More than an obscure battle fought at Puebla, Mexico, 161 years ago, El Cinco de Mayo, is an important date in U.S. history because the outcome of the American Civil War hung on the outcome.
If Napoleon III’s army had been successful in defeating the Mexicans at Puebla and continuing on to take Mexico City, the Confederacy would benefit by trading cotton for guns and ammunition. Because he was fighting a Civil War, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln was not in a position to enforce the Monroe Doctrine and keep the French out of Mexico.
Because Gen. Ignacio Zaragoza’s Mexican forces successfully repelled the French and sent them back to Veracruz in defeat, the Invasion of Mexico City was delayed a year — enough time for the Union to defeat the Confederacy.
Zaragoza is an unlikely military hero. When he volunteered to serve as a cadet in the Mexican army, he was rejected. Undeterred, Zaragoza found acceptance in the National Guard and eventually was able to join a militia branch of the Mexican Army. In 1861, Juarez appointed Zaragoza minister of war and navy for the liberal party. In that capacity, Zaragoza was sent to defend Puebla.
Angered by losing the battle at Puebla, Napoleon sent another 30,000 French troops to Mexico. After taking control of Mexico City, Mexican President Benito Juarez fled and began a guerrilla war to regain the country. Napoleon installed Ferdinand Maximilian von Habsburg, second in line to the Austro-Hungarian throne, as Mexico’s ruler. The French occupation of Mexico was short-lived. When in 1866, Napoleon withdrew his army, Maximilian remained in Mexico and fought Juarez’s troops until his capture. On June 19, 1867, Maximilian and his top generals were executed by firing squad.
When the French left Mexico, Zaragoza became a legend as a Mexican general to defeat the then-greatest army in the world.
