Lucio Blanco was a Mexican

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

 military officer, noteworthy for his participation in the Mexican Revolution

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 1920.

Biography

Lucio Blanco was born on July 21, 1879 in Nadadores

Nadadores

Nadadores is a city in the northern Mexican state of Coahuila.it serves as the administrative centre for the surrounding municipality of the same name.Nadadores is located at ,in the state's central region ....

, Coahuila

Coahuila

Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico...

. He is noted for three major accomplishments. Forces under his command accomplished the first major victory of the Constitutional forces against the Federal forces of General 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...

's government by taking the city of Matamoros

Matamoros, Tamaulipas

Matamoros, officially known as Heroica Matamoros, is a city in the northeastern part of Tamaulipas, in the country of Mexico. It is located on the southern bank of the Rio Grande, directly across the border from Brownsville, Texas, in the United States. Matamoros is the second largest and second...

 in June 1913. In August 1913, he became the first revolutionary to distribute hacienda land to the peasantry. In late 1914, he was the driving force of the moderate generals who wished to bring peace between the victorious Constitutional factions who began quarreling among themselves. His efforts resulted 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...

 in October 1914.

Lucio Blanco was the son of Bernardo Blanco, and Maria Fuentes, prominent landowners. He attended primary school in Muzquiz

Múzquiz

Múzquiz is a one of the 38 municipalities of Coahuila, in north-eastern Mexico. The municipal seat lies at Santa Rosa de Múzquiz. The municipality covers an area of 8,128.9 km².As of 2005, the municipality had a total population of 62,710....

, Coahuila

Coahuila

Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico...

, and secondary school in the state capital of Saltillo

Saltillo

Saltillo is the capital city of the northeastern Mexican state of Coahuila and the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. The city is located about 400 km south of the U.S. state of Texas, and 90 km west of Monterrey, Nuevo León....

. He also spent several months in Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

, studying English. He finished his secondary schooling 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...

. At the age of twenty, he entered a private college in Torreón

Torreón

Torreón is a city and seat of the surrounding municipality of the same name in the Mexican state of Coahuila. As of 2010, the city's population was 608,836 with 639,629 in the municipality. The metropolitan population, including Matamoros, Coahuila, and Gómez Palacio and Lerdo in adjacent Durango,...

. He did not graduate, but returned home to manage this parent’s property in Muzquiz.

Because of family connections, Blanco became a supporter of Francisco Madero, and in the decade before the revolution, helped set up political clubs of Madero supporters in Coahuila. Blanco also became a supporter of the well known anarchist Ricardo Flores Magón

Ricardo Flores Magón

Cipriano Ricardo Flores Magón was a noted Mexican anarchist and social reform activist. His brothers Enrique and Jesús were also active in politics. Followers of the Magón brothers were known as Magonistas....

, and in 1906, attempted to join a Flores Magón rebellion. He was dissuaded however, and returned home.

In 1909, he joined the Anti-Reelection Party of Francisco Madero and became active in organizing political rallies. He associated himself with Jesús Carranza, brother of 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...

, and when hostilities broke out in late 1910, Blanco joined the forces of Jesús Carranza. With the conclusion of hostilities in May 1911, Blanco took a position within the Ministry of Interior of the interim government. Blanco had political disagreements with the Minister of Interior, and so he left the capital and returned to Coahuila.

At this time, 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...

 was the Maderist governor of Coahuila, and he advised Blanco to join the State militia. In early 1912, General Pascual Orozco

Pascual Orozco

Pascual Orozco Vazquez was a Mexican revolutionary leader who, after the triumph of the Mexican Revolution, rose up against Francisco I...

 revolted against the Madero government, and Carranza mobilized the State militia to battle the Orozco forces attempting to operate in Coahuila. Despite having no military training, Blanco impressed his superiors, and by the time hostilities ended in the summer of 1912, Blanco had been promoted to captain.

In February 1913, a conservative coup d’état removed Francisco Madero as President and established General 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...

 as the new President. Governor Carranza of Coahuila elected not to support this new government, and organized a resistance. Lucio Blanco was an early supporter of this revolt, and he received a commission as colonel in the Constitutional Forces.

