HISTORY

** On March 9, 1916, troops under the command of Pancho Villa attacked Columbus, New Mexico and its local detachment of the US 13th Cavalry Regiment, killing 18 people and burning the town. Six days later, General John J. “Black Jack” Pershing led an expeditionary force of 4,800 men into Mexico to capture Villa. What followed was a series of skirmishes, battles, and chases through the wild Mexican countryside. This Punitive Expedition saw the US military deploy motor cars for the first time, and also marked the first combat experience of a young Lieutenant George S. Patton. This book charts the progress of the entire enterprise, covering the dusty marches and the biter gunfights in the streets of small border towns, analyzing the successes and failures of this unique military expedition. **

** Author’s words quoted from the back cover of the book.

THE BOOK

Osprey Publications Ltd has released The Hunt For Pancho Villa - The Columbus Raid and Pershing's Punitive Expedition 1916-17 by author Alejandro De Quesada as Number 29 in their Raid series. It is a paperback book with 80 pages. Included with the text are black and white and color photographs, black and white and color illustrations, maps, bird’s eye views, first-hand accounts and detailed captions. It has a 2012 copyright and the ISBN is 978-1-84908-568-7.

THE CONTENTS

- Introduction
- Origins
- A Revolution South of the Border
- The Division Del Norte
- America’s First Intervention in Mexico
- German Intrigue in Mexico
- Villa’s Anti-Americanism
- Protecting the Border
- The Raid On Columbus
- The Punitive Action
- Aftermath
- Further Border Incidents
- Convicted Criminals or Prisoners of War?
- Legacy
- The Battlefield Today
- Conclusion
- Bibliography
- Index

THE TEXT

The text in the book is well written and extremely detailed. Alejandro De Quesada covers the hunt for Pancho Villa, the Columbus Raid and Pershing's 1916-17 Punitive Expedition very well. Alejandro De Quesada discusses the hunt for Pancho Villa, the Columbus Raid and Pershing's 1916-17 Punitive Expedition from its origin and planning to the attacks and fighting through to the end of the expedition and its outcome and results. The Mexican and American actions taken are detailed which helps the reader gain an excellent overview of the Expedition. It is obvious that Alejandro De Quesada has gone to great lengths to research all aspects of the hunt for Pancho Villa, the Columbus Raid and Pershing's 1916-17 Punitive Expedition. Anyone interested in these actions will find this book very informative and interesting. I didn’t notice any spelling or grammatical errors I read through the text. Grammar and spelling might not be an important factor to everyone however it is something that I take notice of and pass on my findings. Please refer to the scans that I have provided so that you can judge the text for yourself.

THE PHOTOGRAPHS

There are a total of 26 black and white photographs and 14 color photographs featured throughout the book. Most of the photographs are nice and clear, however there are some that have an out of focus look to them and some appear to be too dark. However this is typical for this period of history and consideration needs to be given to the fact that some of the photographs are pushing being 100 years old. With that said the quality of the photographs is of no fault of the author and do not take anything away from the book and provide a visual guide for the actions described in the book. They will also prove valuable to the military vehicle, aircraft, figure and diorama modelers as well as the cavalry historian and enthusiasts. Some of the photographs provided that will be of use to the aircraft and armor modeler are of a US JN3 Curtis Jennie bi-plane and a 1915 Jeffery-Quad Armored Car. Also shown are horses and tack as well as pack mules, wagons, trucks, a 1915 Dodge Touring Car, artillery and various small arms such as the Hotchkiss M1909 Benet-Mercie machine gun in .30-06 caliber, 7mm Mexican Model 1910 Mauser, the US Model 1903 Springfield (.30-06 Caliber), the US Model 1911 Government Pistol (.45 ACP) and the US Model 1913 Calvary Saber (Patton Sabre) that was designed by, then 2nd Lieutenant, George S. Patton when he was Master of the Sword at the Mounted Service School. There are also photographs, period and modern, of various buildings that were involved in the fighting and also used as headquarters by the US Military. As with the other photographs there are several that will be of use to the figure modeler and uniform enthusiast as they shown uniforms, clothing and gear such as holsters and ammunition belts worn by both the United States and Mexican combatants. Please refer to the scans that I have provided so that you can judge the photographs for yourself.

THE ILLUSTRATIONS

There are 3 color illustrations by the illustrators that are very well done and nicely detailed.

The color illustrations are of:
- The attack on Columbus, New Mexico by Villistas
- US Cavalryman And Villista Irregular
- The Cardenas raid

There are also 2 black and white illustrations provided that are political cartoons from the time frame. Please refer to the scans that I have provided so that you can judge the illustrations for yourself.

MAPS

There are 2 color maps provided. They are of:
- Major battles and border raids during the Mexican Revolution
- Pershing’s Punitive Expedition into Mexico, 1916-1917

There are also 2 Bird’s Eye View type of map illustrations. They are of:
- The Villista Raid On Columbus, New Mexico, March 9, 1916
- The Battle Of Carrizal, Chihuahua, June 21, 1916

Please refer to the scan that I have provided so that you can judge the quality of the maps for yourself.

THE INFORMATION CHARTS

There are no informational charts provided in this volume.

THE CAPTIONS

The captions are well written and are very detailed and explain the accompanying photographs well. They cover things such as the individuals and their units shown, as well as the equipment, weapons, and uniform items. As with the text I didn’t notice any spelling or grammatical errors I read through the captions. As I stated before, grammar and spelling might not be an important factor to everyone however it is something that I take notice of and pass on my findings.
Please refer to the scans that I have provided so that you can judge the captions for yourself.

CONCLUSION

All in all I am very impressed with the book. It details the hunt for Pancho Villa, the Columbus Raid and Pershing's 1916-17 Punitive Expedition very well and in depth. I would have no hesitation to add other Osprey Publishing LTD titles to my personal library nor would I hesitate to recommend this book to others.


This book was provided by Osprey Publishing Ltd. Please be sure to mention that you saw the book reviewed here when you make your purchase.

REFERENCES

http://www.arkmilitaryheritage.com/exhibits/villa.htm#gallery

http://columbusnewmexico.com/columbus_new_mexico_united_states_history.htm

Osprey Publishing’s website HERE

You can take a look inside of the book on the Amazon website HERE