The Last Caudillo presents a brief biography of the life and
times of General Alvaro Obregón, along with new insights into
the Mexican Revolution and authoritarian rule in Latin America.
* Features a succinct biography of the life and times of a
fascinating figure in Mexico’s revolutionary past
* Represents the most analytical and up-to-date study of
caudillo/military strongman rule
* Sheds new light on the networks and discourse practices that
support rulers such as the Castros in Cuba and Hugo Chávez in
Venezuela, and the emergence of modern Mexico
* Offers new insights into the role of leadership, the nature of
revolution, and the complex forces that helped shape modern
Mexico
Inhoudsopgave
List of Illustrations ix
Preface x
Acknowledgments xii
Introduction 1
1 The Background of the Last Caudillo 11
From Santa Anna to Díaz 13
The Sonoran Background 22
2 An Improvised Leader, 1880-1913 30
Obregón’s Early Years 31
Obregón and the Beginning of the Mexican Revolution 41
Obregón’s First Campaign 47
3 Chaos and Triumph, 1913-1916 57
Obregón and the War Against Huerta 58
Obregón and the Clash Between Carranza and Villa 66
Obregón in the War Between the Factions 72
4 The Path to Power, 1916-1920 85
Obregón’s Emergence as a Political Leader 86
The Cincinnatus of the West (Part One) 94
The Campaign for the Presidency 97
5 The President, 1920-1924 111
The Construction of Obregón’s Political Machine 112
Rebuilding the Nation 118
The Violent Breakup of the Sonoran Alliance 127
6 The Last Caudillo, 1924-1928 138
A Troubled Agribusiness 140
The Cincinnatus of the West (Part Two) 143
The Second Presidential Campaign 152
The Death of the Caudillo 159
7 The Unquiet Grave 164
After the Caudillo 165
An Arm and a Revolution on a Stage 170
A Revolution and a Leader Lose Respect 173
Notes 178
Bibliography 200
Index 210
Over de auteur
Jürgen Buchenau is Professor of History and Latin American Studies at University of North Carolina, Charlotte, where he is Chair of the History Department. He is the author or editor of several books on modern Latin American history, including Plutarco Elías Calles and the Mexican Revolution (2007), Tools of Progress: A German Merchant Family in Mexico City, 1865-Present (2004), and In the Shadow of the Giant: The Making of Mexico’s Central America Policy (1996).