Initially, Governor Carranza attempted to lead his revolt in the field, but his results were not successful. Early successes in this revolt came not from forces under Carranza’s direct command, but other forces in Sonora and Chihuahua. The exception was Lucio Blanco. In April 1913, Blanco had his first battlefield victory when he took the city of Aldamas, Tamaulipas

Tamaulipas

Tamaulipas officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 43 municipalities and its capital city is Ciudad Victoria. The capital city was named after Guadalupe Victoria, the...

, from forces loyal to Huerta. By the end of the month, he controlled a substantial portion of the country side of the state of Tamaulipas. His most important triumph was the taking of the border city of Matamoros

Matamoros, Tamaulipas

Matamoros, officially known as Heroica Matamoros, is a city in the northeastern part of Tamaulipas, in the country of Mexico. It is located on the southern bank of the Rio Grande, directly across the border from Brownsville, Texas, in the United States. Matamoros is the second largest and second...

 from federal troops on June 4, 1913, the first major victory of the Constitutionalists. His soldiers, however, committed atrocities for which Blanco was blamed.

Carranza promoted Blanco to the rank of brigadier general for having taken the city of Matamoros, but this early glory was short lived. In July 1913, Carranza appointed 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....

 commander the new department of the Northeast, bypassing Blanco. Slighted, Blanco refused to cooperate with González, and remained in Matamoros as a military governor, in command of 1,800 soldiers, most stationed in Matamoros.

On August 30, 1913, Blanco, on his own initiative, distributed the lands of the hacienda Los Borregos, belonging to Félix Díaz, nephew of the old dictator, to the peons living on the hacienda, thus being the first to implement an agrarian reform distribution in the Revolution. For this, 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...

 wrote to him, congratulating him for his actions; this started a correspondence friendship with Zapata. Carranza, however, was disappointed with Blanco’s action, and accused him of exceeding his authority. As punishment, Blanco was recalled and ordered to Sonora to serve under General 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....

. Blanco’s regiment was placed under the command of 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....

. This action by Carranza prevented Blanco from becoming a national hero, alongside Francisco Villa 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...

.

Under Obregón, Blanco was charged to organize and command the cavalry division of the Army of the Northwest. He was at the forefront of all of Obregón’s victories and his principal accomplishments were the taking of the cities of Tepic

Tepic

Tepic is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Nayarit.It is located in the central part of the state, at.It stands at an altitude above sea level of some 915 meters, on the banks of the Río Mololoa and the Río Tepic, approximately 225 kilometers north-west of Guadalajara, Jalisco....

 and Guadalajara

Guadalajara, Jalisco

Guadalajara is the capital of the Mexican state of Jalisco, and the seat of the municipality of Guadalajara. The city is located in the central region of Jalisco in the western-pacific area of Mexico. With a population of 1,564,514 it is Mexico's second most populous municipality...

, the last one considered to be his greatest triumph after Matamoros.

About this time, the split between Carranza and Pancho Villa was becoming open and bitter. Villa wrote Obregón explaining his position and asking for his support. Obregón advised Villa not to quarrel with Carranza, and then wrote to Carranza saying that he would support Carranza in his quarrels with Pancho Villa. Blanco objected Obregón’s position. A few days later, Obregón shocked Blanco when he said he advocated establishing a new dictatorship, stronger than that of Díaz. “After all, Díaz’ only crime was growing old.”

Still, Blanco rode in alongside Obregón into Mexico City in August 1914 when Huerta and his government collapsed. The Zapatistas armies also were marching toward the capital. Blanco, being sympathetic to Zapata’s land reform program, gave orders for his forces to receive them cordially. He personally greeted the Zapatistas leaders when they arrived.

During the final months of 1914, Blanco was one of the most powerful generals in Mexico City. However, both Carranza and Obregón began to doubt his loyalty, and suspected that he would defect with his army and join Pancho Villa’s forces, and he fell out of favor. This was the beginning of Blanco’s decline. Soon, Carranza considered him untrustworthy, and Blanco’s disagreements with Obregón escalated, especially as a result of his actions during 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...

 in October. The Convention attempted to establish a new government and asked Carranza to step down. When Carranza refused, the Convention participants split into two factions: the Constitutionalists headed by Carranza and Obregón, and the Conventionists, nominally headed by Eulalio Gutiérrez

Eulalio Gutiérrez

Eulalio Gutiérrez Ortiz was elected provisional president of Mexico during the Aguascalientes Convention and led the country for a few months between November 6, 1914, and January 16, 1915....

