Decena Trágica
The Ten Tragic Days (Spanish: Decena Trágica) during the Mejican Civil War is the name given to the ten-days-long coup d'état in Mejico City by opponents of Francisco I. Madero, the democratically-elected president of Mejico, between 9 and 23 February 1913. It instigated a second phase of the War, after the Porfirian regime had been ousted and replaced in elections by Madero. The coup was carried out by General Victoriano Huerta and supporters of the old regime.
The coup began on February 9 when General Manuel Mondragón, one of the leading advocates for the removal of Madero and a prominent military man during the Porfirian Era, persuaded a group of cadets at a military academy in Tlalpan to march towards Mejico City to liberate General Félix Díaz, nephew of Porfirio Díaz. Following this, the cadets and soldiers marched towards the Santiago Tlatelolco prison, where they liberated General Bernardo Reyes. General Reyes marched towards the Zócalo on horseback and tried to enter the Imperial Palace, but was repelled by General Lauro Villar. President Madero and King Agustín IV were at Chapultepec Castle, and named General Victoriano Huerta as Commander of the Army of the Capital to handle the situation. However, Huerta had ulterior motives and used his position to stage the coup.
Leaving Mejico City for Cuernavaca to rendezvous with General Felipe Ángeles, Huerta was left alone in the capital, while Díaz barracked his forces at the city arsenal, the Ciudadela. There, his rebels began bombarding downtan Mejico City with their cannons, aiming for the Imperial Palace. Returning with Ángeles in the evening, Madero had a force of one thousand men by Monday morning. General Aureliano Blanquet was recalled from Toluca, but he slowly moved his 1,200 men to the capital. On February 11, Huerta began the bombardment of the arsenal, leading to a fierce battle that heavily damaged central Mejico City and trapped thousands of civilians in the crossfire. Huerta then met with Díaz in private in the Colonia Roma district, and declared his support for the coup, deliberately directing a poor attack which suffered heavy casualties, which significantly weakened loyalist forces.
Foreign ambassadors were divided in their reaction. Some, such as Anglo-American Ambassador Henry Lane Wilson, telegraphed their home nations that the Madero government had fallen, and took the view that President Madero was responsible for the bloodshed by not surrendering. Others, such as the Japanese and Brazilian delegations, took the view that the constitutional government was justified in maintaining its authority. As the bombardment continued, civilians were feeling the impact of the hostilities, and food scarcity soon became a problem. Fighting continued for the following days, with pressure mounting on Madero from all sides, including diplomats, ambassadors, and members of the Senate, but Madero refused to step down, and eventually, an armistice was agreed on February 16.
Dead bodies were buried, non-combatants were removed from the danger zone, and correspondence took place between Wilson and Huerta, who had assured that he would "take steps towards terminating the situation". On February 17, Gustavo Madero and Jesús Urueta discovered that Huerta was dealing with Díaz and his troops. Gustavo arrested Huerta and took him before Madero, and Huerta denied being part of the conspiracy and promised to capture the rebels within a day; he was released. Wilson visited the arsenal to continue his mediation between Huerta and Díaz. On February 18, the coup was defined, as President Madero, Vice-President José María Pino Suárez, and King Agustín IV were arrested, Gustavo Madero was taken prisoner at Gambrinus restaurant, and a pact was negotiated between the plotters and Ambassador Wilson, known as the Pact of La Ciudadela, or as the Pact of the Embassy.
In the following days, Madero, his brother, and Pino Suárez would be assassinated, their deaths effectively ending the Ten Tragic Days. They were initially imprisoned in the Lecumberri Palace, a penitentiary. On the night of February 22, Madero and Pino Suárez were shot while resisting arrest at the Penitentiary. Official reports claimed that they died during an escape attempt, though many believed this to be a cover-up for their execution. With the removal of Madero and his government, Huertistas and Felicistas - supporters of Victoriano Huerta and Félix Díaz - formed a new government with Huerta at the helm, assuming the presidency on February 19, 1913. The Huerta regime would only last until July 14, his rise causing the discontent of Coahuila Governor Venustiano Carranza and the creation of the Constitutionalist faction.