between Wilson and Carranza started very well. In the Second Battle of Agua Puerta, American railways were the deciding factor in the Constitutionalist victory. With the Intervention, Carranza began to worry. Villa was fleeing further south, and time would only tell how far Pershing would go to capture Villa.

A Stand at Parral
Finally, as the American forces were about to cross the border from Chihuahua into Durango, Carranza decided that Pershing had marched far enough. In the small town of Parral, right on the Chihuahua/Durango border, Constitutionalist forces engaged the Americans, killing 25. Enraged, Pershing demanded permission from commander Fredrick Funston to counterattack. After the disaster at Columbus, and now with a 'betrayal' at Parral, a retreat now would surely be interpreted as a failure. Wilson had been interested in supporting the Entente against Germany. However, Kaiser Wilhelm II's promise to never renew Unrestricted Submarine Warfare doused any hopes of American entry in the war. Wilson approves Pershing's plan for a full offensive into Durango.

March Into Durango
The U.S Army, ejected from Parral, now attacked yet again, attempting to descisively defeat the Constitutionalist forces, march into Mexico City, and install a loyal junta. Carranza hoped that a victory over the U.S Army would prove his worth and increase loyalty amongst the outraged Mexican people. However, against Obregon's reccomendation, he refused to utilize the Fabian Strategy, to retreat and allow the Americans to overextend and exhaust themselves. This strategy had allowed the weaker Zapatista and Villista forces to survive so long. Carranza wished to distance himself from the Villista and Zapatista forces, and make a dignified stand against the U.S Army, and crush Pershing before he ever crossed into Durango.

Battle of Puerto Justo.
Arrayed around the small border town of Puerto Justo, on April 15th, the Constitutionalist Army, 20,000 strong, attempted to put up a final stand, crush the Americans before they could deal serious damage to Mexico, and strengthen his claim amongst the Mexican peasants. Pershing held only 9,600 men under his command, half that of Obregon, forced to command the battle.

The terrain in Puerto Justo is very mountainous, with combat restricted to the mountain passes only. This would seemingly negate American superiority in artillery and machine guns, as the tight mountain passes would not allow for machine gun nests or large artillery fields. However, Pershing had 1,600 men set up north of the mountains, as the mountain passes spilled into an empty plain. He ordered the other 8,000 men to split up into small parties, and each enter the moutain passes, move towards Obregon's forces, and retreat when coming under fire.

Pershing hoped to entice Obregon's forces into a chase, then the Americans could retreat to the northern plain, where the artillery and machine guns could open fire on the pursuing Mexicans.

2:13 P. M, April 15th, 1916 - The Battle Begins.

Hundreds of small American raiding parties were sent into the mountain passes, in the direction of Obregon's forces. After marching roughly 8km to the small town of Puerto Justo, where the Constitutionalist Army set up camp, Obregon's forces began a pursuit. Neither force knew this specific terrain well, so most of the deaths were small skirmishes between raiding parties in the mountains. Pershing's forces, upon being fired upon, began the retreat, attempting to trace their way back through the mountains. In a combination of light skirmishing, accidental friendly fire, and being trapped in the mountain passes, an estimated ~600 American troops were killed in the early stages of the battle.

4:47 P.M April 15th, 1916 - The Plain Draws

Despite orders to retreat at the exact same time, so that the entire Mexican Army was suprised when the artillery/machine guns opened fire, the twisting mountain slopes, and the approaching Mexican Army, some regiments already neared the killing plain. When it became clear that many of the other American troops had yet to make it to the field, some American regiments attempted to delay the Mexican forces, beginning easily the most brutal portion of the battle. Roughly 1,000 Americans were killed, attempting to delay the Constitutionalist forces.

6:00 P.M April 15th, 1916 - The Killing Fields

When it became clear that the American raiding parties could not hold against the numerically superior Mexican forces, at exactly 6 PM, the raiding parties were ordered to break. Retreating onto the plain, the Mexican Army moved in hot pursuit, with many already reaching the bottom of the slope before they realized that a trap had been sprung. One Mexican veteran described the situation:

"It was a sight from hell. Once we had reached the bottom, massive booming noises erupted all around. Five seconds later, explosions rocked the hills. Then the machine guns opened fire. In our chase, we hadn't realized these pits, they were manned. Bullets and shells exploded into our group, as we desperately attempted to climb into the mountains yet again. Some of us would get, maybe, 15 meters up the hill before another artillery barrage caused us to fall to the ground again, even more dead. Maybe the sixth, seventh, attempt, only fifteen or so of our originally 800 strong unit were still fighting up the hill. Then, another barrage hit, and I was thrown off, landing on my left leg, breaking it. I was immobilized now, and within some time, I had lost conciousness."

