Colonial Mexico 1519 - 1821 MexicanHistorydocshare01.docshare.tips/files/6117/61170977.pdf · 2016....

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Colonial Mexico 1519 - 1713

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Encomiendas Government in New Spain Council of the Indies Viceroy and Audiencia

Corregidores Exploration Mixton War The Church The Spanish Inquisition Religious DisputesVirgin of Guadalupe Cultural Life Social Classes Economy Colonial Architecture

Mexico City Colonial ceramics Tequila Pulque and Wine Bourbon ReformsMexican Colonial Coins

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While Cortes was conquering the Aztec capital no one in Spain was aware of it andCortes conquest was without official recognition With little preparation Spain founditself a ruler a faraway land many times larger than itself and much more populated Howwas it to control and convert such a land that was over two months away by sea

The Encomiendas

Colonial Mexico A Guide toHistoric Districts and TownsThis is a great book on the

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Maps of Mexico

Mexican coins

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The Spaniards renamed Tenochititlan Mexico City and rebuilt it as the capital of NuevaEspana ( New Spain ) Cortes granted his soldiers encomiendas ( land grants )whichgranted an entire town and its Indian population to an encomendero as the treasurehoped for after the conquest of the Aztecs did not amount to much as much of it hadbeen lost in the retreat of Noche Triste The Indians owed them tribute as well as forcedlabor and was a thinly disguised form of slavery The encomenderos were supposed toconvert the Indians and look after their welfare Spanish encomenderos were usuallyabsentee landlords who lived in faraway cities Charles V wanting to protect his newvassals outlawed encomiendas but the grants had already been distributed by Cortes

The encomienda system attracted settlers and brought misery and death to many nativepeople as it had in Cuba The system interfered with Spains control of the new colonyand led to rebellions when Spain tried to reform the system in the 16th century whenfriar Bartolome de Las Casa convinced the crown to introduce the New Laws grantingfreedom to Indians unjustly enslaved and easing labor requirements There was muchopposition to this by the Spaniards in Mexico When similar laws were enacted in Peru aninsurrection resulted which took the life of the viceroy In 1564 the Crown decreed thatall encomiendas would cease upon the death of the holder This incensed thedescendants of the conquistadors Some such as Alonso de Avila argued forindependence from Spain with the son of Cortes Don Martin to made king Alonso andothers were soon arrested and beheaded and Don Martin was forced to go into exileThis ended independence talk at the time and also ended the new law on theencomienda Over time as the Indians gained more rights the encomiendas faded away

Despite the stories of fabulous wealth the number of Spanish colonists was low By1560 there were barely 20000 Spaniards in Mexico The Indian population wasdevastated in the early colonial period with an estimated 70 to 90 percent dying off dueto disease famine and overwork there were an estimated 25 million before the conquestand a little over a million by 1605 The Indian population did not revive until 1650African slaves were imported to make up for the decrease in the Indian labor pool20000 had arrived by 1553 Many Filipinos and Chinese entered on the Manila galleonspossibly as many as 6000 by the 17th century

Government in New Spain

Imperial Spain coat of Arms

Cortes was appointed governor and captain general of New Spain in 1522 and he movedenergetically to explore new lands and develop the economy Cortes brought the firststocks of cattle to Mexico as well as sheep and goats and introduced European plants He paid for the conquistadors wives to come to Mexico from Spain and encouraged hismen to marry native women beginning the first mestizos children of Spanish and nativeMexican blood

Cortes who had left Mexico to control his former commander Olid in Honduras in 1524-26 was believed to be dead by the people of Mexico Enemies of Cortes spread rumorsthat he cheated the crown When he returned he had the enemies hanged but theCrown remained suspicious and Cortes hoping to clear his name went to Spain CharlesV while impressed with the gallant nature of Cortes desired to appoint his own viceroy

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in place of the rough adventurers in New Spain and did not reappoint Cortes governorbut made him a marquis with a large estate to get him out of the way Cortes did nothave a noble lineage to be chosen as viceroy

Council of the Indies Viceroy and Audiencia

In 1524 Charles created the Council of the Indies ( Real y Supremo Consejo de lasIndias ) to oversee all aspects of the colonies and acting in his name The Councilregulated many aspects of life in New Spain to the location of churches to what kind ofcrops could be grown The king and the Council of the Indies decided New Spain neededa ruler to offset the popularity of Cortes and project the authority of the Crown aviceroy The first viceroy was not to arrive in Mexico till 1535 The viceroyalty was toadminister a vast territory from California to Panama Caribbean islands and thePhilippines

In 1527 Spain set up the first audiencia a high court with government functions socourt cases would not have to be referred to Spain Judges (oidores ) of the audienciawere some of the most powerful men in the Indies The audiencia was to keep an eye onthe viceroy for the king Judges (oidores ) of the audiencia were some of the mostpowerful men in the Indies

Guzman

In 1529 Nuno de Guzman became became one of three judges in Mexico City which ledto one of the lowest points of Spanish administration in Mexico This period between therule of Cortes and the viceroys was a time of corruption graft and injustice as Guzmanand the other oidores sought to enrich themselves and gain power

Zumarraga

Meanwhile the first bishop of Mexico Juan de Zumarraga arrived in 1527 Angered by theinjustice and mistreatment of the Indians and corruption he preached sermonscondemning the judges at risk to his life Guzman fearing his days were numbered bythe reports of Zumarraga to the Crown set off to conquer Michoacan to get back in thegood graces of the Crown Guzman treated the Indians savagely but explored as far assouthern Sonora and conquered a large area In 1538 he went to Spain to answer thecharges against him and spent the rest of his life there under house arrest After thefiasco of Guzman more care was taken to chose his replacement Sebastian Ramirez deFuenleal who was appointed judge and turned out to be a man of high quality andcorrected many abuses

Mendoza

Don Antonio de Mendoza count of Tendilla accepted the appointment as viceroy afterthree others had declined and arrived in Mexico in 1535 He was related to the royalfamily He had special orders to increase the crowns revenues and see that the Indianswere better treated before they were decimated as they were in the Caribbean Heworked hard to provide stability and order The viceroys or vice-kings created anelegant court which became the center of European society in New Spain There werelong periods of delay in communication with Spain and the viceroys and when ordersseemed contrary to what was needed the viceroy sometimes noted Obedezo pero nocomplo ( I obey but do not execute ) In order to check on the state of affairs in thecolonies the Crown sometimes sent a royal inspector or visitador The inspector was

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given great authority and usually assumed rule of the colony during his inspection Sometimes the inspector would travel inconito sometimes there would be advancedwarning

There were 62 viceroys in New Spain eventually men born in New Spain would hold thisoffice

Corregidores

Provincial administrators were called Corregidores and reported to the viceroy In theearly years these positions went to conquistadors or their sons The salary for thesepositions was low and it was expected supplement their income by some sort of abuse ofpower Provincial towns were organized by royal decree all were to have a main plazachurch royal palace and town hall with streets laid out in a grid pattern Large citiessuch as Oaxaca Puebla and Guadalajara were large enough to have cathedrals and grandpalaces

