On March 9, 1916, on orders of Mexican revolutionary
leader Francisco "Pancho" Villa, five hundred of his troops carried out an
attack against the town of Columbus, New Mexico. The sleepy town was garrisoned
by a detachment of the U.S. 13th Cavalry Regiment. The invaders seized 100
horses and mules, burned the town, killed 14 soldiers and 10 residents, and took
much ammunition and weaponry before retreating back into Mexico. Villa had five
men captured and suffered the loss of 80 dead or mortally wounded, mostly from
the U.S. machine gun emplacements.
United States President Woodrow Wilson responded to the Columbus raid by sending
10,000 troops under Brigadier General John J. Pershing to Mexico to pursue
Villa. This was known as the Punitive Mexican Expedition or Pancho Villa
Expedition. The expedition was eventually called off after failing to find
Villa, who had successfully escaped.
Pershing was the first to employ aircraft in a war time situation. His training
in the punitive expedition prepared himself, and a certain Lt. Patton for future
assignments in WWI.
