Emiliano Zapata

Emiliano Zapata - Mexican Political Figure, Timeline and Childhood

Violet FieldHome › MexicanEmiliano ZapataAugust 8, 18791,767 views

0 based on 0 rates
Emiliano Zapata Biography Stories 

Emiliano Zapata's Personal Details

Emiliano Zapata was a Mexican revolutionary leader and one of the most important figures of the Mexican Revolution.

InformationDetail
BirthdayAugust 8, 1879
Died onApril 10, 1919
NationalityMexican
FamousLeaders, Revolutionaries, Mexican Political Figure
SiblingsCelsa Zapata, Eufemio Zapata, Jovita Zapata, Loreto Zapata, María de Jesús Zapata, María de la Luz Zapata, Matilde Zapata, Pedro Zapata, Romana Zapata
ChildrensCarlota Zapata Sánchez, Diego Zapata Piñeiro, Elena Zapata Alfaro, Felipe Zapata Espejo, Gabriel Zapata Sáenz, Gabriel Zapata Vázquez, Guadalupe Zapata Alfaro, Josefa Zapata Espejo, Juan Zapata Alfaro, Luis Eugenio Zapata Sáenz, Margarita Zapata Sáenz, María Luisa Zapata Zúñiga, Mateo Zapata, Nicolás Zapata Alfaro, Paulina Ana María Zapata Portillo, Ponciano Zapata Alfaro
Cause of death
  • Assassination
Birth PlaceAnenecuilco, Mexico
ReligionRoman Catholicism
GenderMale
FatherGabriel Zapata
MotherCleofas Jertrudiz Salazar
Sun SignLeo
Born inAnenecuilco, Mexico
Famous asMexican Political figure
Died at Age39

Emiliano Zapata's photo

Who is Emiliano Zapata?

Emiliano Zapata was a Mexican revolutionary leader who was one of the most important figures of the Mexican Revolution which took place from 1910 to 1920. He was the commander of the ‘Liberation Army of the South’ which he had formed to fight numerous guerilla battles against the armies of the oppressive rulers time and again. His followers known as ‘Zapatistas’, were peasants and farmers who tilled their lands with rifles over their shoulders, fought when asked to and went back to farming when the fight was over. He was dedicated to agrarian reforms and was committed to form a government which would give back the land usurped by the landowners and plantation owners to the peasants and farmers of the country. He was famous for formulating ‘Plan of Ayala’ which would help the farmers and peasants get back their land. But his plan was not successful during his lifetime because he was assassinated by the members of the opposing forces. His wishes were finally fulfilled after his death when ‘Zapatista’ generals ousted Venustiano Carranza from power, formed a government and instituted the land reforms promised by Zapata.

// Famous Leaders

Edi Rama

Edi Rama

Edi Rama is the current Prime Minister of Albania. Check out this biography to know about his childhood, life, achievements, works & timeline.

Tecumseh

Tecumseh

Tecumseh was a Native American leader of the Shawnee clan. This biography profiles his childhood, life and timeline.

Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan

Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan

Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan is the current President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Check out this biography to know about his birthday, childhood, family life, achievements and fun facts about him.

Childhood & Early Life

Emiliano Zapata was born as Emiliano Zapata Salazar on August 8, 1879 in Anenecuilco, Morelos, Mexico.

He was the son of a well-known ‘mestizo’ peasant named Gabriel Zapata who trained and sold horses to people. His mother was Cleofas Jertrudiz Salazar.

Emiliano had three brothers named Eufemio, Pedro, and Loreto and six sisters named Matilde, Jovita, Maria de Jesus, Celsa, Maria del la Luz and Romana.

He received rudimentary education including book-keeping from his teacher Emilio Vara.

His mother died when he was 16 years old and his father died 11 months later, after which he had to look after his family.

In 1897 he was arrested for taking part in a protest rally against the owner of the plantation that had appropriated their farmland.

Later Years

After being pardoned, Emiliano Zapata again started agitating and was promptly drafted into the Mexican Army to stop him from agitating any more.

After only six months in the Army he was discharged and sent to Porfirio Diaz’s son-in-law’s hacienda asa horse-trainer.

In 1909 the villagers ofAnenecuilcoelected him president of the village council board and he soon became involved in the agitations carried out by the local peasants and farmers against the landowners.

Once an entire village was burnt to the ground by the angry landowners because the villagers had forcibly occupied a piece of land.

Zapata continued with his struggles and sometimes he was successful in getting the land back for the villagersby using very old title deeds to petitionthe governor to help return pieces of land to their rightful owners.

