Tomás Antonio Ignacio O'Horán y Escudero (1819-1867) was an Imperial Mexican general of Irish descent during the

Second French intervention in Mexico The second French intervention in Mexico (), also known as the Second Franco-Mexican War (1861–1867), was a military invasion of the Republic of Mexico by the French Empire of Napoleon III, purportedly to force the collection of Mexican de ...

. He was known for switching sides during the war as he initially sided with

Benito Juárez Benito Pablo Juárez García (; 21 March 1806 – 18 July 1872) was a Mexican politician, military commander, and lawyer who served as the 26th president of Mexico from 1858 until his death in office in 1872. A Zapotec peoples, Zapotec, he w ...

but after the Siege of Mexico City, O'Horán was executed.

Early military career

He was the son of Tomas O'Horan who was a prominent politician from Yucatan and the brother to Agustín O'Horán, a doctor who would gain fame in Mexico. He began his military career as a cadet in 1836 as he was within

Antonio López de Santa Anna Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón (21 February 1794 – 21 June 1876),Callcott, Wilfred H., "Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez De,''Handbook of Texas Online'' Retrieved 18 April 2017. often known as Santa Anna, wa ...

's army to quell the

Texas Revolution The Texas Revolution (October 2, 1835 – April 21, 1836) was a rebellion of colonists from the United States and Tejanos (Hispanic Texans) against the Centralist Republic of Mexico, centralist government of Mexico in the Mexican state of ...

. He also participated in the

Pastry War The Pastry War (; ), also known as the first French intervention in Mexico or the first Franco-Mexican war (1838–1839), began in November 1838 with the naval blockade of some Centralist Republic of Mexico, Mexican ports and the capture of the ...

and was stationed in Yucatán as a second lieutenant to oppose Santiago Imán the following year. During the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

, O'Horán participated in the

Battle of Buena Vista The Battle of Buena Vista (February 22–23, 1847), known as the Battle of La Angostura in Mexico, and sometimes as Battle of Buena Vista/La Angostura, was a battle of the Mexican–American War. It was fought between U.S. forces, largely vol ...

. Similarly during the

Reform War The Reform War (17 December 185711 January 1861) or War of Reform (), also known as the Three Years' War (), and the Mexican Civil War, was a complex civil conflict in Mexico fought between Mexican liberals and conservatives with regional var ...

, he sided with the

and the liberal faction of the war.

Second French intervention

Due to his previous affiliation with Juárez, O'Horán again sided with Juárez against the French Empire and the Mexican imperialists. Initially given the nickname "the Immortal of Atlixco", he managed to repel Imperial Mexican forces along with General Antonio Carvajal which played a significant role in the Republican victory during the

Battle of Puebla The Battle of Puebla (; ), also known as the Battle of May 5 () took place on 5 May 1862, near Puebla de los Ángeles, during the second French intervention in Mexico. French troops under the command of Charles de Lorencez repeatedly failed to s ...

. During the battle, his liberal friend Antonio Taboada asked O'Horán if he would like to switch sides, claiming that if he did so, that Mexico would be brought to stability but he declined at the moment. Later on at the Siege of Puebla, O'Horán launched a raid through the French siege lines to deliver goods to the Republicans which helped to prolong the siege. Due to his military accomplishments, Juárez made O'Horán the military governor of

Morelia Morelia (; from 1545 to 1828 known as Valladolid; Otomi language, Otomi: ) is a city and municipal seat of the municipalities of Mexico, municipality of Morelia in the north-central part of the state of Michoacán in central Mexico. It is both th ...

and later,

Governor of the State of Mexico The governor of the State of Mexico (Spanish: Gobernador Constitucional del Estado de México) wields executive power in the State of Mexico (a.k.a. Edomex). The Governor of the State of Mexico is directly elected by the citizens, using secret ...

. However, after the Republican forces evacuated Central Mexico and in a difficult employment position, O'Horán defected to the Imperial Mexican Army and managed to quell the unrest at

Tlalpan Tlalpan ( , 'place on the earth') is a Boroughs of Mexico City, borough (''demarcación territorial'') in Mexico City. It is the largest borough, with over 80% under conservation as forest and other ecologically sensitive area. The rest, almost al ...

. O'Horán was then made Mayor of Mexico City when Juárez's forces began to lay siege at Mexico City. Despite putting up resistance, O'Horán was forced to flee the city but while fleeing, was apprehended and sentenced to death for treason. General

Porfirio Díaz José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori (; ; 15 September 1830 – 2 July 1915) was a General (Mexico), Mexican general and politician who was the dictator of Mexico from 1876 until Mexican Revolution, his overthrow in 1911 seizing power in a Plan ...

requested Juárez to pardon O'Horán due to his previous service but Juárez was adamant on the execution of O'Horán. He then wrote a manifesto, claiming that he simply wanted to bring order to Mexico, never intended to back the interests of foreign powers and did not deserve death for a political error due to his prior service in serving the country. Nonetheless, O'Horán was

executed by firing squad Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French , rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are usually re ...

on August 21, 1867.

References

Bibliography

*''Diccionario Porrúa'', 6th Edition, Editorial Porrúa, Mexico, 1995 * Archivo General Nacional, Mexico * Arturo Erosa Barbachano ''Biografía del doctor Agustín Jorge O'Horán Escudero'', Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, 2005 {{DEFAULTSORT:OHorán y Escudero, Tomás 1819 births 1867 deaths Mexican people of Irish descent Liberalism in Mexico Mexican generals Mexican monarchists Politicians from Yucatán (state) Military personnel from Guatemala City Mexican Republic combatants of the Texas Revolution Mexican military personnel of the Mexican–American War Reform War People of the Second French intervention in Mexico 19th-century Mexican military personnel 19th-century Mexican politicians Executed Mexican people People executed by Mexico by firing squad People executed for treason against Mexico Executed military personnel Governors of the State of Mexico Heads of government of Mexico City