Jacinto B. Treviño
Encyclopedia
General Jacinto Blas Treviño González was a Mexican military officer, noteworthy for his participation in the Mexican Revolution
of 1910 to 1921.
on 11 September 1883. His father was Francisco A. Trevino, a former cornel of National Guard, and his mother was Trinidad González. He received his primary education in Monterrey
, Nuevo León
, and completed his college preparatory schooling in a government high school.
in 1900 and graduated 1908. He entered the artillery corps upon graduation. He did not participate in the Madero rebellion of 1911.
rebellion.
Upon the conclusion of hostilities, he was assigned to the state government of Coahuila to help organize the state militia. In this position, he developed a close relationship with the state governor Venustiano Carranza
.
. Closely aligning himself with Carranza, he was one of the first signatories of Carranza's Plan of Guadalupe
which claimed the Huerta government was illegitimate. Two days after signing the Plan, he was dishonorably discharged from the Federal Army
. Carranza commissioned him a major in the new Constitutionalist Army to be formed to drive out the Huerta government.
Treviño participated in the military battles that Carranza fought in Coahuila during the spring and summer of 1913. On March 7, 1913, Carranza and Treviño won a battle over Federal troops at Anhelo. However, most of their battles were defeats and so Carranza decided to abandon Coahuila and set up his rebel government in Sonora which had been secured by the Constitutionalists there. Treviño accompanied Carranza in the five week trek from Coahuila to Hermosillo Sonora between August and September 1913.
Shortly after arriving in Hermosillo, Carranza appointed Treviño as his Chief-of-Staff. In June 1914, Carranza promoted Treviño to brigadier general under General Pablo González
. Carranza's Constitutional forces were victorious and drove out the right-wing government of Victoriano Huerta
in July 1914. However, the victorious Constitutionals then split into two camps: those who continued to support Carranza, and those who were opposed to his continued leadership, primarily headed up by Pancho Villa
and Emiliano Zapata
.
A peace convention was held in Aguascalientes
in October 1914 which hoped to resolve the differences between Carranza and Villa. Treviño participated in the Convention of Aguascalientes
as a supporter of Carranza. The Convention failed to bring peace, and in December 1914, open warfare broke out between the forces of Pancho Villa and the forces that supported Carranza.
In January 1915, Treviño again held off a force of Villistas commanded by General Manuel Chao. Treviño is credited with constructing good defensive breastworks
at El Ebano while Chao has been criticized for conducting unimaginative frontal attacks.
In February 1915, the forces of Manuel Chao were reinforced by the forces of Tomas Urbina
. Again, Treviño held firm.
On March 21, 1915, Chao and Urbina renewed their attack on El Ebano again. This was to be one of the longest and most deadly battles of the Revolution. For 72 days, the forces of Chao and Urbina attacked Treviño at El Ebano, and each time, Treviño held.
Villa finally tired of this attack, and ordered Chao and Urbina to disengage and move the majority of their commands to the Celaya
region where he was battling Álvaro Obregón
. A small Villista command remained at El Ebano that was intended to hold Treviño in check. However, on May 31, Trevino advanced out of his barricades and defeated the Villistas. For keeping the oil-rich region out of the hand of Pancho Villa, he was proclaimed a war-hero and promoted to major general. He was then given command of the Army of the Northwest headquartered in the city of Chihuahua
.
In April and May 1915, Pancho Villa and Álvaro Obregón engage in several long and deadly battles in the Celaya region of Mexico. The end result was that in early June 1915, Pancho Villa's army was destroyed, and the remnants of his army retreated north to Chihuahua.
While Villa's army was broken, he continued to wage guerrilla war in the state of Chihuahua. Treviño battled Villa throughout the latter half of 1915, and most of 1916, but he was never able to stop Villa.
On January 1, 1916, Treviño announced that 14,000 Villistas had surrendered and that the Villa insurgency was over. Still, Villa continued to raid the countryside. In March 1916, Villa attacked Columbus
, New Mexico
, which outraged the American newspapers. President Wilson responded by sending American troops under the command of General Pershing into Chihuahua to pursue Villa. This incursion into Mexico is known as the Punitive Expedition or the Pancho Villa Expedition
.
On March 27, 1916, Villa took the city of Guerrero
Chihuahua from Trevino's troops. However, Villa was wounded in the battle, and was unable to command for the next six months. Treviño, the Mexican government and the American government all believed that Villa was dead and that insurrection was over.
Villa recovered from his wounds and on September 6, 1916 raided Satevó
, Chihuahua. Then in his boldest move, he attacked Trevino's headquarters in the city of Chihuahua on September 16, Independence Day. Treviño and his command were forced to flee the city, while Villa captured arms and ammunitions, and freed political prisoners.
