Otilio Montaño Sánchez ( Villa de Ayala,

Morelos Morelos (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Morelos ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Morelos), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 36 municipalities and its capital city is Cuer ...

, December 13, 1877– Buenavista de Cuéllar,

Guerrero Guerrero is one of the 32 states that comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo and its largest city is Acapulcocopied from article, GuerreroAs of 2020, Guerrero the pop ...

, May 18, 1917) was a Zapatista general during the

Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution ( es, Revolución Mexicana) was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from approximately 1910 to 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It resulted in the destruction ...

. Otilio Montaño was born in Morelos to Esteban Montaño and Guadalupe Sánchez in 1877. After finishing his studies in Cuautla he taught in schools in

Tepalcingo Tepalcingo is a town in the Mexican state of Morelos. It at . The name Nahuatl root ''tekpa-tl'' (flint), ''tzintli'' (saves honor), ''tzinco'' (back of an individual), so in sum it means ''tekpatzinko'' "down or behind the flints". Tepalcingo ...

Jonacatepec Jonacatepec de Leondro Valle is a city in the Mexican state of Morelos. The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name. The municipality reported 15,690 inhabitants in the year 2015 census. The name ''Jo ...

and finally Ayala. In Yautepec he became acquainted with

Emiliano Zapata Emiliano Zapata Salazar (; August 8, 1879 – April 10, 1919) 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 ins ...

's cousin, Amador Salazar. In 1910 he supported

Francisco Madero Francisco Ignacio Madero González (; 30 October 1873 – 22 February 1913) was a Mexican businessman, revolutionary, writer and statesman, who became the 37th president of Mexico from 1911 until he was deposed in a coup d'etat in February 1 ...

in his struggle against

Porfirio Díaz José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori ( or ; ; 15 September 1830 – 2 July 1915), known as Porfirio Díaz, was a Mexican general and politician who served seven terms as President of Mexico, a total of 31 years, from 28 November 1876 to 6 Decem ...

and eventually joined

Felipe Neri Felipe Neri (sometimes known as Felipe Neri Jiménez; 23 August 1884 – January 1914) was a soldier and general in the Mexican Revolution. Early life He was born in the neighborhood of Gualupita, in Cuernavaca, Morelos, on 23 August 1884, to ...

and Amador Salazar in forming the Zapatista agrarian movement in Morelos. Because Montaño had some schooling and had worked as a school teacher, he was considered by the peasants of Morelos, who comprised the majority of Zapatista soldiers, as an "intellectual".Samuel Brunk, "Emiliano Zapata: revolution & betrayal in Mexico", UNM Press, 1995, pg. 266

/ref> After Zapata broke with Madero, Otilio Montaño remained in Morelos and in November 1911, together with Emiliano, co-authored the famous

Plan of Ayala The Plan of Ayala (Spanish: ''Plan de Ayala'') was a document drafted by revolutionary leader Emiliano Zapata during the Mexican Revolution. In it, Zapata denounced President Francisco Madero for his perceived betrayal of the revolutionary idea ...

.Peter Newell, "Zapata of Mexico", Black Rose Books Ltd., 1997, pg. 63
/ref> Zapata dictated the text of the proclamation while Otilio wrote it down and proofread it.Robert P. Millon, "Zapata: The Ideology of a Peasant Revolutionary", International Publishers Co, 1995, pg. 40

/ref> Subsequent to

Victoriano Huerta José Victoriano Huerta Márquez (; 22 December 1854 – 13 January 1916) was a general in the Mexican Federal Army and 39th President of Mexico, who came to power by coup against the democratically elected government of Francisco I. Madero wit ...

's coup against Madero, Montaño fought against Huerta and eventually became a member of the Zapatista ruling

military junta A military junta () is a government led by a committee of military leaders. The term ''junta'' means "meeting" or "committee" and originated in the national and local junta organized by the Spanish resistance to Napoleon's invasion of Spain in ...

, which was presided over by Emiliano Zapata and also included

Eufemio Zapata Eufemio Zapata Salazar (1873, Ciudad Ayala - June 18, 1917, Cuautla, Morelos) was a participant in the Mexican Revolution and the brother of Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata. He was known as a womanizer, a macho man, and a very heavy drinker. ...

Genovevo de la O Genovevo de la O (January 3, 1876 – June 12, 1952) was an important figure in the Mexican Revolution in Morelos. He was born in Santa María Ahuacatitlán, Morelos,Genovevo de la O accessed Dec 28, 2018 to sharecropper parents. He ...

, Amador Salazar, and

Manuel Palafox Manuel Palafox (born Puebla, 1886–1959) was a Mexican politician, soldier and intellectual. Palafox studied in Puebla, his city of birth, and became an entrepreneur. In 1911, he joined the Liberation Army of the South (AWL) of Emiliano Zap ...

(who acted as the secretary).Frank McLynn, "Villa and Zapata: A History of the Mexican Revolution", Carroll & Graf Publishers, 2002, pg. 185

/ref> In December 1914, Montaño accompanied Zapata to the first meeting with

Pancho Villa Francisco "Pancho" Villa (,"Villa"
''Collins English Dictionary''. ; ;

Xochimilco Xochimilco (; nci, Xōchimīlco, ) is a borough (''demarcación territorial'') of Mexico City. The borough is centered on the formerly independent city of Xochimilco, which was established on what was the southern shore of Lake Xochimilco in the ...

where he gave the welcoming speech and introduced the two ''jefes'' to each other. In early 1917 Montaño came into conflict with some of the other Zapatista generals. As a result, he was sent to the town of Buenavista de Cuellar. Soon, however, an anti-Zapata, pro- Carranza, revolt broke out in the town and Montaño was put in charge of suppressing it. Even though he had the leader of the rebellion hanged, he was accused of actually heading the rebellion. Although he vigorously denied the charges, influential Zapatistas including Manuel Palafox and Antonio Díaz Soto y Gama argued strongly that he was in fact guilty. Zapata left the matter to his advisors. A "

Revolutionary Tribunal The Revolutionary Tribunal (french: Tribunal révolutionnaire; unofficially Popular Tribunal) was a court instituted by the National Convention during the French Revolution for the trial of political offenders. It eventually became one of the ...

" was formed and Palafox and Soto presented evidence which was for the most part circumstantial. Montaño in turn accused the two of having betrayed the Zapatista revolution. After being found guilty, Montaño was denied

last rites The last rites, also known as the Commendation of the Dying, are the last prayers and ministrations given to an individual of Christian faith, when possible, shortly before death. They may be administered to those awaiting execution, mortall ...

and had a sign hung around his neck which stated "So die all traitors to the fatherland". Palafox refused to let him die facing the firing squad, a customary courtesy usually granted to the condemned who requested it.Frank McLynn, "Villa and Zapata: A History of the Mexican Revolution", Carroll & Graf Publishers, 2002, pg. 351-352

/ref> On May 18, 1917, he was executed, proclaiming his innocence to the end.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Montano Sanchez 1877 births 1917 deaths People from Ciudad Ayala, Morelos Zapatistas Mexican generals Executed military personnel Executed Mexican people 20th-century executions by Mexico People executed by Mexico by firing squad