The presidios (military towns) pueblos (civilian towns) and the misiones (missions) werethe three major agencies employed by the Spanish crown to extend its borders and

consolidate its colonial territories in these territories

Exploration

By 1524 almost all of the Aztec empire along with such regions as Colina the valley ofOaxaca and the Isthmus of Tehuantepec had been brought under control of the colony

Ports were set up such as Acapulco to search for a passage to the East

In the 1540s most the Yucatan was conquered and the city of Merida was founded in1542 The city states of the Mayans proved difficult to conquer unlike the centralizedAztecs A revolt broke out in 1547 which took 20 years and an estimated 500 Spanish

lives to quell The last Mayan state did not fall till 1697

A large silver find in Zacatecas in the mid 1540s led to increased Spanish attempts tosubdue the north In the north the borders were slowly extended by missionaries and afew settlers and included most of modern day Texas New Mexico Arizona California

Utah and Colorado

Francisco Vazquez de Coronado

Mendoza appointed Francisco Vazquez de Coronado to search for Cibola and the sevencities of Gold rumored to exist in the north in 1540 Coronado set off with 336 Spaniardsand hundred of Indian allies The Indians wishing to get rid of the gold fevered Spanishquickly always told the Spanish the gold cities were further on Eventually Coronado went as far north as Kansas before returning to Mexico empty handed

The Mixton War of 1540 -41

Tenamaxtli

The expedition had one unintended consequence A large number of Spaniards who hadsettled in New Galicia ( northern Mexico ) went on Coronados expedition leaving thearea undermanned The Indians vengeful of their treatment by Guzman took advantageof the opportunity to rebel in the ensuing Mixton War ( 1540-41) led by Tenamaxtli themost serious revolt of the times Alavardo himself was killed trying to subdue the Indiansand the rebellion ended only after the viceroy led a large army into the area Mendozaleft a flourishing colony when he retired in 1550 with a legacy of strong royal rule Hissuccessor Luis de Velasco (1550-64) became known as the father of the Indians Thenovel Aztec Autumn by Gary Jennings is an account of this war Nine years after theMixton Rebellion its continuation the Chichimeca War began and went on for half acentury with the Spanish eventually buying off the Chichimecs

The Church in Colonial Mexico

The baptism of Indians began with the march of Cortes The hand of God was seen inthe discovery of Mexico a gift from God for freeing Spain from the Moslems who werestill viewed as a menace The person ultimately responsible for all the souls in the NewWorld was Charles V King of Mexico and the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V took thischarge seriously and was concerned for the physical and spiritual welfare of the Indians

Cortes recommended that the Crown send the Franciscans Dominicans and theAugustinians - the mendicant orders and not the secular clergy The mendicant monkswere respected for their vows of poverty monastic life and humble character TheFranciscan monks were the first to arrive in 1524 They greatly impressed the Indians bywalking from Vera Cruz to Mexico City barefoot in their simple friar clothing They werenot seeking a Cibola and riches in gold Many were influenced by the Renaissance ideasof the time that they could create an ideal society such as Thomas Mores Utopia andSt Augustins City of God which would perhaps lead to the second coming of ChristSome of these communities became self sustaining and even prosperous with their owncraft making

Aztec Autumn by GaryJennings

Cuilapan

The friars spread out into the country often being the first Europeans to explore an area They built fortess missions across New Spain Nine million were baptized by 1537 Forsome friars it was not unusual to baptize 4000 Indians a day The friars need churchesfor all these new Christians and a uniquely Mexican architectural form was created toaccommodate these large numbers of new converts This was the open chapel or capillaabierta which were covered over in time to create religious complexes such as the one atCuilapan By 1540 50 such churches had been built

Virgin of Guadalupe

Why was Mexico so quickly converted There were some similarities that madeconversion easier such as the cross which was a symbol for the god of rain inMesoamerica and the crucifixion of Christ as a symbol for sacrifice needed for rebirth The Catholic reverence for saints with their holidays and elaborate religious processionswere similar to Mesoamerican practices The countrys patron saint is the Virgin of Guadalupe who made her appearance to Juan Diego on the site of an Aztec shrine of theAztec goddess Tonantzin in 1531 on a hill outside of Mexico City She was officiallydeclared the patron saint of Mexico after she stopped an outbreak of plague in the city in1737 Her shrine there attracts thousands of pilgrims daily Many anthropologists sayshe represents a synthesis of Catholic and pre Columbian beliefs

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Florentine Codex

The priest became great linguists and learned the Indian languages The also taughtSpanish to the Indians and opened universities for Indian nobles such asFranciscancollege of Santa cruz de Tlatelolco Some Indians learned Latin so well that they taught itto the Spanish settlers In the mid 16 century the friars worked with the Indians to writeabout their native history and customs in their own language One of the most famouswas by Bernardino de Sahagun who compiled an encyclopedia of Aztec life theFlorentine Codex In the process Indians started to write Nahuatl in the Roman alphabetrather than in pictographs These became one of the greatest sources of informationabout Mesoamerican civilization

The friars helped get laws passed such as the papal bull of 1537 and the New Lawswhich declared the Indians were humans and capable of salvation and outlawing Indian

slavery

The Spanish Inquisition

Luis and Dona Marianna de Carvajal being burnt at the stake Mexico 1601They were accused of being leaders of the crypto-Jews

The onset of the Spanish Inquisition in Mexico in 1571 marked the end of the idealisticreligious period of Renaissance influenced humanism of the mid 16th century Idealisticpriests and friars were replaced with materialistic clergy and the efforts by Zumarraga

were overturned The new clergy were dependent on settlers tithes and not the church Charles V was dead and the new Spanish king Phillip II ( r 1556 - 1598 ) was more

interested in exploiting New Spains economic wealth than saving souls The universitiesfor Indian nobles were disbanded

The Inquisition was used in Spain by Ferdinand and Isabella to insure religious unity afterexpelling the Moslems Jews were forced to convert or leave and Protestants were

forbidden in the Spanish realm Emigrants were screened before being allowed to go toNew Spain Jews who had converted were suspected of being crypto-Jews and wereinvestigated in New Spain Pirates from Protestant countries were often burned at the

stake for heresy Priests and civil servants were investigated on moral grounds Indians

were not tried for heresy as they were considered childlike after a famous case in whichan Indian faced the Inquisition for practicing old beliefs after converting

The Inquisition also exercised control over printed works that entered the colony especially those of the Enlightenment writers These works did find there way into the

private libraries however The crime of heresy which was punishable by burning at thestake ( auto-de-f ) with the prisoners often strangled first Auto de fes drew large

crowds the first in the colony was in 1574 Crimes like adultery sorcery and blasphemywere punishable by floggings or finesOnly about 50 people were recorded to have been

burn at the stake during the 250 years the Inquisition was used in New Spain

It was used with greater frequency in the 18th century to prosecute those involved inpolitical dissent The Inquisition was not abolished until 1820