For the next two months, Villa continued to raid at will, while Treviño appeared to be to be continually surprised, and unable to coordinate any offensive operations. At this point, President Carranza and Secretary of War Obregón begin to lose confidence in Treviño. On November 6, Obregón wired Treviño telling him that he would be replaced by General Francisco Murguía.
On November 27, before Murguía arrived, Villa again attacked Trevino's headquarters at the city of Chihuahua, and again forced Trevino to evacuate the city.
On December 1, 1916 the combined forces of Treviño and Murguía defeat a Villista force at Horcasitas south of the city of Chihuahua, and Villa main force was forced to abandon the city.
Murguía was highly critical of Treviño and an enmity developed between the two. Murguía was much more aggressive and successful against Villa, and Treviño fell into disfavor.
Treviño at this time was a subordinate of Pablo González
; they both owed their positions to Carranza. After much deliberation, they decided to support Obregón in the 1920 Agua Prieta revolt
. When Congress voted to install Adolfo de la Huerta
to fill out the remainder of Carranza's term, de la Huerta appointed Treviño to be his Secretary of Industry and Commerce.
In March 1929, Treviño supported the Escobar Rebellion, and when that rebellion failed, Treviño was forced to flee to the United States. The Mexican army discharged him for his participation.
Treviño was allowed to return to Mexico in 1941 and allowed back into the army as a major general. He was appointed the Director of the National Bank of the Army in 1947. He served in the senate between 1952 and 1958. He died in Mexico City on November 5, 1971.
Mexican Revolution
The Mexican Revolution was a major armed struggle that started in 1910, with an uprising led by Francisco I. Madero against longtime autocrat Porfirio Díaz. The Revolution was characterized by several socialist, liberal, anarchist, populist, and agrarianist movements. Over time the Revolution...
of 1910 to 1921.
Early life
Jacinto B. Treviño was born in Guerrero, CoahuilaGuerrero, Coahuila
Guerrero is a city and seat of the municipality of Guerrero, in the north-eastern Mexican state of Coahuila. The 2010 census population was reported as 959 inhabitants.-History:...
on 11 September 1883. His father was Francisco A. Trevino, a former cornel of National Guard, and his mother was Trinidad González. He received his primary education in Monterrey
Monterrey
Monterrey , is the capital city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León in the country of Mexico. The city is anchor to the third-largest metropolitan area in Mexico and is ranked as the ninth-largest city in the nation. Monterrey serves as a commercial center in the north of the country and is the...
, Nuevo León
Nuevo León
Nuevo León It is located in Northeastern Mexico. It is bordered by the states of Tamaulipas to the north and east, San Luis Potosí to the south, and Coahuila to the west. To the north, Nuevo León has a 15 kilometer stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border adjacent to the U.S...
, and completed his college preparatory schooling in a government high school.
Early Military Career
Treviño entered into Military Academy at Chapultepec Mexico CityMexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
in 1900 and graduated 1908. He entered the artillery corps upon graduation. He did not participate in the Madero rebellion of 1911.
Madero
When Francisco Madero became President in November 1911, Treviño was promoted to Captain and served on the President's staff. In 1912, he participated in the campaign to suppress the Pascual OrozcoPascual Orozco
Pascual Orozco Vazquez was a Mexican revolutionary leader who, after the triumph of the Mexican Revolution, rose up against Francisco I...
rebellion.
Upon the conclusion of hostilities, he was assigned to the state government of Coahuila to help organize the state militia. In this position, he developed a close relationship with the state governor Venustiano Carranza
Venustiano Carranza
Venustiano Carranza de la Garza, was one of the leaders of the Mexican Revolution. He ultimately became President of Mexico following the overthrow of the dictatorial Huerta regime in the summer of 1914 and during his administration the current constitution of Mexico was drafted...
.
Constitutionalism
In February 1913, President Madero was overthrown and murdered by a right-wing coup d’état known as The Ten Tragic Days. Treviño joined Governor Carranza in refusing to pledge allegiance to the new government of Victoriano HuertaVictoriano Huerta
José Victoriano Huerta Márquez was a Mexican military officer and president of Mexico. Huerta's supporters were known as Huertistas during the Mexican Revolution...
. Closely aligning himself with Carranza, he was one of the first signatories of Carranza's Plan of Guadalupe
Plan of Guadalupe
The Plan of Guadalupe was a document drafted on March 23, 1913 by Venustiano Carranza in response to the overthrow and execution of Francisco I. Madero, then President of Mexico...
which claimed the Huerta government was illegitimate. Two days after signing the Plan, he was dishonorably discharged from the Federal Army
Mexican Army
The Mexican Army is the combined land and air branch and largest of the Mexican Military services; it also is known as the National Defense Army. It is famous for having been the first army to adopt and use an automatic rifle, , in 1899, and the first to issue automatic weapons as standard issue...
