Puebla, << PWEHB luh or pyoo EHB luh >> Battle of, was fought between French and Mexican forces near Puebla , a city in central Mexico, on May 5, 1862. The battle took place during a French intervention in Mexico. At the time, French Emperor Napoleon III was trying to gain possessions and influence in North America . Mexican forces won the Battle of Puebla, and the victory became of major symbolic importance. The day of the battle is marked by the popular holiday Cinco de Mayo (Spanish for Fifth of May). In the Mexican state of Puebla , the holiday is called el día de la Batalla de Puebla (the day of the Battle of Puebla).
Despite their defeat at Puebla, French forces eventually overwhelmed the smaller Mexican army and took control of the country. A French-supported government led by Emperor Maximilian ruled Mexico until 1867, when Maximilian was killed and the Mexican republic was restored.
Background.
From 1858 to 1860, a civil war known as the War of the Reform weakened Mexico. In 1861, Mexican President Benito Juárez found the government in serious financial difficulty and stopped payment on European loans. In response, France, Spain , and the United Kingdom sent naval forces to occupy the Mexican port city of Veracruz . Spain and the United Kingdom negotiated payment terms and withdrew, but French forces remained. French Emperor Napoleon III wanted to take control of Mexico and reestablish French imperial power in the Americas. At the time, the United States was involved in the American Civil War (1861-1865) and could do little to interfere with French plans.
In April 1862, a force of some 6,000 French troops led by General Charles Ferdinand Latrille, Comte de Lorencez, marched inland, intending to take Mexico City , the nation’s capital. Puebla lay along the route to the capital, and Mexican General Ignacio Zaragoza assembled about 4,800 troops nearby to stop the French advance. On April 28, the French won an initial battle at Acultzingo Pass leading to Puebla. Zaragoza then withdrew to Puebla, which was protected by fortifications on two large hills—Guadalupe and Loreto—and other defenses. Ignoring the advice of his fellow officers, General Lorencez attacked the fortified heights.
The battle.
Late on the morning of May 5, 1862, French artillery began a short bombardment of Puebla’s defenses, and an infantry assault soon followed. The French attack failed under the concentrated fire from Puebla’s defenders. A second attack also failed, but Lorencez refused to quit and ordered a third attack. It too failed. Suffering heavy casualties (people killed and wounded), the French called off the assault. Mexican cavalry then attacked the French as they attempted to withdraw, inflicting still more casualties. With the battle lost, Lorencez eventually retreated some 70 miles (112 kilometers) to Orizaba, a city midway between Puebla and Veracruz.
Aftermath.
The French suffered nearly 500 casualties at Puebla, including more than 100 killed in action. Mexican losses were about 85 dead and more than 100 wounded. Despite the defeat, the French recovered quickly. After receiving about 30,000 reinforcements the following autumn, the French renewed their march toward Mexico City. The French won the second Battle of Puebla in mid-May 1863 and then pushed on to take Mexico City. President Juárez was forced into hiding, and the French installed Archduke Maximilian of Austria as emperor of Mexico in 1864.
After its bloody civil war ended in the spring of 1865, the United States threatened to intervene to remove the French from Mexico. The French then began withdrawing their forces in 1866. At the same time, a resistance movement led by Juárez increased attacks on the French and Mexican troops loyal to Maximilian. In April 1867, General Porfirio Díaz , a veteran of the first Battle of Puebla and a future president of Mexico, retook Puebla from troops loyal to the emperor.
In February 1867, Maximilian and his army withdrew north of Mexico City to the city of Querétaro , where Mexican rebels soon besieged them. In May, Maximilian was betrayed by one of his officers and captured by rebel troops. The emperor—who had ordered all Juárez supporters caught bearing arms to be shot—was himself executed by firing squad on June 19, 1867. The Mexican republic was then restored, and Juárez again became president.