Religious Disputes

Jesuits expelled

For the beginning of the colonial period there were religious disputes The encomenderosresented what they saw as interference in Indian matters The various orders sometimesfought over control of various territories There were also quarrels with civil authoritiesThe most famous of which was an episode between the Jesuits and the bishop of PueblaJuan de Palafox who also held civil post and served the viceroy over the wealth of theJesuits in which the secular church was gained more power

The Bourbon kings wary of the papal links and coveting the wealth of the Jesuits hadthem expelled in 1767 In 1804 the crown decreed the Act of Consolidation in which thechurchs funds for charitable works were taken by the state This was a huge blow tothe criollos and the poor of Mexico criollos depended on church funds as a source ofcredit and charity in times of famine and disaster Many criollos were financially ruinedby the act and embittered them toward the Crown In New Spain this decree led to riotsand other disturbances These were suppressed by summary trials and sentences ofperpetual imprisonment principally in San Luis Potos Guanajuato and parts ofMichoac n

Cultural Life in New Spain

Sor Juana de la Cruz

Painting advanced in Mexico with the coming of the Flemish master Simon Pereyns in1566 who taught many local artist Miguel Cabrera ( 1695 - 1768 ) became one of the

most famous baroque painters in Mexico under the support of the church

One of the most famous literary stars of the colonial period was a woman Sor (Sister )Juana de la Cruz ( 1651 - 1695 ) She wrote poetry some of it in the Nahuatl language

wrote plays and essays and was an exponent of womens rights Another outstandingliterary figure was Carlos de Siguenza y Gongora ( 1645 - 1700 )

Movie about Juana de la Cruz Yo la Peor de Todas I worst of all in Spanish with English subtitles

Jose Joaquin Fernandez de Lizardi wrote what is considered to be the first novel writtenin New spain in 1816 El Periquillo Sarmiento ( The Itching Parrot )

The printing press arrived in Mexico in 1537 Permission was need to publish from theviceroy and the bishop There was no public library and no newspapers until 1805

The Social Classes

a Mestizo baby by Miguel Cabrera

What was essential a social caste system and enforced by law At the top was the whiteruling class which made up 1 million out of the population by the end of the colonialperiod The top of this group were the Spanish from Spain ( peninsulares) most of thesereturned to Spain

Below them were the Spanish born in Mexico the creoles ( criollos ) Creoles could nothold royal office Only whites were allowed to wear fine silk clothes be called gentlemen( caballeros ) and ladies ( damas )

Below them were the people of color with many different terms for the variouscombinations of Europeans Indians and African slaves

Mestizo persons with one peninsular parent and one indio parent

Castizo persons with one mestizo parent and one criollo parent

Cholos persons with one indio parent and one mestizo parent

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Mulatos persons of mixed peninsular and negro descent They were sometimes madeinto slaves

Zambos persons who were mixed indio and negro

Euromestizos Spanish Indian mixture with Spanish characteristics predominating

Indomestizos Spanish Indian mixture with Spanish characteristics predominating

The largest class were the Indians which were the wards of the church and the Crown Over the years the number of African slaves diminished over the years from 20000 inthe 16th century to 6000 by 1800

The Economy of New Spain

New Spain was exploited for the benefit of Spain with little reinvestment Many of thecolonists who came to New Spain wanted to make their wealth and return to Spain Thesilver bullion was sent to Spain in galleons was enough to pay for administrating all ofthe American colonies with a surplus The China trade was established in 1564 silksceramics tea and spices arrived from the Philippines at Acapulco and were transportedacross Mexico to Vera Cruz and sent to Spain with silver

Commerce was controlled by royal decree All trade with New Spain had to be approvedby Spain and carried on Spanish ships and through the one official port of Vera Cruz tocollect duties

After about 1560 ships traveled in annual convoys for protection from piracy Theattacks of the northern European powers on New Spain became an increasing problem In 1561 French pirates sacked the town of Campeche In 1683 the French pirate Lorenzilloattacked Vera Cruz and took much loot and This curtailed trade since for a long timethe galleons sailed in a protected convoy once a year Industries that could compete withthose of Spain were prohibited and was trade with other countries so New Spainproduced few manufactured goods for export One example of this is the olive and wineindustry introduced by friars but eventually banned by Spain as competing with Spanishgrowers

gremios

Products for local consumption were permitted to be produced The were gremios orguilds for each of the crafts such as blacksmiths tailors etc which fixed the price ofgoods and their quality To become a master one had to pass an examination and haveones works pass inspection by the guild

Money makers such as tobacco silk and cochineal ( insects which live on prickly pearcactus and produced red dye ) were royal monopolies There were royal taxes of allkinds on land licenses etc The most hated was the alcabala which was due on almosteverything sold which went from 2 to as high as 14 The was also a tax on importsand exports called an almojarifazgo With the free hand of economics stifled industrycould not grow and advance which was to have terrible consequences for Spains

colonies and Spain itself The restrictions combined with bad roads bandits and attacksof Chichimecs kept a healthy diversified economy from growing These economicrestrictions and expensive European Wars caused Spanish power to seriously weaken bythe 17th century

Vaqueros

The Spanish influence on American culture goes far beyond what many might think The vaqueros orSpanish cowboys as the gringos may call them

By the end of the 16th century the encomiendas were not producing enough due to theIndian labor shortage and lack of Indians to make tribute Spain turned to the Old Worldmodel of haciendas where small plots were consolidated into large estates where wheatwas grown and European cattle bred such as longhorn cattle Raising cattle had moreprestige than growing crops Vaqueros (cowboys ) on haciendas with their silver spursand wide-brimmed sombreros to protect themselves from the sun grew up to supply themining towns in the north and export hides to Spain Some of the haciendas were vastone family ranch covered over 11 million acres

silver bar from shipwreck The output of the American mines was usually shipped to Spain in the form ofingots

Mining however was of prime importance to Spain By the 18th century Spainproduced as much silver as the rest of the world combined In the early colonial periodIndian laborers were forced to work 12 hours a day and death rates were high Such

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conditions led to rebellions and became hard to obtain laborer However rising pricesfor silver enabled mine owners to pay more for labor which solved the labor problem

repartimiento

In 1549 the labor obligation was abolished and tribute forbidden for Indians It wasreasoned enough Indians would become laborers if they were offered fair pay but fewwished to So a system of forced labor was enacted called a repartimiento or cuatequil Under this system each adult male Indian had to contribute 45 days of labor a yearusually a week at a time There were many abuses to this system which was abolishedin the early 17th century except for mine labor Employers also lured Indians to becomeforced laborers under a system of debt peonage in which Indians were paid in advanceat rates they could not repay The debts were passed down from father to son

Colonial Architecture

Casa de Montejo 1549 plateresque style

Spaniards tried to recreate the styles of Spain in Mexico but was modified by the newland Churches gained a fortresslike appearance because of Indian attacks thick wallswere needed because of earthquakes The building material in New Spain was morecolorful the red tezontle pumice and polychrome tiles from Puebla became widely used