Sometimes he got frustrated by the slow response of the government and forcibly occupiedpieces of land he thought fit and distributed them to the peasants and farmers.

During this period,the president of Mexico was Porfirio Diaz who had defeated a northern landowner named Francisco Madero in the 1910 presidential election. Francisco fled to the United States, declared himself asthe rightful President, returned to Mexico and laid claim to the presidency causing a clash between the two.

Seeing a great opportunity for land reforms, Zapata made a secret alliance with Francisco Madero who promised to carry out the reforms.

In 1910 Zapata became the commanding officer of the ‘Ejercito Libertadordel Sur’ or the ‘Liberation Army of the South’ and declared war against President Diaz.

In May 1911, Zapata’ssmall army of guerillas defeated the forces of President Diaz and occupied the city of Cuautla after a gruesome six-day battle and closed the road to the capital Mexico City.

A week after being defeated by Pancho Villa and Pascual Orozco at the ‘First Battle of Ciudad Juarez’, President Diaz resigned and fled to Europe after handing over power to a provisional president.Zapata and his army of 5,000 guerillas took over Cuernavaca, the capital of the state of Morelos.

Zapata went to Mexico City to force the provisional president to return the illegally occupied land to the farmers where he met the triumphant Francisco Madero.But when Zapata asked for Francisco’s help in returning the land, Madero asked him to disarm his guerillas first before the job could be done. Zapatastarted disarming his guerillas but when he found that Madero had sent the army to quell any objections to disarm, he stopped the process immediately which soured their relations by the summer of 1911.

After being rebuffed by Zapata, Madero appointed a governor in November 1911 who sided with the landowners instead ofhelping the farmers get back their land which angered Zapata further.

Many attempts were made to find an amicable solution to the problem but nothing worked and when Francisco Madero declared himself the president of Mexico, Zapata and his followers took refuge in the hills of southwest Puebla.

After the disillusionment with Madero, Zapata embarked upon a plan known as ‘Plan of Ayala’ that declared Madero as a traitor and incapable of fulfilling any of his promises given before the revolution.

This timeround Madero becameZapata’s target instead of Diaz. According to ‘Plan of Ayala’,a provisional president would be appointed until elections are carried out. The elected president would then return at least one third of the misappropriated land to their rightful owners. If any landowner refused to part with his land then it would be occupied by force if necessary. The slogan raised by Zapata was ‘Tierra y Libertad’ or ‘Land and Liberty’.

As the revolution continued, General Victoriano Huerta assassinated Francisco Madero in February 1913 and declared himself as the president of Mexico. He approached Zapata to unite the troops of both sides into one single army which was rejected by Zapata.

Huerta’s attempt to confront and defeat the ‘Constitutionalist Army’ led by Venustiano Carranza, Pancho Villa and Alvaro Obregon in Northern Mexico was thus foiled and he was forced to flee the country in July 1914 after being defeated by his four opponents.

After Huerta left, Zapata invited Carranza’s ‘Constitutionalists’ to accept the ‘Plan of Ayala’ with a warning that as long as it was not implemented in fullhe would remain independent.

In October 1914 Carranza asked all the leaders to come to Mexico City for a meeting. Pancho Villa refused to attend saying that Mexico City was enemy territory. The meeting was shifted to Aguascalientes where everybody including the ‘Villistas’ and ‘Zapatistas’ attended and appointed General Eulalio Gutierrez as the provisional president. This move was rejected by Carranza and he shifted the government to Veracruz.

Zapata rebuilt Morelos during 1915 by distributing hacienda land to the farmers who made the area prosperous by growing corn, beans and vegetables. When war broke out between the moderate ‘Carrancistas’ and the revolutionary ‘Conventionalists’, Zapata ordered his army to take over Mexico City.

Zapata and Villa met outside the capital two weeks later and agreed at the National Palace to fight together till the election of a new president. Villa accepted the ‘Plan of Ayala’ during this meeting.

Zapata set up agrarian commissions to take care of land distribution, formed the country’s first ‘Rural Loan Bank’, and converted the individual sugar producing plantations into cooperatives.

In April 1915 the U.S. president Woodrow Wilson sent his representative to meet Zapata. When Zapata asked Wilson to send a delegation in return, Woodrow refused as he had already recognized Carranza’s government.

The war went on with Zapata winning many battles and occupying the city of Puebla. He was finally isolated when Carranza’s army defeated Villa in 1917. Carranza called for a constitutional convention without inviting Zapata where he was elected as the president of Mexico.

