Wenceslao Moguel | |
---|---|
Born | Wenceslao Moguel Herrera November 1, 1896
Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico |
Died | (aged 79) Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico |
Other names | El Fusilado |
Occupation | Handyman |
Wenceslao Moguel Herrera (1 November 1896 [1] – 29 July 1976), known in the press as El Fusilado (Spanish: "The Shot One" [a]), was a Mexican soldier under Pancho Villa who was captured on 18 March 1915 during the Mexican Revolution, and survived execution by firing squad. [2] [3] [4]
He was sentenced to death without a trial, and was shot 8–9 times in the body. He received the coup de grâce, or one final shot to the head at point-blank range to ensure death, yet managed to survive, though he was permanently scarred and disfigured by the event. [4] [2]
Stories differ as to how he survived. Some sources suggest that he was rescued: "The next day Moguel was found unconscious among the dead bodies of his comrades. He was given medical attention and recovered." [2] Others state that he escaped on his own and received care afterwards: "[Moguel] crawled away to the church of St. James Apostle three blocks away where a church member found him and took him home until he recuperated." [4]
Moguel appeared on the Ripley's Believe It or Not! radio show on July 16, 1937. [5] He is the focus of a song, titled El Fusilado, by British anarchist band Chumbawamba. It appears on their thirteenth studio album. This song was covered by The Longest Johns in 2023.
Wenceslao Moguel | |
---|---|
Born | Wenceslao Moguel Herrera November 1, 1896
Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico |
Died | (aged 79) Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico |
Other names | El Fusilado |
Occupation | Handyman |
Wenceslao Moguel Herrera (1 November 1896 [1] – 29 July 1976), known in the press as El Fusilado (Spanish: "The Shot One" [a]), was a Mexican soldier under Pancho Villa who was captured on 18 March 1915 during the Mexican Revolution, and survived execution by firing squad. [2] [3] [4]
He was sentenced to death without a trial, and was shot 8–9 times in the body. He received the coup de grâce, or one final shot to the head at point-blank range to ensure death, yet managed to survive, though he was permanently scarred and disfigured by the event. [4] [2]
Stories differ as to how he survived. Some sources suggest that he was rescued: "The next day Moguel was found unconscious among the dead bodies of his comrades. He was given medical attention and recovered." [2] Others state that he escaped on his own and received care afterwards: "[Moguel] crawled away to the church of St. James Apostle three blocks away where a church member found him and took him home until he recuperated." [4]
Moguel appeared on the Ripley's Believe It or Not! radio show on July 16, 1937. [5] He is the focus of a song, titled El Fusilado, by British anarchist band Chumbawamba. It appears on their thirteenth studio album. This song was covered by The Longest Johns in 2023.