9:27 P.M April 15th, 1916 - The Killing Fields go quiet.

After three hours of constant shelling and firing, almost every enemy soldier was either unconcious, dead, or one of the few who managed to disappear into the mountains with their lives. At roughly 11:00, a few survivors managed to make it back to Obregon, informing him how the 16,000 Mexican troops had been thouroughly destroyed. Obregon, without the approval of Carranza, immedeately marched south, leaving Durango to Pershing. The American forces now numbered slightly less than 8,000, and had lost roughly 40% of their supplies, but had inflicted a massive blow onto Carranza's forces.

Formation of the United Mexican Opposition
With the crushing defeat at Puerto Justo, Obregon forced a retreat, hoping to reconsolidate south in Zacatecas, abandoning Durango and effectively losing Baja California and Sonora to American forces. However, the Villistas had retreated to Zacatecas some week earlier. The disorganized and crippled Constitutionalist Army would be severely disadvantaged against the reorganized and more numerous Villista Army. Obregon, completely bypassing Carranza in Mexico City, sent a telegram to Villa asking him to form a 'United Mexican Opposition' against the Americans. Villa happily agreed.

Lost Signals
Following the effective beginning of the Second Mexican War, Pershing and Wilson began to worry about the Army of Morelos, lead by Zapata. After Pershing's victory at Puerto Justo, Pershing simply dismissed Zapata as a thorn in his side, now that Villa and Carranza/Obregon had been thoughroughly defeated. Pershing's report to Funston stated that there was 'no possibility of Zapatista damage to the expedition'. However, Pershing believed the port city of Veracruz, occupied in 1914, was not part of the Expedition to capture Villa. However, Funston believed that any American soldiers in Mexico were part of the expedition, and so relayed to MacArthur that his position was secure.

Battle of Veracruz
Even the name 'Battle of Veracruz' is controversial. American newspapers attempted to call it the 'Veracruz Massacre', while Zapata dubbed it the 'Recapture of Veracruz'. Whatever the name, it was an unmitigated American humiliation. Douglas MacArthur, leader of the expedition, was himself gunned down by Zapatista forces in their suprise attack. The entire 200-men strong garrison were all killed, in a battle lasting only a few minutes. Zapatista forces marched into Veracruz, in an ostensible declaration of war against the U.S forces. By April 19th, all three Revolutionary factions were joined together in the United Mexican Opposition.

The Revolutionaries Consolidate in Zacetecas
With the naval base in Veracruz recaptured by Zapatistas, the small city of Zacetecas was agreed upon as the new base for the United Mexican Front. With Carranza's new armies near Morelos, Villa's army, Obregon's battered army, and the Zapatista militias, the United Mexican Front numbered over 100,000 men to the 7,800 American troops.

The Great Beast Begins to Stumble
Through the difficult terrain of the Sierra Madre, the difficulty of hauling artillery, machine guns, and the extreme difficulty of resupplying the 7,250 men deep in Mexican territory, almost two months passed before Pershing's forces reached the outskirts of Zacetecas. Over 400 men had died from a combination of disease, wounds from Puerto Justo, falling down cliffsides, and raiding parties by Zapatista/Villista affiliated militias formed from the nearby townships. In late April and early May, Pershing embarked on 'revenge campaigns', razing nearby villages, and oftentimes killing all of the able-bodied men in the town, to prevent future raids. Hearing of this, nearby towns began to prepare defences, killing over 400 American soldiers in later raids in early May. After abandoning these razing campaigns, raiding parties only increased in frequency, killing an estimated 150 more soldiers, in a report from Pershing to Funston. These campaigns also took a toll on Pershing's mental health. Six months before the campaign, his wife and daughters had died, and his old friend Pancho Villa sent him condolences. Now, he had to embark on a mission to capture Villa. Then, his good friend and protoge Douglas MacArthur had been killed by Zapatistas. Witnessing the slaughter in the Battle of Puerto Justo further degraded his sanity, and now he had not only killed hundreds of innocent Mexicans, but did not get enough sleep, as he was constantly woken by raiding parties. He refused to tell anybody, but his soldiers, in their letters sent home, often described him as 'not the man he once was'.

