Liberation Army of the South
The Liberation Army of the South was a guerrilla force led for most of its existence by Emiliano Zapata that took part in the Mexican Revolution from 1911 to 1920. During that time, the Zapatistas fought against the national governments of Porfirio Díaz, Francisco Madero, Victoriano Huerta, and Venustiano Carranza. Their goal was rural land reform, specifically reclaiming communal lands stolen by hacendados in the period before the revolution. Although rarely active outside their base in Morelos, they allied with Pancho Villa to support the Conventionists against the Carrancistas. After Villa's defeat, the Zapatistas remained in open rebellion. It was only after Zapata's 1919 assassination and the overthrow of the Carranza government that Zapata's successor, Gildardo Magaña, negotiated peace with President Álvaro Obregón.
Zapata's Liberation Army of the South on the march in Morelos
The leading commanders of the Liberation Army of the South
The Zapatistas briefly occupied Mexico City at the start of the civil war against Carranza. There were significant cultural clashes between the rural villagers and residents of the capital.
After the death of Zapata, Gildardo Magaña played a crucial role in negotiating a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Morelos.
Emiliano Zapata Salazar was a Mexican revolutionary. He was a leading figure in the Mexican Revolution of 1910–1920, the main leader of the people's revolution in the Mexican state of Morelos, and the inspiration of the agrarian movement called Zapatismo.
Zapata in 1914
Birthplace of Emiliano Zapata in Anenecuilco, today a house museum
Undated photo of Emiliano Zapata (right) and his older brother Eufemio (left), dressed in the charro fashion of the countryside. Some posthumous artistic renderings of Zapata show him dressed as an ordinary peasant
Zapatistas in Cuernavaca, 1911. Hugo Brehme, photographer