Battle of Zacatecas (1914)

Battle of Zacatecas

Date	23 June 1914
Location	Zacatecas, Zacatecas
Result	Decisive rebel victory

Belligerents

Villistas (followers of Pancho Villa)

Mexico

Commanders and leaders

Pancho Villa

General Luís Medina Barrón

Strength

over 20,000 (estimate)

7,000-15,000 (most likely 12,000)

Casualties and losses

1,000 (estimate)

6,000-7,000 (estimate)

The Battle of Zacatecas, also known as the Toma de Zacatecas (Taking of Zacatecas), was the bloodiest battle in the campaign to overthrow Mexican President Victoriano Huerta. On June 23, 1914, Pancho Villa's División del Norte (Division of the North) decisively defeated the federal troops of General Luis Medina Barrón defending the town of Zacatecas. The great victory demoralized Huerta's supporters, leading to his resignation on July 15.

Zacatecas, a silver mining town of 30,000, possessed a strategic military asset, a railroad junction that had to be captured in order to advance from the north on the capital, Mexico City. Realizing this, Huerta sent one of his better officers, General Medina Barrón, with reinforcements for the federal troops already defending the town. Estimates of the size of his total force range from 7,000 to 15,000, but it is likely he had 12,000 men.

By 1914 the federal army under Huerta had been greatly increased in size from that of Porfirio Diaz and Francisco Madero. However the rank and file conscripts, often randomly press-ganged, were poorly motivated and prone to desertion. By contrast Villa's División del Norte was comparatively well organized, employed trained federal defectors in key roles, and included effective artillery and mounted units.

Venustiano Carranza, the leader of the rebellion, was jealous of Villa's popularity and did not want to give Villa a chance to precede him into Mexico City, so he ordered him to attack Saltillo next after his hard-fought victory at Torreón. Carranza chose General Panfilo Natera instead for the assault on Zacatecas. Medina Barrón easily repulsed his attack. Without authorization, Villa decided to try his luck with his División del Norte of over 20,000 men.

Zacatecas is ringed by high hills. Medina Barrón placed many of his best troops on two of them, La Bufa and El Grillo, with artillery in support. Smaller hills, such as Loreto and el Sierpe, were also fortified.

Villa let General Felipe Ángeles, a professional soldier and artillery specialist, plan the attack. This process took two days. It was decided to take advantage of the greater numbers and superior artillery of the rebel forces and storm the town from all sides, with the artillery concentrating on La Bufa and El Grillo. The bombardment started at 10 a.m., June 23, 1914. Villa later reported that he and General Angeles narrowly escaped when a shell in a nearby artillery piece exploded killing or wounding all the gun crew.

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Wikipedia