, but actually under the control of Villa and Zapata. Blanco elected not to follow Carranza and Obregón and instead aligned himself with the Conventionists and Eulalio Gutiérrez. Gutiérrez, however, could not control Villa and Zapata, and so he attempted to force both of them out of his government. Blanco supported Gutiérrez, and Gutiérrez lost. Then in late January 1915, Blanco lost the support of Zapata because he refused to attack Pablo González at Querétaro. Zapata asked Villa to arrest and hold him for execution.

During the first half of 1915, Gutiérrez, Blanco and several other moderate generals attempted to govern independent of Carranza, Villa and Zapata, but the tide was against them. In June, Gutiérrez renounced all claims to the presidency and made peace with Carranza. But there was to be no forgiveness for Blanco. In September, he was captured by Obregon’s forces, and tried for treason. He was found guilty of insubordination, and sentenced to five years in prison. Because of animosity between Obregón and Blanco, Blanco remained in prison while Obregón served as Secretary of War. After Obregón retired in May 1917, Carranza arranged for Blanco to be re-tried in September 1917. At this trial, he was acquitted, and after his release, he exiled himself to Laredo, Texas

Laredo, Texas

Laredo is the county seat of Webb County, Texas, United States, located on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. According to the 2010 census, the city population was 236,091 making it the 3rd largest on the United States-Mexican border,...

.

In November 1919, Carranza recalled Blanco from Texas. Carranza was increasingly fearful that Obregón would turn against him, and he hoped that with Blanco’s support, the army would remain loyal. He acted as a mediator with the Zapata forces and was instrumental in concluding a peace between the Carranza government and Gildardo Magaña

Gildardo Magaña

Gildardo Magaña Cerda was a Mexican general, politician and revolutionary.Born on March 7, 1891 in Zamora, Michoacán, to a Liberal trading family and was sent to study economy in the U.S. Back in Mexico he was involved in the anti-reelectionist movement and had to flee to the insurrectionist...

, Zapata’s successor. As the 1920 election approached, it became apparent that Obregón would run against Carranza’s candidate. Because of the continued animosity between Blanco and Obregón, Blanco supported Carranza against Obregón.

In 1920, Obregón and his supporters overthrew the Carranza government. Blanco attempted to flee with Carranza to Veracruz

Veracruz

Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave , is one of the 31 states that, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided in 212 municipalities and its capital city is...

, but when their way was blocked, he parted company with Carranza and fled back to Laredo, Texas

Laredo, Texas

Laredo is the county seat of Webb County, Texas, United States, located on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. According to the 2010 census, the city population was 236,091 making it the 3rd largest on the United States-Mexican border,...

. There he joined with other exiles opposed to Obregón, and published pamphlets and conspired to start an armed revolt.

Lucio Blanco was last seen alive at a party in Laredo, Texas, in June 1922. The next day, his body was found across the border in Nuevo Laredo

Nuevo Laredo

Nuevo Laredo is a city located in the Municipality of Nuevo Laredo in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. The city lies on the banks of the Río Grande, across from the United States city of Laredo, Texas. The 2010 census population of the city was 373,725. Nuevo Laredo is part of the Laredo-Nuevo...

. It is generally believed that Mexican secret agents led Blanco to believe that some officers in Nuevo Laredo were eager to have him lead them in a revolt against the Obregón government. Blanco agreed to their proposal, and they crossed the Rio Grande

Rio Grande

The Rio Grande is a river that flows from southwestern Colorado in the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way it forms part of the Mexico – United States border. Its length varies as its course changes...

 that evening. When they reached the Mexican shore, government agents tried to arrest Blanco. In the ensuing struggle, Blanco was killed.

The international airport

General Lucio Blanco International Airport

General Lucio Blanco International Airport is an international airport located at Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico, near the U.S.-Mexico border. It handles national and international air traffic for the city of Reynosa...

 in Reynosa

Reynosa

Reynosa is a border city in the northern part of Tamaulipas, in the country of Mexico. It is located on the southern bank of the Rio Grande, directly across the border from McAllen, Texas in the United States. As of 2010, the city of Reynosa counts with a population of 607,532...

 Tamaulipas

Tamaulipas

Tamaulipas officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 43 municipalities and its capital city is Ciudad Victoria. The capital city was named after Guadalupe Victoria, the...

is named in his honor.