May 21, 1920: The End of the Mexican Revolution

May 21, 1920: President Venustiano Carranza of Mexico is assassinated. It is regarded as the end of the Mexican Revolution.

Born in 1859 in the State of Coahuila to a prominent landowning family, he served as a senator for his state during the the dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz, which began in 1876. After Díaz won a rigged election in 1910, the defeated candidate, Francisco Madero, launched the Revolution, leading to Díaz's resignation in 1911. President Madero appointed Carranza to be Governor of Coahuila.

But Madero made the mistake of keeping the Army was it was, rather than putting his own people in charge. He was assassinated in 1913, and the government fell to General Victoriano Huerta. Carranza organized militias loyal to his State and allied Northern States in Mexico into a professional army, the Constitutional Army, which defeated Huerta's Federal Army and ousted Huerta in July 1914.

Carranza did not assume the title of provisional President of Mexico, as called for in his Plan of Guadalupe, since it would have prevented his running for constitutional President once elections were held. His government in this period was in a pre-constitutional, extralegal state, to which both of his best Generals, Álvaro Obregón and Pancho Villa, objected to his seizure of the national Presidency.

Obregón remained loyal to Carranza. Villa cast his lot with peasant leader Emiliano Zapata, and they encouraged peasant rebellions in the south and north of Mexico respectively. Carranza's position was secure enough politically and militarily to take power in Mexico City, receiving American recognition. Carranza and his allies incorporated many of their demands especially around land reform and labor rights into the Mexican Constitution of 1917, which was the world's 1st constitution to guarantee social rights under the umbrella of constitutional rights -- putting Mexico, in one way, well ahead of the United States. Under this new Constitution, Carranza was elected President that same year.

This Constitution empowered the Mexican state to embark on significant land reform and recognized labor's rights, and curtail the power and influence of the Catholic Church. But, as political scientist Hannah Arendt would later right, "The most ardent revolutionary will become a conservative the day after the revolution." And so, instead, Carranza began focusing on internal security by eliminating his political rivals. The Constitutionalists negotiated with Villa to accept the new government in exchange for land and a military pension, and Carranza ordered Zapata's assassination in 1919.

In the 1920 election, in which he could not succeed himself, Carranza attempted to impose a virtually unknown, civilian politician, Ignacio Bonillas, as the new President. This was considered the final betrayal of the people by the man they had once believed in.

Obregón led an army that rose up against Carranza , who fled Mexico City, along with thousands of his supporters, and with gold of the Mexican treasury, aiming to set up a rival government in Veracruz. He was hiding in Tlaxcalantongo, in the State of Puebla, on May 21, 1920, when he was found, shot and killed.

Adolfo de la Huerta was named the new President, serving until a new election in November, won by Obregón. Things calmed down in Mexico, and the Revolution was over. Obregón left office peacefully in 1924, but ran again in 1928, and won, but was himself assassinated before he could take office.

Carranza's contributions were not initially acknowledged in Mexico's historical memory, since he was overthrown by his rivals. Historical evaluations of his leadership have fluctuated as he has been praised for attempting to bring political stability to Mexico and toppling the dictatorship of Huerta. However, he is criticized by some for not enforcing the Constitution's social and land reforms.

Carranza's ashes are interred alongside the remains of other prominent revolutionary leaders at the Monument to the Revolution in Mexico City.

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May 21, 1920 was a Friday. These baseball games were played that day:

* The New York Giants beat the Chicago Cubs, 2-1 at Cubs Park (later renamed Wrigley Field) in Chicago.

* The Brooklyn Robins (as the Dodgers were known while Wilbert Robinson was their manager from 1914 to 1931) beat the Cincinnati Reds, 3-0 at Redland Field (later renamed Crosley Field) in Cincinnati. Leon Cadore, just 20 days removed from allowing 1 run over 26 innings, pitched a 6-hit shutout.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Detroit Tigers, 8-3 at Fenway Park in Boston. Mike McNally went 3-for-4 with 4 RBIs for the Sox. Ty Cobb went an uncharacteristic 0-for-5 for the Tigers.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 9-4 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. Cleveland manager and center fielder Tris Speaker went 2-for-5 with a home run and 3 RBIs.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Washington Senators, 11-9 at American League Park (later renamed Griffith Stadium) in Washington. The Senators used 4 pitchers, unusual for that era. Walter Johnson was not one of them, but he did appear as a pinch-hitter, and struck out. "Shoeless" Joe Jackson went 2-for-6 with 3 RBIs. Four months later, he and 6 ChiSox teammates, plus the already-retired Chick Gandil, would be suspended for their role in "throwing" the previous season's World Series.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Boston Braves, 9-0 at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. Hal Carlson pitched a 6-hit shutout.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 3-1 at Robison Field in St. Louis. Members of the Robison (not "Robinson") owned the Cardinals from 1899 to 1917. On June 6, 1920, new owner Sam Breadon took them out of the old wooden park, which had repeatedly been rebuilt due to fires, and began groundsharing with the American League's Browns at Sportsman's Park.

* And the New York Yankees and the St. Louis Browns were rained out at the Polo Grounds. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on July 13. The Browns won the opener, 6-4. Once-and-future Yankee Urban Shocker outpitched Harry "Rip" Collins. The Yankees won the nightcap, 7-2. George Mogridge outpitched Carl Wellman. Over the 2 games, Babe Ruth went 1-for-6 with 2 walks and an RBI, while the Browns' George Sisler went 1-for-9.