Capilla Real

In the early years building were built along gothic mudejar ( Mooorish ) and romanesquelines The Moorish style can be seen in the interior and domes of the Capilla Real inCholulu In the mid 16th century the influence of the Spanish Renaissance began to befelt and a style known as plateresque ( silversmith ) with intricate plasterwork bagan tobe seen

The church of Santa Prisca in Taxco built in the late 18th century considered one of the best examples ofthe Mexican baroque style

The two largest cathedrals were built in Mexico City ( 1563 ) and Puebla ( 1575)

The Churrigueresque style Cathedral in the silver town of Zacatecas

In the 17th century a more distinctively Mexican style emerged the ultra baroqueChurrigueresque style ( named after Jose Churriguera a spanish architect ) It reflectessome of the exhuberence of the newly rich crillos of the times especially the super richsilver barons who built such churches as the Zacatecas Cathedral and the Santiagothatelolco in Mexico Citythe sculptures of many of the incredibly intricate facades altersand other admornments so distinctive of Mexican architecture were unknown Indians andmestizos

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As a reaction to the excess a more severe neoclassical style became dominant fromabout 1780 to 1830 An example is the Palacio de Mineria in Mexico City

Mexico City

The Spanish presence in Mexico was concentrated in Mexico City Before the Pilgrimslanded at Plymouth rock Mexico City was a piece of europe in the New world withcathedrals plazasa hospitals and universities Some of the famous sights from thecolonial period in Mexico City are

The National Palace ( Palacio Nacional ) Cortes destroyed the Palace of Moctezuma in1521 and built a palace fortressIn 1562 the Crown bought the fortress Iw wasdestroyed in the 1692 uprising and rebuilt and became the viceroy residence untilMexican Independence

Metropolitan Cathedral ( Catedral Metropolitana ) Begun in 1573 and worked on forhundreds of years built on top of an Aztec temple and has been sinking since itsconstruction There are altarpieces here by the colonial painter Juan Correa

University of the Cloister of Sor Juana the former convent of the great poet Sor Juanabuilt in 1585

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Castillo de Chapultepec built in 1785 as a viceroyal residence and site of the boy herosof the Mexican war

Basilica Guadalupe Shrine built around 1700 where the Vigin of Guadalupe was firstsighted in 1531

Colonial ceramics

Talavera ceramics

Glazed pottery was brought to Mexico from Talavera de la Reina Spain in the 16thcentury Many people consider Puebla Mexico the home of Mexican Talavera because ofthe first regulations and standards for determining uniformity and excellence of thetraditional Mexican TalaveraTalavera is characterized by bright colors and floral designsBecause of the extensive imports from China to Mexico on the galleons Chineseceramic was soon imitated particularly their designs

Guadalajara also bacame a pottery and ceramic center with the high quality of the localclay

Tequila Pulque and Wine

pulque production

Tequila orginated in the town of the same name about 65 km northwest of GuadalajaraTequila was first produced in the 16th century The Aztec people had previously made afermented beverage from the agave plant which they called octli (later and morepopularly called pulque Pulque has about the same alcohol content as beer The crownhad a monopoly on pulque which was a major source of revenue The Spanishdiscovered that by roasting the hearts of the agave plant and fermenting the liquid theycould produce tequila Wine was introduced early to New Spain but wine productionwas controlled in New Mexico as to not compete with Spainish wineries Recently therehas been a revival of wine making in Mexico in northern Baja and near Zacatecas

Bourbon Reforms

Philippe de Bourbon Duke of Anjou who became King Philip V of Spain

Charles II ( 1661 - 1700 ) feeble in mind and body the centuries of inbreeding withinthe Habsburg dynasty was the last of the Spanish Hapsburg kings When Charles IIdied in 1700 the line of the Spanish Habsburgs died with him He had named a great-nephew Philippe de Bourbon Duke of Anjou (a grandson of the reigning French king

Louis XIV ) as his successorThe spectre of the multi-continental empire of Spainpassing under the effective control of Louis XIV provoked a massive coalition of powersto oppose the Duc dAnjous succession Almost immediately the War of the SpanishSuccession (1702-1713) began After eleven years of bloody global warfare fought onfour continents and three oceans the Duc dAnjou as Philip V was confirmed as Kingof Spain on substantially the same terms that the powers of Europe had agreed tobefore the war Philip inherited a ruined Spain beacause of the war with its economy in shambles andthe treasury empty Philip looked to the colonies to improve the economy of Spain

The Bourbons streamlined the vice regal administration replacing 200 low paidunskilled corregidores and local mayors with 12 regional intendents The intendentswere well paid and experienced administrators and were better able to collect taxes andtribute for the Crown The number of Manila galleon fleets increased to two annually In 1740 the fleet system was suspended as the threat of piracy decreased andabolished by 1789 Taxes were lowered to encourage silver mining

Charles III These modernizations had the greatest impact under Charles III ( 1759 - 88 ) Charleswas a devotee of the enlightenment philosophies then in fashion in Europe andintroduced reforms in Spain and the colonies Under his rule Spain once again becamea world power

Jose de Galvez In 1765 he dispatched to New Spain Jose de Galvez as visitor general Galvez took a 5year tour of the colony and proposed sweeping economic and political reforms He hadtwo main concerns improve the economy of New Spain and improve its defensesagainst foreign powers The Crown developed a professional army in New Spain duringthe war to deal with the encroachments of the Russians in the northwest and Englishand developed colony in San Francisco and missions in Texas It broke up oldmonopolies to permit more ports such as Campeche and Progreso to compete with VeraCruz and Acapulco It lowered taxes and promoted silver mining Silver production rosefrom 22 million pesos in 1700 to 27 million by 1804 Cochineal production alsoincreased becoming the second biggest export

Mexican coins

Antonio de Bucareli

The Crown also appointed able viceroys during this period The rule of Antonio deBucareli ( 1771 - 79 ) was marked by peace and exceptional prosprity Another viceroyRevillagigedo another able ruler( 1789 - 94 ) created the first public transportationsystem The reforms made New Mexico the most prosperous of all Spains colonies and madeSpain wealthy By 1810 New Spain produced 75 percent of all the profit from Spainscolonies Yet little was reinvested in New Spain the reforms benefited thepeninsulares at the expense of the creoles The new intendents were all from Spainreplacing the creoles who usually held the old corregidore positions before The countrywas extremely over regulated and taxed For example a ranchero needed a permit toto slaughter a cow for his own consumption The race class system remainedentrenched depite the egalitarianism of the Enlightenment and the countries wealthremain concentrated in the white population Despite the restrictions on administrative positions many creoles prospered during thisperiod in business The creole Count Regla was the wealthest man in Spain from hissilver mines There were many other creoles who made fortunes in silver mining suchas Count Bassoco and Count Valenciana these Creoles were awarding titles by theirdonations to the Crown Creole ranchers and merchants also made fortunes theSanchez Navarro family ranch was the size of Portugal Resentment toward the privileges toward the peninsulares and their Old Worldcondescensiongrew and the creoles thought of themselves more and more as americanos TheBourbon reforms brought no social reforms but the ideas of the Enlightenment andrevolutionary France and America could not be stopped from entering New Spain KingCharles III died a year before the French Revolution and was succeeded by a sonlacking in wisdom

