A story of international intrigue and mystery

Perhaps one of the least known stories of the Mexican Revolution is that of German agent Felix Sommerfeld, who created chaos along the border and postponed U.S. participation in World War I. According to author Heribert von Feilitzsch, Sommerfeld’s “clandestine career … relegates the exploits of James Bond to mere child’s play.”

In 1911, Sommerfeld came from relative obscurity to become the personal confidant of President Francisco Madero, who had just replaced the ousted Porfirio Diaz and now led the Mexican government. Sommerfeld had a background as a mining engineer, a soldier of fortune, a prospector and, in 1908, he received training in Berlin as a German agent. He appeared to have contacts in Washington and Chicago, knew arms merchants and politicians in the United States, and so impressed the brother of President Madero that he was appointed head of the Mexican secret service. He enlisted Mexican Americans as well as German refugees and notorious soldiers of fortune, like Emil Holmdahl, to the Mexican cause. He helped put down the Orozco uprising against Madero in 1912, during which time he operated the largest secret service organization operation on both U.S. and Mexican soil.

But Mexico would spin widely out of control, as internecine rivalries led to the assassination of Madero and his replacement by the unpopular Gen. Victoriano Huerta. At first Sommerfeld preferred Huerta and thought his regime would be favorable to Germany. But when it seemed apparent that the United States would not recognize the dictatorial general, Sommerfeld went to Washington, raised funds and recruited volunteers to overthrow him, and became an ally of Pancho Villa, who supported a new presidential contender, Venustiano Carranza. 

Operating on Carranza’s behalf, Sommerfeld purchased large amounts of machine guns, repeating rifles and grenades, among other weapons, in San Antonio and El Paso, and transported them to Mexico. U.S. officials, knowing President Woodrow Wilson’s dislike of Huerta, turned a blind eye. In 1914, Huerta, seeing the writing on the wall, resigned from the presidency and fled the country. He was arrested in the United States for sedition, and died in custody from cirrhosis of the liver.

Sommerfeld now operated as the liaison between the Mexican and the U.S. governments, helping Pancho Villa and Carranza. However, when Villa and Carranza had a falling out, inciting another mini civil war among revolutionaries, Sommerfeld supported Villa, whom he supplied with major shipments of American arms. He even tried to get Villa diplomatic recognition in the United States. 

What was his game? Surely he must have known that Villa was a loose cannon and could never unite the disparate forces in Mexico or be a peacetime leader. Time would tell. It was clear, however, that Sommerfeld was working for more than one side. He was in constant contact with the German government, supplying it with information about American munition stores and troop strength, of which he had precise knowledge. It is also widely believed that he encouraged Villa to stage the attack on Columbus, New Mexico, in March 1916, in the hope that the United States would send troops to Mexico, effectively removing the possibility of them helping the Allies, who were at war with Germany.

While the charge was never proven, the strategy seemed to have worked. After the unprovoked attack (and the only invasion of the United States since the War of 1812 by a foreign power), President Wilson ordered Gen. John Pershing south of the border with a large contingent of infantry, cavalry, motorized transport, machine guns and even planes to track down Villa. The army was unsuccessful, but the action delayed U.S. entry into the war for another year. It wasn’t until May 1917 that the United States entered the war, three years after it started. In January 1918, Sommerfeld was arrested in Georgia and interned as an enemy alien. He was released the following year.

Chief of the Mexican secret service, German spy in the United States, arms dealer, diplomat and agent provocateur, Sommerfeld left behind a bewildering number of unanswered questions and years of chaos on la frontera. Although he operated in a clandestine fashion, to pass secrets to three different governments, Sommerfeld was photographed widely with major figures of the time. The “secret agent,” who hid in plain sight, disappeared from history almost as mysteriously as he arrived.