The Front Splits
Carranza, now in Zacetecas, was infuriated with the complete lapse in command from Obregon, and saw him as responsible for the defeat at Puerto Justo. Obregon was dismissed from his post, but in the last three months of fleeing through the mountain passes, many of the Constitutionalist soldiers felt far more loyalty to Obregon than Carranza. Even more division, however, came from the disagreement on what to once the Americans reached Zacetecas. Despite outnumbering American forces 12-1, Zapata and Villa wished to retreat further south, and allow attrition and partisans to drive the Americans out. Obregon, seeking to split with Carranza, approved of Zapata and Villa's plan of a retreat to the south. Carranza, believed a stand in Zacetecas would totally prove his legitimacy to the Mexican people, refused to evacuate. 22,000 men strong, Carranza gathered for a stand at Zacetecas.

1,200 of Obregon's veterans retreated south, with Villa and Zapata. On May the 28th, one of the most important events in Mexican history occured.

Not Another Puerto Justo
When the American forces entered within sight of the city, Carranza did not want any sort of repeat of Puerto Justo. Instead, using his almost three to one numerical advantage, refused to be coaxed into any sort of confrontation, staying garrisoned inside the city. Pershing knew he could not advance and leave 22,000 men behind his lines, nor could he attempt to take the city by assault. So, despite the numerical disadvantage, he split around 1,500 of his 7,200 men to guard the railway lines, and make sure no reinforcements came from southern Mexico to resupply the city. Then, around half a kilometer from the Mexican lines, he set up his artillery in a single row. Every hour, the curved line of artillery would fire into the city, twenty four hours a day. This would be a siege, not a battle.

Zacetacas Abandoned
The southern revolutionaries continued to supply Carranza's army with whatever spare guns could be found, as well as food and water. With the American troops now cutting off any sort of supplies, by the 2nd of June, Zapata, Obregon, and Villa had to make a choice: To intervene, or to leave the Carrancistas to their fate. Obregon, despite his past divide with Carranza, absolutely did not want to abandon 22,000 Americans to their fate. Zapata and Villa were adamant however, that "Many men must die, so that all of Mexico may live." Obregon, though infuriated, did not under any condition, want to face the Americans with his poultry 1,200 veterans. As such, Carranza was abandoned to his fate inside the Cuidad de Muertos, the 'City of Death'.

The Siege Begins
Deprived of supplies, Carranza was infuriated, sending a series of increasingly desperate telegrams to the other Revolutionaries. Unbeknownst to him, the telegraph lines had been cut by Pershing's troops. Carranza would die believing he had been totally abandoned.

The Carrancista forces began to rely on local supplies for aid. Extracting what they could from the nearby land and people, it became clear supplies would only last a few months. After that? Who knows.

The Barrage Never Ends
Pershing's 'hourly barrage' was set up to demoralize and weaken the Carrancista forces. Sometimes the shells would hit larters, the trenches, ammo depots, or sometimes civilian houses. But every hour, a thundering explosion would streak across the sky, and something would be hit. Occasionally, snipers would hit their mark, and an artillery worker would be shot down. Somebody else would return from the camp half a kilometer away, to man the artillery for another 24hour shift. Both the Mexican and American soldiers were totally worn down, staying up all night and being woken by artillery fire and screams constantly. Pershing's mental situation further degraded, with him occasionally lashing out and attacking his soldiers in fits of rage, before sinking back in his tent. After a month, the Mexican troops found themselves exhausting rations and arms, as did the Americans, as the trucks struggled to move through the mountainous Sierra Madre.

