Obregón, Álvaro
Obregón, Álvaro
(äl`värō ōbrāgōn`), 1880–1928, Mexican general and president (1920–24). A planter in Sonora, he supported Francisco I. MaderoMadero, Francisco Indalecio, 1873–1913, Mexican statesman and president (1911–13). A champion of democracy and social reform, he established various humanitarian institutions for the peons on his family's vast estates in Coahuila.
..... Click the link for more information. in the revolution against Porfirio Díaz. In 1913, Obregón joined Venustiano CarranzaCarranza, Venustiano
, 1859–1920, Mexican political leader. While senator from Coahuila, he joined (1910) Francisco I. Madero in the revolution against Porfirio Díaz.
..... Click the link for more information. in the overthrow of Victoriano Huerta and later was commander against the opponents of Carranza, especially Francisco VillaVilla, Francisco
, c.1877–1923, Mexican revolutionary, nicknamed Pancho Villa.
His real name was Doroteo Arango.
When Villa came of age, he declared his freedom from the peonage of his parents and became notorious as a bandit in Chihuahua and Durango.
..... Click the link for more information. . One of the most enlightened generals in the revolution, he was for a time Carranza's minister of war. When the latter attempted to perpetuate himself in power, Obregón promptly led a successful revolt (1920). After the provisional administration of Adolfo de la HuertaHuerta, Adolfo de la
, c.1882–1955, Mexican revolutionist and president (May–Dec., 1920). As governor of Sonora, he broke with President Carranza and declared the secession of the state (1920).
..... Click the link for more information. , Obregón became president. The revolutionary program became official during his administration and advanced out of confusion and blood into a recognizable if not thoroughgoing system of agrarian and labor reforms; peonage was still rampant. The most significant achievement of the Obregón regime was the educational program advanced by José VasconcelosVasconcelos, José
, 1882–1959, Mexican educator and writer. He headed (1920–24) the National Univ. of Mexico and, as minister of education under Álvaro Obregón, worked vigorously and with considerable success to establish schools, to persuade the
..... Click the link for more information. . The United States delay (until 1923) in recognizing his regime was due mainly to proclamations by certain self-styled radicals urging, among other things, the nationalization of oil deposits. Obregón was involved in a long, bitter quarrel with the church. His government was gravely challenged when de la Huerta was persuaded by opponents of Plutarco Elías CallesCalles, Plutarco Elías
, 1877–1945, Mexican statesman, president (1924–28). In 1913 he left schoolteaching to fight with Álvaro Obregón and Venustiano Carranza against Victoriano Huerta.
..... Click the link for more information. , Obregón's presidential candidate, to lead a revolt (1923–24). In 1928, Obregón was again chosen president, but before taking office he was assassinated by a fanatical Roman Catholic. He wrote Ocho mil kilómetros en campaña (1917), recollections of his campaigns.
Obregón, Alvaro
Born Feb. 19, 1880, in Siquisiva, in the state of Sonora; died July-17, 1928, in Mexico City. Mexican political and military leader during the Revolution of 1910–17; general. President of Mexico from 1920 to 1924.
Obregón’s government supported the bourgeoisie and bourgeois landowners, but it also pursued, albeit inconsistently, a policy that served the national interest. It carried out agrarian reforms, adopted anticlerical measures, attempted to restrict foreign capital, and strove to follow an independent course in foreign policy. In 1924 it established diplomatic relations with the USSR. However, Obregón’s government also suppressed revolutionary demonstrations by workers and peasants. In 1928, Obregón was again elected to the presidency, but he was assassinated before taking office.