Mexican Colonial Coins

The first coins were minted in New Spain in 1536 The pillar in the early coinsrepresents the pillars of Hercules many coins have Plus Ultra Latin for furtherbeyond the national motto for Spain By the 18th century New Spain produced asmuch silver as the rest of the world The word doubloon (from Spanish dobl n meaning double) meaning a double-sidedtoken coin often refers to a seven-gram (0225 troy ounce) gold coin minted in SpainMexico Peru or Nueva Granada

The Spanish dollar (also known as the piece of eight the real de a ocho or the eightreal coin) is a silver coin worth eight reales that was minted in the Spanish Empireafter a Spanish currency reform in 1497It was legal tender in the United States untilan Act of the United States Congress discontinued the practice in 1857 Throughwidespread use in Europe the Americas and the Far East it became the first worldcurrency by the late 18th century Many existing currencies such as the Canadiandollar United States dollar and the Chinese yuan as well as currencies in Latin Americaand the Philippine peso were initially based on the Spanish dollar and other 8 realescoins

The Pillar type coins were produced in Mexico from 1536 to 1572

The shield type were produced from 1572 to 1734

The Waves and pillar type were produced from 1651 to 1773

The Milled pillar type was produced from 1731 to 1772

The milled pillar bust types were produced from 1771 to 1821 you can see the Bourbon fleur-de-lis

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Unlike in America where there was a broad groundswell at indignation at Englishabuses and taxation without representation only a few conspired for independence inNew Spain There were some military officers kept out of the highest ranks by virtueof being born in New Spain rather than the motherland Merchants and civil servantsexposed to ideas of the Enlightenment and the American and French revolutions Themost radical were the parish priests who saw the suffering of their Indian parishionersfirsthand Most Creoles wished to change the system so that they could have equalitywith the peninsulares but not equality for all The lower classes the Indians andmixed castes had nothing much to lose their lot was so hard They did rebel butthese rebellions were not organized enough to spread far

The Mexican Warsfor IndependenceThis perceptivehistory paints

Mexicos 1810ndash1821struggle for

independence

Charles IV Despite a lack of fervor for radical change as in France and America events in Europecaused it to be a necessity Unlike the wise Charles III his son Charles IV ( 1788 -1808 ) exploited the wealth of the colonies The most ruinous decision was to take thecharitable funds of the church to help pay for European wars These church fundswere sources of credit for Creoles The church had to call in their mortgagesdestroying many Creoles financially Uprisings against Charles IV in Spain forced himabdicate in favor of his son in 1808

It all begtan with a shout with Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla calling on the people of New Spain to fight for their independence There was more turmoil in Spain when Napoleon forced the Spanish Bourbons intoexile and place his brother Joseph on the Spanish throne in 1808 Because Spain wasvirtually cut off from its colonies during the Peninsular War of 1808 1814 LatinAmerica was in these years ruled by independent juntas Without a true Spanishmonarchy many creoles thought they should rule themselves The peninsularesthought otherwise The Inquisition was used to spy against and try those who agitatedfor reform By 1810 many secret societies were formed by creoles to fight forindependence

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Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla

One of the first to call for independence was priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla inGuanajuato He became a bishop in 1778 and was investigated by the Inquisition in1800 for questioning the celibacy of priests ( he had a mistress ) reading proscribedbooks doubting the veracity of the virgin birth and the infallibility of the pope andconsidered the king a tyrant However none of these charges could be proved and hewas released However he lost his position as a rector at the collage of San Nicolas inMorelia

Ignacio Allende He became the priest in the city of Dolores in 1803 A few years later he met therevolutionary Ignacio Allende a captain of the cavalry Allende introduced him to hisrevolutionary coterie and planned an uprising for December 8 1810 However the plotwas discovered and they decided to strike for independence at once Hidalgo rang thechurch bells and summoned his parishioners and delivered his famous grito ( cry ) deDolores on September 16 1810 Until he delivered his speech he was a minor figurein the revolutionary movement In response to his call Viva Guadalupe ( after theVirgin of Guadalupe who became an independence symbol her humble clothescontrasting with the richly decorate virgin of the secular church ) The crowd shoutedDeath to the peninsulares The initial response was enthusiastic With Hidalgo at their head they marched forSan Miguel gathering more recruits along the way They took San Migual withouttrouble and the local militia joined the rebels They started to pillage and Hidalgocould not control them Next they took Celya and then marched on Guanajuato Therethe peninsulares gathered in a makeshift fortress and decided to wait for aid fromMexico City

Alhondiga de Granaditas

It never came and over 500 peninsulares were killed holding out in the Alhondiga deGranaditas (public granary) and 2000 rebels were killed Hidalgo and Allende feltstrong enough at this time to split their forces Within a month they had taken theimportant silver mining town of Zacatecas San Luis Potosi and Valladolid By lateOctober the army had about 80000 marching on Mexico City

Site of the battle of Monte de las Cruces The professional army was defeated by sheer numbers at Monte de las Cruces Thearmy retreated into Mexico City An immediate attack on Mexico City might have takenthe city and brought independence then However Hidalgo had taken heavy lossesand was short of ammunition He was also hesitant to let the mod lose on MexicoCity Over Allendes objection he decided to retreat into toward Guadalajara and theSpanish forces under General Felix Calleja began to regroup The rebels tookGuadalajara

Battle of Puente de Calderon The Spanish army engaged them at Puente de Calderon In the middle of the battle aSpanish cannon shot hit a rebel ammunition wagon and the resulting explosion causeda panic in the rebel army and thousands of rebels broke rank and ran turning into arout Hidalgo and Allende took what was left of their forces and retreated northwardThey were betrayed and captured in the Texas territory and executed for treason byfiring squad on July 31 1811 Their decapitated heads hung of the walls where theSpaniards were slaughtered at Alhondiga de Granaditas for 10 years as a warning

Jose Maria Morelos y Pavon

Jose Maria Morelos y Pavon The popularity of the Independence movement waned after this The movement wascontinued under the mestizo priest Jose Maria Morelos y Pavon who had beenrecruited by Hildago Morelos organized his soldiers into small bands that carried outguerrilla warfare By 1813 they won enough territory to encircle the capital

