Cristero War

widespread struggle in many central-western Mexican states from 1926 to 1929

The Cristero War (in Spanish: Guerra Cristera or La Cristiada; [la kɾisˈtjaða]) is an internal Mexican conflict that occurred from 3 August 1926 to 21 June 1929, especially in the central and western parts of Mexico. The antecedents of the conflict began with the implementation of the Calles Law, where the Catholic Church was prohibited from many laws, and also the tightening of articles 3, 5, 24, 27 and 130 of Constitution of 1917.

Cristero War

Map of Mexico showing regions in which Cristero outbreaks occurred
  Large-scale outbreaks
  Moderate outbreaks
  Sporadic outbreaks
Date3 August 1926 – 21 June 1929
(2 years, 10 months, 2 weeks and 4 days)
Location
Result

Ceasefire

Belligerents

Mexico Mexican Government

Support:
 United States

Cristeros

Support:
Knights of Columbus
Commanders and leaders
Plutarco Elías Calles
Emilio Portes Gil
Joaquín Amaro Domínguez
Saturnino Cedillo
Heliodoro Charis
Marcelino García Barragán
Jaime Carrillo
Genovevo Rivas Guillén
Álvaro Obregón 
Enrique Gorostieta Velarde 
José Reyes Vega 
Alberto B. Gutiérrez
Aristeo Pedroza
Andrés Salazar
Carlos Carranza Bouquet 
Dionisio Eduardo Ochoa 
Barraza Damaso
Domingo Anaya 
Jesús Degollado Guízar
Luis Navarro Origel 
Lauro Rocha
Lucas Cuevas 
Matías Villa Michel
Miguel Márquez Anguiano
Manuel Michel
Victoriano Ramírez 
Victorino Bárcenas 
Strength
Mexico ~100,000 men (1929) ~50,000 men and women (1929)
Casualties and losses
Mexico 56,882 dead 30,000-50,000 dead
Estimated 250,000 dead
250,000 fled to the United States (mostly non-combatants)
Cristero soldiers hanged on electric poles in front of a railroad in Jalisco.

The rural population of central Mexico was in favor of the church and they were against the implemented Law. This conflict was also involved in the U.S. Ambassador in Mexico Dwight Morrow would break relations with the Government of the President Calles and the Church, in 1929 the Conflict ended of the firm of Treaty between the Federal government of Mexico and Archbishop Ruiz y Flóres to the cessed the Fire and the disintegrated the Cristeros.

Notable Battles

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Note: The mayor battles of the Cristero War occurred in the States of Zacatecas, Colima, Guanajuato and Jalisco.

References

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