Cheese Friday: Queso de la Sombrero

Cheese Friday would like to present the "Queso de la Sombrero" in honor of the Mexican Army kicking some French ass at the Battle of Puebla in 1862. This victory had some far reaching repercussions.

Here's what happened:

May 5, 1862, General Laurencez led 6,000 - 8,000 French troops toward Puebla, Mexico, just 100 miles from Mexico City. Expecting the attack was General Ignacio Zaragoza, a Texas-born Mexican who had a force of 4,000 troops, many of them agricultural workers armed with antiquated rifles, machetes, rakes and hoes. The battle would take place in a muddy, uneven field.

To show his contempt for the Mexicans, Gen. Laurencez ordered his troops to attack through the middle of the foes’ defenses, their strongest position. The French cavalry went through ditches, over adobe ruins and toward the slope of Guadalupe Hill. By then, the cavalry, exhausted and nearly disbanded, failed to achieve its goal. The Mexican army stood its ground. Gen. Zaragoza, who had no experience in military tactics but was a veteran in guerrilla warfare, ordered his troops to go after the French, who fled to Orizaba, where Zaragoza attacked the French again, forcing them to flee to the coast.

Now some of you may say, "I'm an American, why should I care?". Well In 1862 the United States weren't so united. We were in the middle of a Civil War and it was in France's best interest for the US to be split in two.

France was very concerned about the growth of the United States. The North American country’s rate of expansion and power was threatening to the other world powers. If France was successful in conquering Mexico, the possibility of marching north to aid the Confederates in dividing the United States into two less powerful and less threatening countries was very real.

If it wasn't for General Ignacio Zaragoza and his rag-tag bunch, the beginning of each school day growing up in California could have been very different. We might have pledged our allegiance to a Confederate Flag with French accents.

Cinco de Mayo, it's not just about selling beer.

Lets hear it for the underdog!