Liberation Army of the South

Liberation Army of the South
Zapatistas
Ejército Libertador del Sur
Leaders
Dates of operation1911–1920
Allegiance Morelos Commune
HeadquartersVariously Ayala or the mountains
Active regionsBased in Morelos, with incursions into Puebla, Guerrero, and Mexico City
IdeologyZapatismo
Agrarian socialism
Indigenism
Political positionFar-left
Size25,000 (1914)[1]
Part ofConventionists (1914–1917)
AlliesFrancisco I. Madero (until November 1911)
OpponentsPresidents of Mexico

Factions

Battles and warsMexican Revolution

The Liberation Army of the South (Spanish: Ejército Libertador del Sur, ELS) was a guerrilla force led for most of its existence by Emiliano Zapata that took part in the Mexican Revolution from 1911 to 1920.[1] 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.

  1. ^ a b Alba, Victor. "Emiliano Zapata". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. Retrieved 23 July 2020.