During this time William Gates, the new U.S. envoy to Mexico met Zapata, went back to the U.S. and published a series of articles praising the agrarian reforms initiated by Zapata which brought him immense satisfaction and peace.

Sometime later General Pablo Gonzalez sent Colonel Jesus Guajardo to Zapata’s camp disguised as a revolutionary and set up a secret meeting with Zapata at a Chinameca hacienda in Morelos. When he came to the meeting on April 10, 1919, Zapata was ambushed and killed by ‘Carrancista’ soldiers and his body was displayed to the public for 24 hours and buried in Cuautla.

Personal Life & Legacy

Emiliano Zapata married Josefa Espejo in 1911 and had a daughter named Paulina Ana Maria.

He also had six sons Mateo, Juan, Nicolas, Felipe Diego, and Ponciano, and four daughters Elena, Josefa, Carlota, and Margarita who were born out of wedlock.

He has influenced the history of Mexico and his life has been portrayed through movies, books, comics, clothing and music.

Trivia

Emiliano Zapata was known as ‘El Tigre del Sur’ or ‘The Tiger of the South’.

// Famous Revolutionaries

Tecumseh

Tecumseh

Tecumseh was a Native American leader of the Shawnee clan. This biography profiles his childhood, life and timeline.

Simon Bolivar

Simon Bolivar

Simón Bolívar was a Venezuelan military leader who was instrumental in independence of several Latin American countries from the Spanish rule. This biography profiles his childhood, life, achievements and timeline.

Pancho Villa

Pancho Villa

Pancho Villa is one of the most renowned names of the ‘Mexican Revolution’ who was also the Governor of Chihuahua. This biography provides detailed information about his childhood, profile, career and timeline

Emiliano Zapata biography timelines

  • // 8th Aug 1879
    Emiliano Zapata was born as Emiliano Zapata Salazar on August 8, 1879 in Anenecuilco, Morelos, Mexico.
  • // 1897
    In 1897 he was arrested for taking part in a protest rally against the owner of the plantation that had appropriated their farmland.
  • // 1909
    In 1909 the villagers ofAnenecuilcoelected him president of the village council board and he soon became involved in the agitations carried out by the local peasants and farmers against the landowners.
  • // 1910
    During this period,the president of Mexico was Porfirio Diaz who had defeated a northern landowner named Francisco Madero in the 1910 presidential election. Francisco fled to the United States, declared himself asthe rightful President, returned to Mexico and laid claim to the presidency causing a clash between the two.
  • // 1910
    In 1910 Zapata became the commanding officer of the ‘Ejercito Libertadordel Sur’ or the ‘Liberation Army of the South’ and declared war against President Diaz.
  • // 1911
    Zapata went to Mexico City to force the provisional president to return the illegally occupied land to the farmers where he met the triumphant Francisco Madero.But when Zapata asked for Francisco’s help in returning the land, Madero asked him to disarm his guerillas first before the job could be done. Zapatastarted disarming his guerillas but when he found that Madero had sent the army to quell any objections to disarm, he stopped the process immediately which soured their relations by the summer of 1911.
  • // 1911
    Emiliano Zapata married Josefa Espejo in 1911 and had a daughter named Paulina Ana Maria.
  • // May 1911
    In May 1911, Zapata’ssmall army of guerillas defeated the forces of President Diaz and occupied the city of Cuautla after a gruesome six-day battle and closed the road to the capital Mexico City.
  • // Nov 1911
    After being rebuffed by Zapata, Madero appointed a governor in November 1911 who sided with the landowners instead ofhelping the farmers get back their land which angered Zapata further.
  • // Feb 1913
    As the revolution continued, General Victoriano Huerta assassinated Francisco Madero in February 1913 and declared himself as the president of Mexico. He approached Zapata to unite the troops of both sides into one single army which was rejected by Zapata.
  • // Jul 1914
    Huerta’s attempt to confront and defeat the ‘Constitutionalist Army’ led by Venustiano Carranza, Pancho Villa and Alvaro Obregon in Northern Mexico was thus foiled and he was forced to flee the country in July 1914 after being defeated by his four opponents.
  • // Oct 1914
    In October 1914 Carranza asked all the leaders to come to Mexico City for a meeting. Pancho Villa refused to attend saying that Mexico City was enemy territory. The meeting was shifted to Aguascalientes where everybody including the ‘Villistas’ and ‘Zapatistas’ attended and appointed General Eulalio Gutierrez as the provisional president. This move was rejected by Carranza and he shifted the government to Veracruz.
  • // 1915
    Zapata rebuilt Morelos during 1915 by distributing hacienda land to the farmers who made the area prosperous by growing corn, beans and vegetables. When war broke out between the moderate ‘Carrancistas’ and the revolutionary ‘Conventionalists’, Zapata ordered his army to take over Mexico City.
  • // Apr 1915
    In April 1915 the U.S. president Woodrow Wilson sent his representative to meet Zapata. When Zapata asked Wilson to send a delegation in return, Woodrow refused as he had already recognized Carranza’s government.
  • // 1917
    The war went on with Zapata winning many battles and occupying the city of Puebla. He was finally isolated when Carranza’s army defeated Villa in 1917. Carranza called for a constitutional convention without inviting Zapata where he was elected as the president of Mexico.
  • // 10th Apr 1919
    Sometime later General Pablo Gonzalez sent Colonel Jesus Guajardo to Zapata’s camp disguised as a revolutionary and set up a secret meeting with Zapata at a Chinameca hacienda in Morelos. When he came to the meeting on April 10, 1919, Zapata was ambushed and killed by ‘Carrancista’ soldiers and his body was displayed to the public for 24 hours and buried in Cuautla.

