The Rise of Pancho Villa

Pancho Villa was a First Commander during the revolution and initially lead a force of 28 men. He fought against and robbed the rich and powerful becoming the first revolutionary leader to beat federal soldiers. His continuous victories attracted more men to his group which eventually numbered 500 men and continued to grow. In 1913 Villa had 3,000 men at his disposal. Villa rose to national attention during the battle for Torreon, which lasted ten days and nights resulting in the retreat of the federal army. Villa’s victories continued including the biggest battle of the revolution. The battle of Zacatecas was a faceoff between two armies who each had about 12,000 troops. The battle destroyed the town of Zacatecas with the casualties numbering: 6,000 federalist troops, 1,000 revolutionaries, and many civilians. The numerous victories in the earlier years of the revolution elevated Villa to legendary status, even Hollywood was fascinated with him. Entire battles where filmed for the entertainment of the United States. Pancho Villa’s numerous victories against the federalist army greatly helped the revolutionary movement (Katz).  

Pancho Villa would be a huge reason that many people in The Murmur of Bees would move to towns. Many battles would contain numerous casualties including civilians. The Battle of Zacatecas resulted in the total devastation of the town and the deaths of many of the townsfolk. We can see that new faces appear in the town after the Moraless come back from their isolation. These new people came to the town hoping to avoid the bloody fighting and to try to live normal lives.  

Info & Img Source: Katz, Freidrich. “The Revolutionary Hero.” Revolutionary Hero, 1998, www.laits.utexas.edu/jaime/jrn/cwp/pvg/revolutionary.html.

Porfirio Diaz Arrests Madero

Fransico Madero, a citizen from Northern Mexico, was not fond of Porfirio Diaz and decided to run against him in the next election after publishing a book that highly dismantled the power of Diaz. Upon becoming aware of the opposition he was running against, Diaz he acted hastily to have Madero arrested and imprisoned. The imprisonment made sure that Diaz would once again win the election and maintain his rule. However, once Madero was released from prison, he spurred a revolution in Northern Mexico that would eventually lead to the fall of Porfirio Diaz. 

Image Citation: Siqueiros, David. Díaz steps on the liberal 1857 Constitution. National Musuem of History, Chapultepec Castle. Mexico City Ambles. https://mexicocityperambulations.blogspot.com/p/chapter-i-dictator-porf…. Accessed December 13, 2020.

Source Citation: “The Mexican Revolution.” National Park Serivce U.S. Department of the Interior Chamizal National Memorial, www.nps.gov/cham/learn/historyculture/upload/mx_revolution_final_1_2_09….

Madero Becomes President

Francisco Madero becomes President of Mexico after unfiying many democratic and anti Díaz forces. This temporary unification allowed for Madero to take place of the dictator Porfirio Díaz. Although things seemed like they would be good, all the conservatives were not happy so the revolution continued on as the sides fought for power. You can see how this war greatly affects characters in The Murmer of Bees by Sofia Segovia. Segovia paints the picture of the war causing strained relationships between Beatriz and her daughters. Then there is also the bitter hate in Anselmo who is struggling in poverty after the plague, and as he endures sharecropping, an ideal that he hates. The revolutionary war was fighting for these ideals or against it. A lot is riding on this war that is bringing much division. 

Arcgis.com, www.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=2373df2dfc2d4fcd804231bd47….

“Francisco Madero.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., www.britannica.com/biography/Francisco-Madero.

Battle of Cuidad Juarez

The rebel forces led by Pancho Villa and Pascual Orozco attacked federal forces at Cuidad Juarez in an attempt to end the dictatorship of Porfirio Diaz. This battle was considered one of the first major battles of the Mexican Revolution. The rebel group was armed with 2,500 untrained men while the federal forces only had 700 men.  Despite being untrained, the rebel forces led by Villa and Orozco greatly outnumbered the federal troops and defeated them at Cuidad Juarez. This success led to the forced resignation and end of Diaz's rule. This then brought on the introduction of Francisco Madero into power. 

Dasandi, Niheer. “Battle of Ciudad Juárez.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Ciudad-Juarez.