Congress of Chilpancingo

Morelos then held a congress in Chilpancingo to discuss the plans for the nation oncethe Spanish were driven out They issued a Declaration of Independence thoseopposed to it were guilty of treason In their constitution that declared that suffrageshould be universal and that slavery and the caste system should be abolishedGovernment monopolies should also be done away with and replaced with a 5income tax Catholicism would remain the official religion of the state

viceroy Apodaca Meanwhile the Spanish army gathered strength and broke the encirclement retakingmany towns Gradually the rebel army dwindled and in 1815 Morelos was capturedand executed With his execution the Independence movement reached its lowest pointFor the next 5 years the movement was little more than guerrilla fighting by anumber of independent bands without coordination After awhile only two major bandsremained one led by Guadalupe Victoria with about 2000 troops around Puebla andVicente Guerrero with about 1000 around Oaxaca By 1819 the Spanish viceroy JuanRuiz de Apodaca was able to report to king Ferdinand that the situation was undercontrol He offered a pardon for all who would lay down their arms

King Ferdinand VII

Army revolt in Spain Meanwhile King Ferdinand had been gathering a powerful fighting force to quell themore serious Independence movements in South America At C diz Spain inJanuary 1820 troops who had assembled for an expedition to America were angryover infrequent pay bad food and poor quarters and mutinied under the leadership ofColonel Rafael del Riego y Nu ez Colonel Rafael Riego declared himself in revolt and thousands of troops followed The Spanish troops demanded that the king shouldabide by the liberal Spanish Constitution of 1812 which affirmed the sovereignty of thepeople free speech and curbed the power of the church If this was not done therewould be a military coup The king a virtual prioner of the army at this point yieldedto their demands Ironically the Creoles found this change too liberal and began to supportIndependence and secretly meet with the former colonel Agustin de Iturbide to betheir leader to insur a more conservative government Iturbide had fought againstthe rebels for nearly a decade He resigned from the royal army after being accusedof corruption The Creoles convinced the viceroy to reinstate him in the army

Colonel Iturbide

Plan de Iguala In 1820 viceroy Apodaca placed colonel Iturbide in charge of 2500 men to fightGuerrero Iturbide marched his force toward those of Guerrero and instead offighting him asked for a meeting and peace if he could dictate the terms Guerreroagreed and on Feb 24 they issued the Plan de Iguala the major points of which werethat independent Mexico would be a constitutional monarchy led by King Ferdinandor another European prince The Catholic Church would remain the only officialchurch in the country Creoles and peninsularies would have equal rights A new armywould be created the Army of the Three Guarantees to enforce the plan This was a much more conservative plan than that of Morelos The revolution of

Hidalgo and Morelos never gathered support from the conservative upper classes ofNew Spain this plan could and military units and common people began to defect tothe Army of the Three Guarantees Priests spoke in support of it from the pulpit Even many Spanish in Mexico supported the plan since they saw a future forthemselves in Mexico unlike the earlier more radical plans that demanded death orexile of the peninsulares After many cities fell to the Army of the Three Guaranteesviceroy Apodaca resigned

Indepence Celebration in Mexico City

Independence The Crown was not ready to give up New Spain and appointed a new viceroy Juan deODonoju the last viceroy of New Spain ODonoju became convinced that Spain couldnot hold on to Mexico and accepted the Plan de Iguala and signed a treaty atCordoba One more proviso was added by Iturbide if no European leader wasavailable to become the emperor of Mexico a Mexican congress would chose anemperor this was to become an important point On September 27 1821 Iturbidemarched into the capital with Vicente Guerrero and Guadalupe Victoria and the armyAfter so many years of fighting and over 300 years of Spanish rule Mexico wasindependent at last

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Agustiacuten de Iturbide

As provided by the Plan de Iguala General Agustiacuten de Iturbide a Mexican-born criollo (Creole ) who originally fought for the pro-Spanish royalists but switched his allegianceto the insurgents in the final phases of the war named a provisional Junta to rule thecountry which in turned named him as its presiding officer The Congress was stillindependent and some members of it wanted to form a republic and decreed that nomember of the military could hold political office in order to forestall Iturbide s attemptat becoming monarch Iturbide knew he had to move quickly if he wanted to seizesupreme power After the declaration of independence on September 27 1821 it wasthe intention of Congress to establish a commonwealth whereby the king of SpainFerdinand VII would also be Emperor of Mexico but in which both countries were to begoverned by separate laws and with their own legislative offices However as Spain waseyeing to retake Mexico it did not accept the offer

Coin of Emperor Agustin I

On May 18 1821 Iturbide had his own troops the regiment of Celaya stage ademonstration on his behalf They fired muskets and firing rockets in the air theshouted Viva Agustin I Emperor of Mexico and marched onto Iturbides home with amob which had followed them There they demanded their general declare himselfemperor at once Iturbide feigned reluctance then accepted The following morningIturbide appeared at Congress with many of his followers which intimidated Congressinto naming him the constitutional emperor of Mexico In June Congress declared theposition to be hereditary The heir apparent was Senor Don August Iturbides eldestson and his other brothers and sisters were made princesses and princes Courtetiquette was issued outraging republican factions who found it undignified to be forcedto kiss the emperors hand on bended knee

On July 21 1822 Iturbide was crowned emperor as Agustin I Iturbide was nowemperor of a huge empire from California in the north to Panama The old CaptaincyGeneral of Guatemala was also in the empire which included Costa Rica NicaraguaHonduras El Salvador Guatemala and the Mexican state of Chiapas

President Madison was initially eager to extend diplomatic recognition to Mexico hopingto promote free republican governments When Iturbide was declared emperorMadison felt this empire couldnt last long but recognized the Empire of Mexico inDecember 22 1822

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The economy of the Empire

The empire was on very shaky foundations The war for independence had causedmuch damage to Mexico especially the important silver mines dropping from$26000000 minted in 1809 to only $6000000 being minted in 1821 Iturbide and hissupporters thought replacing the peninsulares who ended up with most of the capitalduring the colonial days would rectify the ills of the economy They underestimated theamount of debt incurred during the war of independence around 75000000 pesos andhow it would strangle the economy The extravagant regime expenses far exceeded itsrevenue and could only get loans at high rates The government forced loans from thechurch and confiscated money from citizens

More paper currency was printed with the consequent inflation In order to get theSpanish to agree to leave Mexico Iturbide agreed to let the Spaniards who nearly allleft to take the value of their land holding in hard currency which seriously depletedthe currency reserves As many as 20 of adult males were unemployed Much of therevenue that was raised went to Iturbides salary and his military cronies almostnothing was invested in restarting the economy

Vera cruz with the fortress of San Juan de Uluacutea

The economy began to stagnate and there were increasing criticism against the regimeSome members of Congress conspired against the emperor but they were betrayedand arrested Despite this there were more and more protests against an imperial formof government for Mexico by members of Congress On October 31 Iturbide dissolvedCongress in the face of heated criticism

Santa Anna

The self proclaimed leader of the antimonarchists was the commander of Vera CruzAntonio Lopes de Santa Anna Santa Anna was sent to Vera Cruz to drive out the last

remaining Spanish troops in Mexico in the harbor fortress of San Juan de Ulloa TheSpanish did not leave the fortress till 1825 On Dec 1 1822 Santa Anna proclaimed arepublic in Vera Cruz Soon the old revolutionaries Vicenta Guerrero Guadalupe Victoriaand Nicolas Bravo had joined the movement

