The 5 of May is a day for both Mexicans and Americans to celebrate.
On that day in 1864, Mexican soldiers smashed the French army at Puebla, Mexico.
The French had landed in Mexico five months earlier on the pretext of collecting debts from President Benito Juarez. The French brought the Hapsburg prince, Maximilian, with them to rule a new Mexican empire. The Mexicans had a different idea.
Under the command of Texas-born General Zaragosa, the Mexicans engaged the French cavalry. The French soldiers charged through mud from a thunderstorm, dodging hundreds of stampeding cattle stirred up by indigenous people, who were armed only with machetes.
The victory of Cinco de Mayo kept Mexico free and was good for the U.S. because it prevented Napoleon III from supplying the U.S. confederates for another year.
Union forces under General Sheridan made sure that Mexicans got all the weapons and ammunition they needed to expel the French.
So, celebrate Cinco de Mayo! It's a victory for both the U.S. and Mexico.
