Battle of Naco facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Battle of Naco
Part of the Mexican Revolution
Naco in 2008, from a distance.
Date April 8–13, 1913 Location Naco, Sonora, Mexico Result Constitutionalist victory, rebels capture Naco.
Belligerents
Constitutionalists Constitutional Army	Government Federal Army
Commanders and leaders
Alvaro Obregon	Pedro Ojeda
Strength
unknown	~300 infantry
Casualties and losses
unknown	~30 killed 58 wounded

The Battle of Naco was an important fight during the Mexican Revolution. It is sometimes called the First Battle of Naco because another big fight happened there later. This battle took place in April 1913.

Rebel forces, known as the Constitutionalists, fought against the Mexican government's army. General Alvaro Obregon led the rebel forces. His army defeated the government troops and took control of the town of Naco, Sonora.

Why Naco Was Important

During the Mexican Revolution, Naco was a very important place. It was a town right on the border. Its location and resources were valuable to all sides fighting in the revolution.

In March 1913, a government general named Pedro Ojeda left another town, Agua Prieta. He did this because a large rebel army was getting close. General Ojeda had about 500 men. Over 300 of these were regular soldiers. The rest were Yaqui Native Americans who were fighting for the government.

General Obregon's army size is not known. General Ojeda tried to stop the rebels twice in March. He won two small battles on March 15 and 20. But many of his Yaqui fighters started to leave. Over 100 of them and their families gave up to the United States Army at the border. More left in the days that followed.

The Battle Begins

General Obregon attacked Naco from the southwest on April 8, 1913. By this time, only about 300 government soldiers were left to defend the town. Small fights, called skirmishes, happened at the edge of Naco for a few days.

The rebel forces were stronger and slowly gained ground. They pushed the government troops back. When the rebels reached General Ojeda's main defense area, they attacked many times. However, the government forces fought hard and pushed them back each time.

Final Assault

On April 10, General Ojeda's men managed to stop a large attack by Obregon's army. But this only made Obregon's forces attack even harder. Finally, on April 13, General Obregon launched a huge attack. He used most of his army against Ojeda's remaining soldiers.

The government troops in Naco could not hold out any longer. They had to retreat. They escaped across the border into the Arizona desert in the United States. General Obregon then took control of Naco.

General Ojeda and his men surrendered to the United States Cavalry at Fort Huachuca. The U.S. cavalry reported that 213 Yaqui fighters surrendered. Thirty of them had been hurt in earlier battles. In total, 260 Mexican government soldiers surrendered to the Americans. Fifty-six of these soldiers were wounded during the Battle of Naco. About 30 more soldiers died in the battle. We do not know how many rebel soldiers were hurt or died.

On April 18, 1913, General Ojeda, his men, and the Yaquis were released. They went back to Mexico.

Naco's Second Battle

Naco became a battlefield again later in the Mexican Revolution. The famous Siege of Naco happened in late 1914 and early 1915. It was the longest battle of the war, lasting 119 days of continuous fighting. This later battle was between forces loyal to Pancho Villa and General Obregon's soldiers, who were defending Naco.