Iturbide appointed Jose Antonio Echaverri in charge of the imperial force to attack SantaAnna Ironically Echaverri proved as loyal to Iturbida as Iturbide had been to theSpanish viceroy Echaverri joined Santa Annas forces On February 1 1823 SantaAnna and the other members of his movement announced the Plan de Casa MataThekey points of the plan were that Mexico would become a republic and Catholicism wasto be the sole religion of Mexico Iturbide would not be recognized as emperor Realizing he no longer had support Iturbide abdicated his throne in February 1823 andleft first to Italy and then went to London

In 1824 he heard rumors that the restored Spanish king Ferdinand VII was about toundertake a reconquest of Mexico Iturbide offered his services to the Mexican republicto fight the Spanish but the national congress mindful of the lessons of Napoleonsreturn refused this offer and passed a law that he would be guilty of treason andexecuted if he returned

However Iturbide unfortunately did not wait for a reply from Mexico and departedEngland on May11 1824 with his family and retainers He landed at Tampico and wasrecognized by the military commander there Gen Garza who pretending friendshipbut betrayed him The Tamaulipas legislature met and decided it must enforce the orderset by the national congress and he was executed by a firing squad The sentence wascarried outb at Padilla July 19th 1824 less than a week from the time of his landingon the coast and before an appeal could be made to the general Government at Mexico Before his execution he declared Mexicans Even in this act of my death Irecommend to you to love our fatherland and observe our holy religionI die for comingto assist you and I die happy because I die with you The empress Madame Huartede Iturbide died in Philadelphia in 1861

War forIndependence

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The Early Republic 1823 - 1833

The Early Mexican Republic

The new Constitution President Guadalupe Victoria 1824 -29 President Vicente Guerrero 1829

The Spanish Invasion of Mexico 1829 President Bustamante 1830 - 32

The new Constitution

After the collapse of the empire Mexico was ruled by three military men GuadalupeVictoria Nicolas Bravo and Pedro Negrete all military men Elections were held tochose congressmen for the new constitutional congress After the election the newcongress met on November 27 1823 to draw up a constitution Soon two factionsemerged as to whether Mexico should be federalist or centralist The federalist weremore liberal and the centralists more conservative and they were to tranfer power fromeach other in a bloody manner in the early republic period in Mexico

The centralist found support among the hacendados the military and the clergy Thefederalist were supported by liberal Creoles ( crillos ) and metizos who drew inspirationfrom the French and American revolution and the liberal Spanish constitution of 1812 The centralists argued that the conditions in America were too different from those ofMexico to be used There was no history of the democratic process and exchangepolitical ideas that happened in the north One spokesman said Mexico had buckledfor 300 years under the weight of an absolute monarchwe are like children barely outof diapers However the long history of imperial rule and the recent disastrousMexican empire won the federalist faction when the Constitution of 1824 was draw upand the Estados Unidos Mexicanos was organized as a federal republic of 19 states andfour territories The Central American countries had declared their own independence in1823

There were three branches of government as in the United States to balance power executive legislative and judicial The legislature was to be bicameral with the upperhouse as the Senate and the lower house as the Chamber of Deputies Each state wasrepresented by 2 senators and one deputy for every 80000 residents The presidentand vice president were to be elected by the state legislatures for a 4 year term TheCatholic church regained its monopoly on the spiritual life of Mexicans The presidentcould become a dictator in times of emergencies The clergy and military were grantedthe old Spanish exemption of fueros from civil trialsThere was to be a free press andfree speech Indian tribute was abolished During this period the factions attachedthemselves to Masonic lodges where they could meet in secret The conservatives metat Scottish Rite lodges and Liberals meet at York Rite lodges

President Guadalupe Victoria 1824 -29

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Guadalupe Victoria

The first president ( 1824 - 29 )chosen was Guadalupe Victoria ( real name Jos MiguelRam n Adaucto Fern ndez y F lix )and Nicolas Bravo as vice president GuadalupeVictoria ( 1786 - 1843 ) was a former rebel leader some report him as honest andunassuming and willing to meet with the public brave in battle but no an inspiring ortalented administrator As Iturbide did he spent more on the military than revenuescould sustain A local military strongman emerges during these times the caudilloOver 50000 men were kept under arms The government sought to support itselfthrough import duties taxes and monopolies These were insufficient to pay the hugedebt the republic inherited

These economic troubles and growing factional disputes led to an armed revolt againstthe president in 1827 led by vice president Bravo who drew upon the conservatives ofthe Scottish Rite ( he was the Grand Master ) lodges for support The York Rite masons who controlled the army gathered around the president and the revolt was suppressedby General Santa Anna Bravo was exiled to Ecuador

In foreign relations the Victoria administration did well Many foreign countries ( exceptSpain ) recognized Mexico including the Unites States and the Sabine river was acceptedas the eastern boundary of the US - Mexican border

President Vicente Guerrero 1829

The new presidential elections were held in September of 1828 The liberal candidatewas Vicente Guerrero another rebel hero and the conservative candidate was ManuelGomes Pedraza who had served in Victorias cabinet as secretary of war The electionsresults showed Pedraza as the winner The liberals charged that they had lost due toarmy intimidation of the legislators The liberal decided to revolt and chose Santa Annaas their leader After some fighting the president elect declined the position andGuerrero became president and Santa Anna was given control of the army

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Guerrero was a much more active president than Victoria He foreshadowed futurepopulists moments by inviting the poor to his birthday party abolishing slavery andother reforms to help the lower classes Slaves were few in number by this time buthis act increased his support among mulattos All remaining Spaniards were to beexpelled from Mexico Spanish imports were seen as a threat to the economy and thepoor cotton farmers

The Spanish Invasion of Mexico 1829

Spain which had never recognized Mexicos independence choose this time to invadeits most important former colony King Ferdinand VII sent an expedition of 3000 troopsdeparted from Havana in July 1829 under the command of General Isidro Barradas Theexpedition included many of the Spaniards exiled in 1827 who wanted to return to thecountry The exiles had convinced Barradas that Mexico was eager to return to SpanishsovereigntyThey landed near Tampico which had been abandoned Guerrero placedSanta Anna in charge of repulsing the invasion After an initial attack which failed SantaAnna settled in for a siege As yellow fever and lack of supplies took its toll and theSpaniards did not receive the support they expected from within Mexico the Spanishgeneral surrendered The Spanish were allowed to go home and the invasion touched offreprisals against the few reaming Spaniards mainly middle class merchants who fledthe country With this victory and that off driving out the emperor Santa Anna becameextremely popular

Guerreros administration did not long outlast the Spanish invasion From August 1829to December he ruled by emergency decree the most important of which was calling upof the reserves even after the repulse of the Spanish Reserves in Jalapa called for areduction of the emergency powers and asked vice president Bustamante and SantaAnna to lead them Bustamante agreed who portrayed himself as a defender of theconstitution Guerrero set off with a force to attack them but the capital was takenover by rebel supporters after he left and he retired to his farm in Tixtla