. Carranza commissioned him a major in the new Constitutionalist Army to be formed to drive out the Huerta government.
Treviño participated in the military battles that Carranza fought in Coahuila during the spring and summer of 1913. On March 7, 1913, Carranza and Treviño won a battle over Federal troops at Anhelo. However, most of their battles were defeats and so Carranza decided to abandon Coahuila and set up his rebel government in Sonora which had been secured by the Constitutionalists there. Treviño accompanied Carranza in the five week trek from Coahuila to Hermosillo Sonora between August and September 1913.
Shortly after arriving in Hermosillo, Carranza appointed Treviño as his Chief-of-Staff. In June 1914, Carranza promoted Treviño to brigadier general under General Pablo González
Pablo González Garza
Pablo González Garza was a Mexican General during the Mexican Revolution. He is considered to be the main organizer of the assassination of Emiliano Zapata....
. Carranza's Constitutional forces were victorious and drove out the right-wing government of Victoriano Huerta
Victoriano Huerta
José Victoriano Huerta Márquez was a Mexican military officer and president of Mexico. Huerta's supporters were known as Huertistas during the Mexican Revolution...
in July 1914. However, the victorious Constitutionals then split into two camps: those who continued to support Carranza, and those who were opposed to his continued leadership, primarily headed up by Pancho Villa
Pancho Villa
José Doroteo Arango Arámbula – better known by his pseudonym Francisco Villa or its hypocorism Pancho Villa – was one of the most prominent Mexican Revolutionary generals....
and Emiliano Zapata
Emiliano Zapata
Emiliano Zapata Salazar was a leading figure in the Mexican Revolution, which broke out in 1910, and which was initially directed against the president Porfirio Díaz. He formed and commanded an important revolutionary force, the Liberation Army of the South, during the Mexican Revolution...
.
A peace convention was held in Aguascalientes
Aguascalientes
Aguascalientes is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 11 municipalities and its capital city is Aguascalientes....
in October 1914 which hoped to resolve the differences between Carranza and Villa. Treviño participated in the Convention of Aguascalientes
Convention of Aguascalientes
The Convention of Aguascalientes was a major meeting that took place during the Mexican Revolution.The call for the Convention was issued on 1 October 1914 by Venustiano Carranza, head of the Constitutional Army, who described it as the Gran Convención de Jefes militares con mando de fuerzas y...
as a supporter of Carranza. The Convention failed to bring peace, and in December 1914, open warfare broke out between the forces of Pancho Villa and the forces that supported Carranza.
Battles Pancho Villa
In his first independent command, Treviño was ordered to take command of the Constitutionalists forces in the Tampico area, and keep the oil-rich region out of the hands of the Villistas. On December 29, 1914, Treviño held off a Villista attempt to capture Tampico.In January 1915, Treviño again held off a force of Villistas commanded by General Manuel Chao. Treviño is credited with constructing good defensive breastworks
Breastwork (fortification)
A breastwork is a fortification. The term is usually applied to temporary fortifications, often an earthwork thrown up to breast height to provide protection to defenders firing over it from a standing position...
at El Ebano while Chao has been criticized for conducting unimaginative frontal attacks.
In February 1915, the forces of Manuel Chao were reinforced by the forces of Tomas Urbina
Tomás Urbina
Tomás Urbina was a general during the Mexican Revolution who allied with Pancho Villa and Emiliano Zapata.-References:...
. Again, Treviño held firm.
On March 21, 1915, Chao and Urbina renewed their attack on El Ebano again. This was to be one of the longest and most deadly battles of the Revolution. For 72 days, the forces of Chao and Urbina attacked Treviño at El Ebano, and each time, Treviño held.
Villa finally tired of this attack, and ordered Chao and Urbina to disengage and move the majority of their commands to the Celaya
Celaya
Celaya is a city and its surrounding municipality in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico, located in the southeast quadrant of the state. It is the third most populous city in the state, with a 2005 census population of 310,413. The municipality for which the city serves as municipal seat, had a...
region where he was battling Álvaro Obregón
Álvaro Obregón
General Álvaro Obregón Salido was the President of Mexico from 1920 to 1924. He was assassinated in 1928, shortly after winning election to another presidential term....
. A small Villista command remained at El Ebano that was intended to hold Treviño in check. However, on May 31, Trevino advanced out of his barricades and defeated the Villistas. For keeping the oil-rich region out of the hand of Pancho Villa, he was proclaimed a war-hero and promoted to major general. He was then given command of the Army of the Northwest headquartered in the city of Chihuahua
Chihuahua, Chihuahua
The city of Chihuahua is the state capital of the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It has a population of about 825,327. The predominant activity is industry, including domestic heavy, light industries, consumer goods production, and to a smaller extent maquiladoras.-History:It has been said that the...
.
