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In fact, both men were more comfortable fighting in the field than administering the nation. By 1915 they were exchanging insults and bullets. Unusual for the time, he welcomed journalists and even film crews into his camp. Britannica (2023). The Villista forces were decimated by machine-gun fire and entrenched artillery, suffering thousands of casualties .
By 1920, however, the situation changed once again. But people still saw him as a bandit.
Everything changed for Villa when he met Abraham González, a supporter of Francisco Madero, a politician who opposed the government.
González convinced Villa that he could fight for the people by being a bandit. The raid caught the U.S.
by surprise and caused a national sensation. This alarmed those in power. 1908–1919
To avoid capture, he changed his name to Francisco “Pancho” Villa. These corridos celebrated Villa as “el León del Norte” (the Lion of the North) or “el Centauro del Norte” (the Centaur of the North), emphasizing his bravery, cunning, and Robin Hood persona.
By then, General Álvaro Obregón was president (having succeeded Carranza in late 1920) and was grooming his ally Plutarco Elías Calles to be the next president. As he drove his car through the town of Parral, a group of gunmen ambushed him and riddled him with bullets, killing Villa and his bodyguards in a bloody execution .
The expedition was officially deemed a failure on its primary objective .
American reporters like John Reed interviewed him extensively, helping to craft an image of Villa abroad as the “wild revolutionary chieftain” with a charismatic flair. They never managed to catch the guerrilla leader. They never fully merged their armies or strategies, partly due to logistical difficulties and partly because each focused on his own regional struggle.
The most formidable opponent to emerge against Villa was General Álvaro Obregón, Carranza’s brilliant lieutenant.
Scholars like Katz produced comprehensive biographies separating the man from the myth, acknowledging his flaws (his capacity for violence, his sometimes mercurial judgment) while also highlighting his achievements and the social forces he represented . By the end of 1915, Carranza’s government was in virtual control of Mexico, and the U.S.
had formally recognized Carranza as president – isolating Villa internationally .
Villa’s relationships with his revolutionary peers were complex.