Will It Ever Stop?
The Carrancistas and Americans had been nearly totally exhausted. Beginning on June the Second, September 6th, the siege had yet to end. The Carrancista forces had resorted to robbing civilian houses. Gunshots were heard inside the city, as families attempted to defend what little food they had from their own fellow countrymen. For the Americans, the timetables were further restricted as many men had to join raiding parties to bring home enough food to eat. This was enough for the time being, but 17 American soldiers had died from self-inflicted gunshots, and over 300 from sleep deprivation, starvation, enemy fire, and disease. Supplies were continually hampered, even with the El Paso-Zacetecas railway repaired, artillery shells could not accomadate for the hourly barrages. Only for the next month, could the artillery continue to operate.

The Great Betrayal
Eventually, the Mexican soldiers realized that defeat was fundementally inevitable. Carranza refused to allow them to retreat, or attack the well-fortified American positions. Late at night, on the 17th of September, around 400 soldiers on the East Wing of the city decided to turn the city over, in exchange for their freedom, and the American promise to be as non-violent as possible once the city had fallen. Four hundred Mexican officers moved out from the East Wing, with their hands in the air. Upon being spotted, the Americans were on the verge of firing, but many of the soldiers dropped to their knees. Secretly, the two of them met, and one of the Mexican soldiers who knew English explained the situation to them. The Mexican soldiers would open fire on the East Wing, and ten or so would sneak around the city, into the trenches manned by the 400 traitors. From there, the Americans would have a foothold behind enemy lines. The plan worked almost perfectly, and within thirty or so minutes, almost a thousand Americans had found their way into the city. Upon being told of the betrayal, Pershing ordered every single American soldier not working the artillery to move into the city immedeately. The four hundred soldiers were allowed to escape into the mountains of Zacetecas, except for two who hid and watched from afar. They would be the only two Mexican soldiers to know what happened that night.

The Massacre at Zacetecas
At roughly 3:00, the assault on the East Wing finally ended. Over 1000 American soldiers now occupied a portion of the city, unbeknownst to all except the now-fled traitors and a few civilians quickly threatened to keep their mouth shut 'or else. With much of the East Wing occupied, the order was given. Soldiers all around Zacetecas were ordered to begin the attack. Incapacitated on both sides, the Mexican soldiers in the trenches were quickly killed from behind. Pershing attempted to give orders, but the Americans were off the leash, enacting a revenge that had been brewing inside of them for months. Once most of the soldiers in the trenches were dead, the city had mostly been taken. For eight gruesome hours, the people of Zacetecas were shot, lynched, dismembered and raped. Houses were burnt to the ground, and children found themselves in the crossfire. With the city totally surrounded, none could escape. By noon the Eighteenth of September, the Siege of Zacetecas and the Massacre that followed were finished. Now, a totally decimated city was all that remained. Although the vast majority of the traitors returned to their homes. The two that decided to stay behind, Major Ramon Vernandad and Private Jesus Ejicio, saw the terrible betrayal of that promise. Pershing, though not directly responsible, attempted to hide the event. The pure scale, however, prevented this from happening for long. On the twenty-third, an uncle, the father figure for Private James Corporal, recieved a letter from his nephew describing the 'horrible tragedy' commited by the American troops. The Uncle, Jonothan Leeway, reported this to the New York Times, a newspaper heavily against the Mexican Expedition. The story spread like wildfire, and one of the largest protests in U.S history, the Chicago Zacetecas March was organized on the twenty-fourth. Funston took a public stand against the act, and despite Pershing's lack of involvement and pre-emptive efforts to prevent the Massacre, relieved General Pershing, taking over command for the Expedition personally. Wilson was horrified, and demanded a court-martial for every man involved. Funston assured him that it would happen, once Mexico was pacified, now that they were 'so close'.

Carranza's body was identified three months later, by Zapatista forces liberating Zacetecas. Pershing shot himself four days after returning home.

His family did not give him a funeral.

A Last Stand For All Of Mexico
Upon hearing of the Massacre at Zacetecas, and the further weakening of U.S forces, Obregon and Zapata began the process to simply abandon Mexico City. Pancho Villa, however, expected the American forces to truly be at the breaking point. A easy capture of Mexico City might give the Americans enough morale and resources to finally take Morelos and win the war. Pancho Villa's forces had been continually damaged, and he held perhaps 300 veterans still with him, all the way from Celaya and Agua Puerta. Zapata and Obregon accepted, and left the city. Villa approached his veterans, and said, simply:

"Any man, who might want to leave now, absolutely may. Any man who does not will die, in this city, so that all of Mexico may live." In an intentional parallel to the Battle of the Alamo.