// Famous Leo Celebrities peoples

Eugenia Cooney

Eugenia Cooney

Check out all that you wanted to know about Eugenia Cooney, the famous American Vlogger & YouTube Personality; her birthday, her family and personal life, her boyfriends, fun trivia facts and more.

Princess D

Princess D

Princess D (Destiny Indira Cox) is an American rapper, dancer and social media personality. Let’s have a look at her family and personal life including age, birthday, net worth, and fun facts.

Payton Moormeier

Payton Moormeier

Payton Moormeier is an American social-media personality best known for his musical.ly videos. Check out this family, personal life, etc.

Grian

Grian

Grian is an English YouTube gamer and social media influencer. Check out this biography to know about his birthday, childhood, family life, achievements and fun facts about him.

Emmi Butler

Emmi Butler

Emmi Butler is an American YouTuber and social media star. Let’s take a look at her family and personal life including age, date of birth, net worth, and fun facts.

Erica Delsman

Erica Delsman

Erica Delsman is an American Musical.ly Star and social media personality. Let’s take a look at her family & personal life including age, date of birth, net worth, and fun facts.

Emiliano Zapata's FAQ

  • What is Emiliano Zapata birthday?

    Emiliano Zapata was born at 1879-08-08

  • When was Emiliano Zapata died?

    Emiliano Zapata was died at 1919-04-10

  • Where was Emiliano Zapata died?

    Emiliano Zapata was died in Chinameca, San Miguel Mexican

  • Which age was Emiliano Zapata died?

    Emiliano Zapata was died at age 39

  • Where is Emiliano Zapata's birth place?

    Emiliano Zapata was born in Anenecuilco, Mexico

  • What is Emiliano Zapata nationalities?

    Emiliano Zapata's nationalities is Mexican

  • Who is Emiliano Zapata siblings?

    Emiliano Zapata's siblings is Celsa Zapata, Eufemio Zapata, Jovita Zapata, Loreto Zapata, María de Jesús Zapata, María de la Luz Zapata, Matilde Zapata, Pedro Zapata, Romana Zapata

  • Who is Emiliano Zapata childrens?

    Emiliano Zapata's childrens is Carlota Zapata Sánchez, Diego Zapata Piñeiro, Elena Zapata Alfaro, Felipe Zapata Espejo, Gabriel Zapata Sáenz, Gabriel Zapata Vázquez, Guadalupe Zapata Alfaro, Josefa Zapata Espejo, Juan Zapata Alfaro, Luis Eugenio Zapata Sáenz, Margarita Zapata Sáenz, María Luisa Zapata Zúñiga, Mateo Zapata, Nicolás Zapata Alfaro, Paulina Ana María Zapata Portillo, Ponciano Zapata Alfaro

  • What is Emiliano Zapata's cause of dead?

    Emiliano Zapata dead because of Assassination

  • What is Emiliano Zapata's religion?

    Emiliano Zapata's religion is Roman Catholicism

  • Who is Emiliano Zapata's father?

    Emiliano Zapata's father is Gabriel Zapata

  • Who is Emiliano Zapata's mother?

    Emiliano Zapata's mother is Cleofas Jertrudiz Salazar

  • What is Emiliano Zapata's sun sign?

    Emiliano Zapata is Leo

  • How famous is Emiliano Zapata?

    Emiliano Zapata is famouse as Mexican Political figure