33 Facts About Gregorio Cortez

Gregorio Cortez Lira was born in the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico on June 22,1875 and became a folk hero to the border communities of the United States and Mexico.

Gregorio Cortez became the target of the largest manhunt in US history from June 14,1901 to June 22,1901.

Gregorio Cortez was accused of murdering two sheriffs and finally convicted of horse theft.

The conversion of Cortez into myth was analyzed by Americo Paredes in his book With His Pistol in His Hand, which examines the many versions of this corrido as well as the story's historical basis in order to understand how an average man such as Gregorio Cortez was canonized into a folkloric hero inspiring border residents.

Cortez's story was depicted in the movie The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez, starring Edward James Olmos.

Gregorio Cortez Lira was born in the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico, near the US-Mexico border, the son of Roman Cortez Garza, a rancher, and Rosalia Lira Cortinas.

In 1887, the Gregorio Cortez family moved to Manor, Texas near Austin.

Two years later, Gregorio Cortez joined his older brother, Romaldo Gregorio Cortez, in finding seasonal employment on the farms and ranches of South Texas.

Morris and Choate's questioning of Gregorio Cortez followed their interrogation of Villareal in connection with a reported horse theft.

However, Gregorio Cortez eventually reached Kenedy, left Romaldo in town to be taken care of, and began his flight from the authorities.

Gregorio Cortez traveled 55 miles from Kenedy to Belmont in hopes of hiding at the house of his friend, Martin Robledo.

Gonzales County Sheriff Robert M Glover, a friend of Sheriff Morris, knew where Cortez was hiding, probably from information obtained under duress.

Glover proceeded with a deputy sheriff of De Witt County to Kenedy, in Karnes County, and there for the first time learned that Gregorio Cortez was the man who had killed Sheriff Morris.

Just before the time that the sheriff's posse arrived at the house, Gregorio Cortez informed Bonafacio that the Sheriff's troop would be on his tail and asked him what he should do, whether to fight or surrender.

Just hours after Gregorio Cortez arrived at the ranch, Glover and his posse had surrounded the house and began to attack.

Gregorio Cortez fired at Glover, who fell dead, and Gregorio Cortez ran into the brush behind the house to hide.

Soon saddling another small horse, Gregorio Cortez continued south, just outside of Floresville, close to Cotulla.

Gregorio Cortez did not have a horse and was essentially surrounded by authorities.

However, he went unnoticed, authorities believed he had acquired yet another horse, and that their only chance of catching Gregorio Cortez would be by accident.

Over his 10-day journey, Gregorio Cortez had ridden three horses, traveled over 500 miles, and had seemingly blended in with the townspeople of Cotulla.

Gregorio Cortez traveled nearly 400 miles on horseback and more than 100 miles on foot.

Gregorio Cortez's story was symbolic of the struggles between the Anglo-Americans and Mexican Americans in South Texas.

The first of Gregorio Cortez's trials began on July 24,1901, in Gonzales, Texas.

The prosecution had originally claimed the murder to have been done by Mrs Robledo during the fight, but they shifted the blame to Gregorio Cortez and told Robledo to testify that she had seen Gregorio Cortez shoot and kill both Schnabel and Glover.

Sanders succumbed to the jury's pressure and agreed with the others that Gregorio Cortez was guilty; ultimately sentencing Gregorio Cortez to 50 years in prison for second-degree murder.

The appeal was upheld as the court doubted that Gregorio Cortez could have murdered both officers within quick succession, as he would have been in two places at the same time, and denied Manuel Tom's crude translation of the word barn.

However, the prosecution backed by the rage of local police forces continued working to see Gregorio Cortez serve life behind bars or be sentenced to death.

The Court of Criminal Appeals soon upheld the conviction, and on Jan 1,1905, Gregorio Cortez began his life sentence in the Huntsville Penitentiary for the murder of Sheriff Glover.

Efforts to have Gregorio Cortez pardoned began with his incarceration and finally succeeded in 1913 when Governor Oscar Colquitt issued him a conditional pardon.

The life and legend of Gregorio Cortez were studied by the scholar Americo Paredes in a doctoral thesis on corridos that was later published in a revised version by the University of Texas Press in 1958 under the title With His Pistol in His Hand.

The legend was turned into the film The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez, starring Edward James Olmos, in 1982.

Gregorio Cortez declared to Cineaste that he "tried to take the audience into the story so they would make the same mistakes as the Anglos and, later, when they find out what happened, they wouldn't feel superior to the Anglo characters but realize that they'd made the same error".

Gregorio Cortez's story was adapted into a concept EP by black metal band Maquahuitl, titled Con Su Pistola en La Mano.