In April and May 1915, Pancho Villa and Álvaro Obregón engage in several long and deadly battles in the Celaya region of Mexico. The end result was that in early June 1915, Pancho Villa's army was destroyed, and the remnants of his army retreated north to Chihuahua.
While Villa's army was broken, he continued to wage guerrilla war in the state of Chihuahua. Treviño battled Villa throughout the latter half of 1915, and most of 1916, but he was never able to stop Villa.
On January 1, 1916, Treviño announced that 14,000 Villistas had surrendered and that the Villa insurgency was over. Still, Villa continued to raid the countryside. In March 1916, Villa attacked Columbus
Battle of Columbus (1916)
The Battle of Columbus, the Burning of Columbus or the Columbus Raid began as a raid conducted by Pancho Villa's Division of the North on the small United States border town of Columbus, New Mexico in March 1916. The raid escalated into a full scale battle between Villistas and the United States Army...
, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, which outraged the American newspapers. President Wilson responded by sending American troops under the command of General Pershing into Chihuahua to pursue Villa. This incursion into Mexico is known as the Punitive Expedition or the Pancho Villa Expedition
Pancho Villa Expedition
The Pancho Villa Expedition—officially known in the United States as the Mexican Expedition and sometimes colloquially referred to as the Punitive Expedition—was a military operation conducted by the United States Army against the paramilitary forces of Mexican insurgent Francisco "Pancho" Villa...
.
On March 27, 1916, Villa took the city of Guerrero
Guerrero, Chihuahua
Guerrero is a one of the 67 municipalities of Chihuahua, in northern Mexico. The municipal seat lies at Vicente Guerrero . The municipality covers an area of 5,603.6 km²....
Chihuahua from Trevino's troops. However, Villa was wounded in the battle, and was unable to command for the next six months. Treviño, the Mexican government and the American government all believed that Villa was dead and that insurrection was over.
Villa recovered from his wounds and on September 6, 1916 raided Satevó
Satevó
Satevó is a one of the 67 municipalities of Chihuahua, in northern Mexico. The municipal seat lies at San Francisco Javier de Satevó. The municipality covers an area of 2,185.1 km²....
, Chihuahua. Then in his boldest move, he attacked Trevino's headquarters in the city of Chihuahua on September 16, Independence Day. Treviño and his command were forced to flee the city, while Villa captured arms and ammunitions, and freed political prisoners.
For the next two months, Villa continued to raid at will, while Treviño appeared to be to be continually surprised, and unable to coordinate any offensive operations. At this point, President Carranza and Secretary of War Obregón begin to lose confidence in Treviño. On November 6, Obregón wired Treviño telling him that he would be replaced by General Francisco Murguía.
On November 27, before Murguía arrived, Villa again attacked Trevino's headquarters at the city of Chihuahua, and again forced Trevino to evacuate the city.
On December 1, 1916 the combined forces of Treviño and Murguía defeat a Villista force at Horcasitas south of the city of Chihuahua, and Villa main force was forced to abandon the city.
Murguía was highly critical of Treviño and an enmity developed between the two. Murguía was much more aggressive and successful against Villa, and Treviño fell into disfavor.
Post Revolution
As the year 1920 approached, the succession of President Carranza became an issue. Carranza by law could not run for re-election, but he planned to choose his successor. Alvaro Obregón announced his candidacy, but Carranza did everything in his power to prevent the election of Obregón. Obregón had the support of most of the military, and when it became clear that Carranza would not allow Obregón to succeed him, Obregón's supporters revolted and overthrew Carranza.Treviño at this time was a subordinate of Pablo González
Pablo González Garza
Pablo González Garza was a Mexican General during the Mexican Revolution. He is considered to be the main organizer of the assassination of Emiliano Zapata....
; they both owed their positions to Carranza. After much deliberation, they decided to support Obregón in the 1920 Agua Prieta revolt
Plan of Agua Prieta
The Plan of Agua Prieta was a manifesto, drawn up in the form of a plan, during the Mexican Revolution.Drafted and signed by supporters of Gen. Álvaro Obregón, the Plan repudiated the government of President Venustiano Carranza...
. When Congress voted to install Adolfo de la Huerta
Adolfo de la Huerta
Felipe Adolfo de la Huerta Marcor was a Mexican politician and interim President of Mexico from June 1 to December 1, 1920....
to fill out the remainder of Carranza's term, de la Huerta appointed Treviño to be his Secretary of Industry and Commerce.
In March 1929, Treviño supported the Escobar Rebellion, and when that rebellion failed, Treviño was forced to flee to the United States. The Mexican army discharged him for his participation.
Treviño was allowed to return to Mexico in 1941 and allowed back into the army as a major general. He was appointed the Director of the National Bank of the Army in 1947. He served in the senate between 1952 and 1958. He died in Mexico City on November 5, 1971.