The Tragic Ten was a military coup against President Francisco I. Madero, which lasted 10 days . This began on  February 9, 1913, in Mexico City, and ended up overthrowing and assassinating Madero.

The purpose of the movement was to free the dissident imprisoned generals, Bernardo Reyes and Félix Díaz, and overthrow the president. This period of violence and unrest is considered a great political betrayal  in the country.

The driving forces behind the Decena Tragica were Manuel Mondragón and Victoriano Huerta, who betrayed Madero by signing the embassy pact with the opponents. With the coup they sought to  promote the demand for unfulfilled political and government promises, end injustices to workers and apply Porfirian policies.

This coup ended with the assassinations of Francisco I. Madero and Pino Suárez , on February 22 of the same year.

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Causes and consequences

Causes

The causes that drove the Tragic Ten were the following:

• The revolution started by Francisco I. Madero in 1910, supporting the armed movement of groups dissatisfied with the presidency of Porfirio Díaz.
• Madero’s failure after trying to carry out the government reforms that the revolutionary groups wanted.
• Madero’s relationships with political entities that supported former President Díaz , in order to restore and improve the economy and investments abroad.
• The nonconformity and injustices towards the Mexican working class , together with the revolutionary ideas of the society of that time, where the repeated strikes sowed a feeling of change.
• Trade policies that prevented the entry of foreign capital and led many companies to close their doors.

Consequences

The main consequences of the Tragic Ten were the following:

• Victoriano Huerta became president of Mexico , applying the policies of the Porfirian regime.
• Attempts to apply democratic policies to the republic failed.
• Francisco I. Madero and Pino Suárez were overthrown and assassinated.

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Most important characters

• Francisco Ignacio Madero González (1873-1913) : businessman, politician and president of Mexico towards the beginning of the Tragic Decade. He had developed a campaign that attracted many people and took power after the overthrow of President Díaz, through the so-called San José Luís Revolution.
• José María Pino Suárez (1869-1913) : lawyer, poet, politician and journalist, who was the vice president of Madero during the Tragic Decade and was assassinated accordingly.
• José Victoriano Huerta Márquez (1845-1916) : military man and engineer, who organized the Tragic Decade and became president after this event, betraying former President Madero. During his presidency he had several confrontations with the opposition and, after the North American invasion in April 1914, he renounced power and went into exile.
• Félix Díaz Prieto (1868-1945) : revolutionary military man from Mexico, who actively participated in the coup against Francisco I. Madero as a general in the army. Together with Victoriano Huerta, he signed the pact of the embassy.
• Bernardo Doroteo Reyes Ogazón (1850-1913) : military and politician from Mexico, who had a great participation in the Mexican Revolution and was a faithful of President Porfirio Díaz. He died at the beginning of the Tragic Ten.
• Manuel Mondragón (1859-1922) : Mexican military man who fought Madero’s policies and actively participated in his overthrow and coup. In addition, he is the main suspect of having murdered him.