Born: 2 July 1892, Mexico
Died: 8 July 1981
Country most active: Mexico
Also known as: María de la Luz Corral Fierro
The following is republished from the Library of Congress. This piece falls under under public domain, as copyright does not apply to “any work of the U.S. Government” where “a work prepared by an officer or employee of the U.S. Government as part of that person’s official duties” (See, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101, 105).
Luz Corral, First Wife of Pancho Villa
Pancho Villa initially encountered his first wife Luz Corral in 1910 upon arriving in San Andrés, Chihuahua. Villa went to the town demanding supplies from its people. After discovering Corral’s mother’s poverty, Villa requisitioned only corn, coffee and tobacco from her small store, supplies Corral delivered directly to the troops. Friedrich Katz writes that Villa was immediately infatuated with her and quickly offered to marry her after the conflict, wasting no time with courtship. While Corral agreed, her mother was not inclined to approve of the pair and tried to intervene, to no avail.
Katz admits that Corral’s mother was justified in her wary attitude toward the marriage; Villa had already proposed to several other women in Chihuahua. However, Villa married Corral after the Treaty of Ciudad Juárez was signed in 1911. Although Villa went on to marry many other women, Corral is considered his first wife, and the only one to have contributed to his political career. Villa officially left Corral in 1921.