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The Pancho Villa Expedition—now known officially in the United States as the Mexican Expedition but originally referred to as the "Punitive Expedition, U.S. Army"〔—was a military operation conducted by the United States Army against the paramilitary forces of Mexican revolutionary Francisco "Pancho" Villa from March 14, 1916, to February 7, 1917, during the Mexican Revolution 1910–1920. The expedition was launched in retaliation for Villa's attack on the town of Columbus, New Mexico, and was the most remembered event of the Border War. The declared objective of the expedition by the Wilson administration was the capture of Villa.〔Yockelson, Mitchell. ("The United States Armed Forces and the Mexican Punitive Expedition: Part 1" ), ''Prologue Magazine'', Fall 1997, Vol. 29, No. 3. Retrieved 5 Mar 2015〕 Despite successfully locating and defeating the main body of Villa's command, responsible for the raid on Columbus, U.S. forces were unable to prevent Villa's escape and so the main objective of the U.S. incursion was not achieved. The active search for Villa ended after a month in the field when troops sent by Venustiano Carranza, the head of the Constitutionalist faction of the revolution and now the head of the Mexican government, resisted the U.S. incursion. The Constitutionalist forces used arms at the town of Parral to resist passage of a U.S. Army column. The U.S. mission was changed to prevent further attacks on it by Mexican troops and to plan for war in the eventuality it broke out.〔Cyrulik, John M. (2003). ''A Strategic Examination of the Punitive Expedition Into Mexico, 1916–1917'', US Army Command and General Staff College, pp. 45, 60.〕 When war was averted diplomatically, the expedition remained in Mexico until February 1917 to encourage Carranza's government to pursue Villa and prevent further raids across the border. ==Background== (詳細はVenustiano Carranza as head of the government of Mexico. The U.S. also provided rail transportation through the United States, from Eagle Pass, Texas to Douglas, Arizona, for the movement of more than 5,000 Carrancista forces to fight Villa at the Battle of Agua Prieta; Villa's seasoned ''División del Norte'' was smashed.〔"Francisco (Pancho) Villa," in ''Encyclopedia of Mexico''. vol. 2, p. 1531. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn 1997.〕 Feeling betrayed, Villa began attacking U.S. nationals and their property in northern Mexico.〔Finley, James P., director and editor (1993). ("Buffalo Soldiers at Huachuca: Military Events in the American Southwest from 1910–1916" ), ''Huachuca Illustrated: A Magazine of the Fort Huachuca Museum'' Volume 1, pp. 72–73〕 On January 11, 1916, sixteen American employees of the American Smelting and Refining Company were removed from a train near Santa Isabel, Chihuahua and summarily stripped and executed. Brigadier General John J. Pershing, commanding the district headquartered at Fort Bliss, Texas, received information that Villa with a new force was on the border and about to make an attack that would force the United States to intervene, embarrassing the Carranza government.〔Katz asserts that putting the Carranza government into a no-win dilemma by forcing the United States to militarily intervene in Mexico was Villa's primary motivation for both Columbus and all the "outrages" preceding it. (Katz, 1978)〕 Raids were so commonplace, however, that the rumor was not seen as credible.〔 But at about 4:00 am on March 9, 1916, Villa's troops attacked Columbus, New Mexico, and Camp Furlong, the U.S. Army post there, where four troops of the 13th Cavalry Regiment had been stationed since September 1912. Ten civilians and eight soldiers were killed in the attack, and two civilians and six soldiers wounded. The raiders burned the town, stole horses and mules, and seized machine guns, ammunition and merchandise, before fleeing back to Mexico.〔 However, Villa's troops had suffered considerable losses, with at least sixty-seven dead and dozens more wounded. Many of the casualties were inflicted when the machine gun troop of the 13th Cavalry led by 2nd Lt. John P. Lucas set up its Hotchkiss M1909 Benét–Mercié machine guns under fire along the north boundary of Camp Furlong, firing over 5,000 rounds apiece using the glow of burning buildings to illuminate targets.〔Tompkins, Col. Frank (1934, 1996). ''Chasing Villa: The Last Campaign of the U.S. Cavalry'', High-Lonesome Books, Silver City, New Mexico. ISBN 0-944383-39-4, pp. 50–52〕〔Lucas fought the entire 90-minute action bare-footed, injuring the soles of his feet. (Tompkins, 51)〕 About thirteen of Villa's wounded later died of their wounds, and five wounded Villistas taken prisoner by the Americans were tried and hanged for murder. Local lore in Columbus holds that the attack may have been caused by a merchant in Columbus who supplied Villa with arms and ammunition. Villa is said to have paid several thousand dollars in cash for the weapons, but the merchant refused to deliver them unless he was paid in gold, giving "cause" for the raid.〔〔de Quesada, Alejandro (2012). ''The Hunt for Pancho Villa: The Columbus Raid and Pershing's Punitive Expedition 1916–17'', Osprey Publishing, ISBN 978-1849085687, p. 21〕 The next day, acting on the recommendations of the commanders of his cavalry regiments, Southern Department commanding general Frederick Funston recommended an immediate pursuit in force into Mexico. U.S. President Woodrow Wilson concurred, designating Pershing to command the force and releasing a statement to the press: An adequate force will be sent at once in pursuit of Villa with the single object of capturing him and putting a stop to his forays. This can and will be done in entirely friendly aid to the constituted authorities in Mexico and with scrupulous respect for the sovereignty of that Republic.〔Tompkins, p. 70〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Pancho Villa Expedition」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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