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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. Villa himself led the assault, only to be driven back into Mexico by elements of the 13th Cavalry. The attack angered Americans and President Woodrow Wilson ordered the Pancho Villa Expedition in which the US Army invaded Mexico in an unsuccessful attempt to capture General Villa.
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After the 1915 Battle of Celaya, where Villa sustained his greatest defeat, the Division of the North was in shambles, wandering around northern Mexico foraging for supplies. Lacking the military supplies, money and munitions he needed in order to successfully win his war against Mexican President Venustiano Carranza,[1] Villa planned the raid and camped his army of an estimated 500 horsemen outside of Columbus, on the Mexican side of the border. There Villa and his men waited for his returning patrols.
After the return of Villa's patrols, which told him only about thirty soldiers garrisoned Columbus, Villa launched a two-pronged attack on the town just after 4:00 am on March 9 when most of the town's population was asleep, along with most of the garrison. After entering the town at 4:15 am, shouting "Viva Villa" and other phrases, the townspeople awoke to an army of Villista cavalry burning their settlement and looting their homes.
Despite being taken by surprise, the Americans were quick to recover. Almost immediately the garrison of Columbus was active; soldiers grabbing their machine guns and Springfield rifles and running to defensible positions around their camp. Unfortunately for Villa, the town's garrison consisted of a 330-strong detachment of the 13th Cavalry. In addition, many of the townspeople were well armed with various rifles and shotguns.
Villa's men looted many houses and burned them, fighting civilians defending their homes. To protect his withdrawal, Villa and around two dozen men took up position on a hill overlooking Columbus. There the Villistas fought the persuing American troops and civilans until almost being overrun. Major Frank Tompkins led the cavalry's pursuit of Villa into Mexico, for which he received the Medal of Honor, in 1918.[2]
In spite of Villa proclaming that the raid was a success by evidence of captured arms and equipment as well as dozens of horses and mules from the town, the raid was more or less a disaster for Pancho Villa; casualties were more than 100 of his force which consisted of more than 400 men.[3] A machine gun troop led by First Lieutenant and later Major General John P. Lucas fired over 20,000 machine gun rounds at Villa's men that morning. Mexican casualties were confirmed to be at least 67 killed in action plus about 13 more who died from wounds,[4] over 100 non-fatally wounded whom escaped, and five taken prisoner, who were later executed by hanging.
Despite a long fight and the burning of Columbus, American casualties were minor compared to Villa's. Eighteen died that day, eight soldiers and ten civilians, while the U.S Army suffered six wounded and the town suffered two wounded civilans. The Battle of Columbus was a direct cause of the Pancho Villa Expedition, a punitive expedition to track down and capture, or kill, the outlaw.
In commemoration of Pancho Villa's attack on American citizens and their town garrison, the Panco Villa State RV Park in Columbus was named after him, on the ground of what was Camp Furlong.[5]
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