Every single soldier still under Villa accepted. Villa sent a single telegram to Germany, requesting any sort of aid against the Americans. Zimmerman sent back a telegram promising 40 machine guns to be shipped via submarine to Veracruz within two days.

The Battle for Mexico Begins
On the 29th of Janruary, every Mexican soldier knew he would die. 300 fighters could only hold for so long against 6,900 Americans. The battle was also set up to be an excellent propaganda opportunity, as a rallying cry for all fighters across the world. When it became publicly known of the engagement by the 29th of September, journalist Jack Reed, who had been forced to return by the American government several months earlier called for a 'IWW General Strike'. The Zacetecas Strike, centered in Chicago, but significant in Boston, NYC, and Detroit, ended any sort of steel supplying to the munitions factories.

The Neverending Grind
Neither the Mexican Machine-Gunners nor the American shock troops could formulate any sort of strategy excepting simple firepower and numbers. The American strategy was to simply gather a hundred or so men, and charge down a 100m alleyway into enemy machinegun fire, until the Americans could reach the nest, or the assault broke. Continually, a nest was captured, and the Americans moved on to the next alleyway. Almost a month, urban combat raged through the streets.

The Zacetecas Strike Becomes A Riot
After over a week (October 4th), the IWW had not yet ceased the striking, and the U.S Army was forced to engage the strikers. After over a dozen strikers were shot, the strikers set up inside their factories, refusing to come out.

A Last Stand In A Last Stand
By the 3rd of November, almost the entire city was occupied. Only three nests remained on the outside of the city. Villa ordered his troops to begin to fall back, when a sniper on the top of a nearby blown-out house landed a shot, and Pancho Villa, hero of the Revolution In The North, fell onto the ground. Several hours later, the last machine gun nest was flushed out. As the sun set on the 3rd of November, Funston received the report on the death. Of the 6,900 American soldiers that entered Mexico City, only 2,400 men had managed to take the city. Even worse, the artillery shell storage and machine gun bullets had been totally depleted. Only the personal rifles of the soldiers were still stocked.

Upon examination of the machine guns, the fact that they had been German-made sparked massive condemnation from the Presidency, but it was far too late to commit to anything. Public support was almost entirely against the war, and French defeat seemed inevitable..

Obregon Found Dead
The first major event after the death of Pancho Villa and the Battle of Mexico City, was the death of Obregon. Some call it coincidence, others call it poisoning by his soldiers, some say it was Zapata and others say it was suicide. Whatever the case, Obregon was found peacefully dead in his camp on the 4th of November, and his 1,200 veterans joined with Villa's forces.

The Vice Begins to Close
On the fifth, a peace was finally signed with the strikers, with the unionizers repaid for four months salary and a renewal of the promise Funston made about court-martialing. This promise eventually leaked to the Americans in Mexico City, prompting a series of mutinies and escapes. Over six hundred Americans left.

Funston, losing any sort of hope in victory, ordered a full-scale retreat. However, pro-Zapatista partisans in Northern Mexico began to seriously threaten American supply lines. Mexican rebels even rode out to El Paso, attempting to damage the El Paso-Zacetecas railway, but were driven out. In other areas, the railways were destroyed, and supply cars of reinforcements and supplies were stolen, or in the earlier case, massacred. Zapatista forces, swelling from recruitments from every town they visited, retook Mexico City. The body of Villa was never identified, as the American troops burnt his body in retreat.

The Slow March North
Although the death of Villa gave some legitimacy to the concept that the Americans had actually fufilled the purpose of the Expedition, and that regime change was 'not any sort of priority'. Despite this, mood in America was solidly against the war. NYT had a massive boost in prestige for revealing the Zacetecas Massacre, and the IWW's standing was increased, with their successful confrontation against the police. The inability of the U.S to determine the regime of a Latin American nation began the slow collapse of the Monroe Doctrine, and the decline of the United States in general.

On the seventeenth of March 1917, the last American soldier evacuated the town of Nogales under partisan fire, and Zapata acted on the Plan de Alaya, naming himself the 'interim president' of the United Federation of Mexican Workers and Peasants.