Plan de Ayala

The Plan de Ayala was drafted by Emiliano Zapata and his supporters in 1911 and was a response to Francisco I. Madero's Plan of San Luis. In the Plan of Ayala, Zapata was denouncing Madero and defined what Zapatismo's core beliefs were. In sum, it called for land reform and freedom, two of the main issues in Mexico at the time. Zapata also wrote the Plan de Ayala due to the betrayal of Madero and was used to draw support from peasant groups which evidently worked in his favor. The Plan consisted of fifteen main points and denounces Madero as unfit to be President of Mexico and accusing him of attempting to implement practices of the Diaz administration, who was the previous ruler of Mexico. One of the most famous points is land reform, which the Plan de Ayala calls for all lands stolen under Diaz to be returned to the people. Overall, at the Convention of Aguascalientes, some of Zapata's delegates had a couple of the provisions in the Plan accepted, but they were not fully implemented or considered. The Plan de Ayala had become a significant document in the issues of land reform among the lower class.

Minster, Christopher. “What Was the Plan of Ayala?” ThoughtCo, 2019, www.thoughtco.com/emiliano-zapata-and-plan-of-ayala-2136675.

“Plan De Ayala.” The Zapatistas: A People's Revolution, zapatistasthenandnow.weebly.com/then.html.

Victory in Chihuahua

In Febuary of 1913, Pancho Villa enter Chihuahua. Villa then got rebel troops togeher, in order to take control of the area. Villa was convienced that the socail caste system needed to overtaken. With this motive he encouraged the rebels to fight using guerilla war tactics and to use their advantage of the land to their beniefit. Other tactis that were encouraged were stealing from the rich and redistrubing money in Chihuahua. These efforts gained the first victory by Manuel Chao, a local rebel,  in the city of Parral. This victory was the first of many to come by other rebels and Pancho Villa himself. This specific victory and the victories to come were imporant to the Mexcian Revolution because the city of Chihuahua vital for the sake of the presidency. This city held power becasue it was connected to the United States by train and was a source of major communicaiton. If one had control of this city it was a gateway to have control of the presidency. 

This is relevant to the Murmur of Bees because we see the way the Mexican Revolution impacted the Morales family. It caused them to move away and isolate in a way to get away from the Revolution. I would think the same type of reaction would come from the poeple from the city of Chihuahua. 

Runyon, Robert, et al. “The Mexican Revolution and the United States in the Collections of the Library of Congress The War Against Huerta.” The War Against Huerta - The Mexican Revolution and the United States | Exhibitions - Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/exhibits/mexican-revolution-and-the-united-states/war-again….

Bain News Service, Publisher. Gen. Francisco Villa. [Between 1910 and 1923] Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2013645908/&gt;.

The Assassination of Francisco Madero

On February 22nd, 1913, Francisco Modero was assassinated by General Victoriano Huerta. Resulting from this, General Victoriano Huerta took control of the Nation of Mexico. As surprising as this was for the people of Mexico, politics and the sporadic killing of leaders was only beginning. While this event may have lead to the occurrence of other killings is not certain; however, there were large effects politically and for the people within the nation. There was confusion that arose and although Huerta reached out to Zapata to combine their forces, Zapata refused. This event can show how individuals began to collectively take control and assert their visions on the nation which was chaotic due to the fact that not everybody's vision for Mexico was the same. 

“The Mexican Revolution and the United States in the Collections of the Library of Congress: The Rise of Francisco Madero.” Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/exhibits/mexican-revolution-and-the-united-states/rise-of-m….

“Emiliano Zapata.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 7 Oct. 2020, www.biography.com/political-figure/emiliano-zapata?li_source=LI.

The Convention of Aguascalientes

This convention was held in 1914 between the remaining leaders of Mexico after Huerta was exiled and resigned. Huerta was forced to resign, and the leaders of the remaining factions met up to decide who would be the standin president until there could be an election. The meeting did not completely go as planned, as Eualalio Gutierrez was chosen, which upset some of the leaders. Carranza and Obregon withdrew from the convention with their followers, and Villa and Zapata formed an alliance in order to safely escort Gutierrez to the capital. 

Source:

Convention of Aguascalientes. laii.unm.edu/info/k-12-educators/assets/documents/mexican-revolution/convention-at-aguascalientes.pdf. 

