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Cinco de Mayo, literally “May the 5th,” is the holiday celebrating the Mexican victory over the French army on May the 5th, 1862, at Puebla, east of Mexico City.

The actual Cinco de Mayo battle was a part of a longer conflict called the French Intervention, which lasted from 1862 to 1867. The French military occupied Mexico and fought the republican government of President Benito Juarez.

France invaded Mexico during the U.S. Civil War, which rendered the U.S. military unable to intervene.  Part of the French emperor’s plan was a linkup with the Confederacy, thus neutralizing U.S. ability to thwart the French strategy.

On May 5th, 1862, north of the city of Puebla, the French Army under General Charles de Lorencez fought the Mexican army, under the command of General Ignacio Zaragoza.  The French Army came off second best......