The infamous man who became known worldwide as Pancho Villa was born on June 5, 1878, as Doroteo Arango, in Río Grande, Mexico. At a young age, Villa assisted his parents on their farm and soon became the head of the household after his father died unexpectedly. When he was 16, he shot and killed a wealthy landowner who attempted to harass his sister. This started the vicious cycle of Villa’s life as a bandit and a man on the run. It is presumed that during this time as a fugitive, Villa changed his name from Doroteo Arango to Francisco Villa in order to evade the authorities.

By the time he was 20, Villa had worked various odd jobs, including numerous positions as a miner. On the side, however, Villa earned a living by selling stolen cattle and later formed a gang of outlaws and made money by robbing the wealthiest members of society. While many people consider Villa to be an outlaw, others consider him a revolutionary and even a modern-day version of Robin Hood, since he was known for his generosity to the poor.

While living as a fugitive, Villa participated in a successful uprising against Porfirio Díaz, who was the Mexican dictator at the time. Since Villa was an extremely good fighter, he was promoted to the rank of colonel in the uprising movement. In 1912, another uprising occurred, which displaced Villa and his gang and attempts at his life were made numerous times. For a brief time span, Villa fled to the United States, but eventually he settled in Mexico and became a General during the Mexican Revolution.

Villa is probably best known for his raid on the border-town of Columbus, New Mexico. On the night of March 9, 1916, Villa and approximately 500 or 600 revolutionaries raided the town and set many of the buildings on fire. In response, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson sent over 10,000 troops to Mexico in order to locate Villa in what was called the “Mexican Expedition.” They never found him.

In 1920, Villa accepted a deal from the Mexican government, in which he would lay down his arms in return for 25,000 acres of land and an annual salary of a general. He used much of the land and money to support the poor people of his country. He founded a bank and made loans to farmers and also built a school for the children who lived on his land. Villa studied new methods of farming and attempted to renew the troubled Mexican economy through agrarian reform. Many people believe that Villa would have made great progress in raising the standards of living for the poor working class throughout Mexico, had his life not been cut short.

At the age of 45, Pancho Villa was assassinated on the morning of June 20, 1923. He was on his way to the christening of his friend’s baby, when seven armed gunmen opened fire and killed Villa and five of his followers. The seven gunmen were never identified, although it was later discovered that Villa’s assassins had used government-issued bullets.

Works Cited

Katz, Friedrich. The Life and Times of Pancho Villa. New York: Stanford UP, 1998.

“Pancho Villa Biography.” Infoplease. Pearson Education. 14 Oct. 2008 <http://www.infoplease.com/biography/var/panchovilla.html>.

“Pancho Villa Info Page.” Diversity / Multicultural resources. Michigan State University. 14 Oct. 2008 <http://www.lib.msu.edu/diversity/villa.htm>.

Rath, Brad. “The Personal History of Pancho Villa and Its Effects on Mexican History.” Historical Text Archive. 14 Oct. 2008 <http://historicaltextarchive.com/sections.php?op=viewarticle&artid=166>.