Year of Starvation

Amidst all the chaos of the war, starvation swept the nation of Mexico. There was no concrete leadership in Mexico at the time so no one was leading the fight to end hunger. Many of the nation's resources were poured into the war so public service was ignored and the people were left to fend for themselves. Many leaders who were fighting to bring opportunities to the lower class, left them without resources and aid. The image shows starving women and children, trying to get food for their families. The poverty and starvation can be seen in The Murmur Of Bees through characters like Anselmo. 

Rodríguez ME. Symposium: Mexico in 1915. Epidemics, hunger, and health care. Gac Med Mex. 2016;152(2):252. “Hellraisers Journal: ‘Those Who Have Starved Others Should Themselves Taste Hunger." ~General Villa.” Daily Kos, www.dailykos.com/story/2015/8/27/1407814/-Hellraisers-Journal-Those-who….

Mexican Constitution Proclamation

The Constitution of 1917 promised "restoration of lands to native peoples, separation of church and state, and dramatic economic and education reforms. . . It combined revolutionary demands for land reform with advanced social theory" (History.com). 

Works Cited

Editors, History.com. “Mexican Constitution Proclaimed.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 9 Feb. 2010, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/mexican-constitution-proclaimed.

Mexico Constitution. “Image 1 of Mexican Constitution of 1917.” The Library of Congress, Washington D.C., www.loc.gov/resource/dcmsiabooks.mexicanconstitut00mexi/?r=-0.897%2C0%2….

Public Domain. 

Assassination of Zapata

Zapata was a Mexian revolutionary who encouraged the uprising of peasants who forcefully took land from wealthy landowners and redistributed it among themselves. Zapata and his followers were opposed by Carranza, who was the president of Mexico at this time. Both sides fought for reform, however the Carrancistas were moderates and the Zapatistas were revolutionaries. William Gates, a US envoy, published a collection of articles in the United States declaring the Zapatistas as the true champions of social revolution. After these came out, Genral Pablo Gonazalez arranged a secret meeting between Colonel Jesus Guajardo and Zapata. Then, Zapata was ambushed in Morelos and shot by soldiers fighting under Carranza. 

Text Source: 

Alba, Victor. “Emiliano Zapata.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., www.britannica.com/biography/Emiliano-Zapata.

Image Source:

“Who Was Emiliano Zapata? Everything You Need to Know.” Facts, Childhood, Family Life & Achievements of Revolutionary Leader, www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/emiliano-zapata-194.php.

The Murder of Carranza

Venustiano Carranza was a leader in the Mexican civil war after Dictator Diaz was overthrown. Carranza became the first president of new, reforming Mexico, but he opposed the changes that were brought by the revolutionists. Carranza wanted to destroy the rebels of the Mexican revolution, like Zapata, because they represented everything that Carranza didn’t want for Mexico’s future. Carranza was reluctant to accept the reforms that were being pushed by the Mexican Revolution. In 1920, Obregon led a rebellion against his rule, so Carranza fled to Veracruz.  He fled by train until his train was attacked, so he rode on horseback with a few others to the mountains. On May 20th, 1920, he was betrayed and was murdered.

Sources

“Venustiano Carranza.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., www.britannica.com/biography/Venustiano-Carranza.

“Venustiano Carranza.” Historia De México, lahistoriamexicana.mx/biografia/venustiano-carranza.

The Cristero War

The Cristero war was a direct result of the Mexican constitution in 1917. This was a revolution that was fought over the enforcement of anti-clerical laws. This uprising took place during the Plutarco Elias Calles presidency. He began to enforce the parts of the constitution that outlawed Catholicism in Mexico as well as adding the Calles Laws which further enforced the laws of the constitution. This was an extremely bloody war as around 250,000 people were killed during the short conflict. To this day Catholicism plays a vital role in Mexico, as over 80 percent of the population identify as Catholic. The war ended in 1929 because of an agreement between the church and government, but this didn't come with any change to the written law, just how it was informed. The written change didn't happen until much later.

Source:  Rendon, Andres. “The Cristero War and Mexican History.” HistoricalMX, historicalmx.org/items/show/128.