Guerrero was undone by the fear of a president with dictatorial powers after theemergency had passed and the fear of the upper classes of increased power of the lowerclasses leading to anarchy The treasury by this time was also bankrupt These factorsled the Senate to declare Guerrero morally incapable to rule and the minister of warordered all officers to agree to the Plan of Jalapa of the conservative faction Guerrerosold supports were removed from office in many places and on the state level This planbackfired as this was the kind of act federalism was supposed to prevent and causedresentment of the state officials to the coup Some of the states such as Michoacanraised troops to fight the coup and Guerrero returned to fight However Bustamantewith army support was able to defeat the forces of GuerreroThis marked a return topower of the conservatives

President Bustamante 1830 - 32

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Bustamante cut back on the size of the army and renegotiated foreign loans but hewas no better able to revive the economy than Guerrero He also undertook manyrepressive acts against the liberals such as curtailing the freedom of the press usingsecret police and bullying the congress into compliance Corruption was rampant Butthe incident which caused the greatest public outcry was the execution of Guerrero Thepublic was roused against Bustamante and Santa Anna took advantage of the situationto become the savior of Mexico again Bustamante Santa Anna and G mez Pedrazasigned the conventions of Zavaleta (December 21-23) by which G mez Pedraza was toassume the presidency and hold new elections Bustamante was to go into exile whichhe did in 1833Santa Anna gathered his forces and overthrew Bustamante and waselected president in the 1833 election

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1833 Election Reforms of Valentin Gomez Farias Santa Anna becomes Centralist Changes of Santa Anna

Revolt of Texas Land Grants to Americans Outlaws Settlers discontent with Mexico Mexican Reaction Fighting Begins GonzalesCapture of Bexar Battle of the Alamo Goliad Houston retreats San Jacinto

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1833 Election

Santa Anna ( full name Antonio de Padua Mariacutea Severino Loacutepez de Santa Anna y Peacuterezde Lebroacuten ) won the election of 1833 as a liberal with the largest majority in historyThe vice presidency went to Valentin Gomez Farias a liberal politician of intellectualdistinction Santa Anna chased after the presidency for at least a decade but once hehad it he soon wearied of it left the day to day running of the country to his vicepresident while he retired to his estate of Manga de Clavo in Vera Cruz He wasPresident of Mexico on eleven non-consecutive ( 1833 multiple times 1834 18351839 1841 - 1842 1843 - 1844 and 1847 ) occasions over a period of 22 years

Santa Anna of Mexico Drawing on archives inMexico Spain Britainand Texas as well aspublished sourcesFowler supplies a

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Valentin Gomez Farias

Reforms of Valentin Gomez Farias

Farias began with two major reforms that of the church and that of the army Tocurb the undue influence of the army he reduced its size and abolished military fueros The Church was told it should limit its sermons to spiritual matters Education was tobe taken out of the hands of the church The University of Mexico was closed downbecause its faculty was made up entirely of priests The mandatory payments of titheswere made illegal The total wealth of the church was estimated at 180 million pesosNuns and priests were permitted to foreswear their vows

Santa Anna becomes Centralist The Church Army and other conservative groups banded together against thesereforms They appealed to Santa Anna who agreed to led the movement against his vicepresident and rescinded all of Farias reforms and dismissed him from office Hedeclared that Mexico was not ready for democracy and set about to build a caudilloiststate ( It is usually translated into English as leader or chief or more pejorativelywarlord dictator or strongman Caudillo was the term used to refer to charismaticpopulist leaders among the people ) In order to secure power Santa Anna cast awayhis former liberal ways and became a conservative centralist

Changes of Santa Anna

Gran Teatro de Santa Anna The old constitution of 1824 was done away with and a new one the constitution of1836 was enacted The Siete Leyes (or Seven Laws) were enacted in which only thosewith a certain level of income could vote or hold office The congress was disbandedThe old federalists states were redrawn into larger military districts governed bypolitical bosses loyal to Santa Anna State militias were disbanded The presidentialterm was extended from four years to eight Santa Anna was moving to concentratepower The presidency changed hands 36 times between 1833 and 1855 The armygrew larger at this time to a standing army of 90000 and even though the countrysuffered under excessive taxation the treasury was still bankrupt Corruption waswidespread Santa Anna became a millionaire His land holdings by 1845 totaled483000 acres He threw gala balls and had opera houses and theaters built such as theGran Teatro de Santa Anna His official title was his most serene highness and healso styled himself the Napoleon of the West His busts and statues were to be foundthroughout Mexico Several states went into open rebellion after these acts of Santa Anna Coahuila yTejas San Luis Potosiacute Quereacutetaro Durango Guanajuato Michoacaacuten Yucataacuten JaliscoNuevo Leoacuten Tamaulipas and Zacatecas Several of these states formed their owngovernments the Republic of the Rio Grande the Republic of Yucatan and the Republicof TexasThe Zacatecan militia the largest and best supplied of the Mexican states led

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by Francisco Garcia was well armed with 753 caliber British Brown Bess muskets andBaker 61 rifles After two hours of combat on 12 May 1835 the Santa Annas Army ofOperations defeated the Zacatecan militia and took almost 3000 prisoners Santa Annaallowed his army to ransack Zacatecas for forty-eight hours After defeating Zacatecashe planned to move on to Coahuila y Tejas

Revolt of Texas October 2 1835 to April 21 1836

Throughout the colonial period the vast territory of Texas ( 268584 square miles ) wasone of the northern colonial provinces of New Spain The first Europeans in the areathe Franciscan missionaries and early Spanish settlers in the early to mid 1700s facedattacks by Apaches Comanches and other Indian tribes The territory was far fromMexico City a few settlers arrived There were small towns in the interior San AntonioNacogdoches Goliad and others which dated from the time of the early Spanishcolonization or which had grown around the Missions established by the Franciscanfriars for the conversion and civilization of the Indians

Stephen Austin

Land Grants to Americans

Mexican Land Grant

At the beginning of the 1800s there were only 7000 settlers Spain wished to colonizethe territory and in 1821 granted Moses Austin permission to settle as an empresarioswith around 300 Catholic families in Texas In 1820 he set out for Texas He was at first coldly received by Governor Martinez ofSan Antonio but by the aid of the Baron de Bastrop a Prussian officer who had servedunder Frederick the Great and was then in the service of Mexico he obtained afavorable hearing on his proposition to settle a colony of emigrants from the UnitedStates in Texas Austins petition was forwarded to the central government and hereturned home On the route he was robbed and stripped by his fellow-travelers andafter great exposure and privation subsisting for twelve days on acorns and pecan nutshe reached the cabin of a settler near the Sabine River He reached home in safety andcommenced his preparations for removal to Texas but his exposure and privations hadweakened him and he died from the effects of a cold in his fifty-seventh year leavinghis dying injunction to his son Stephen to carry out his project Mexico became independent and Moses son Steven Austin was granted the same rightand after advertising for settlers in New Orleans led 300 ( later called the old 300)families to settle a grant on the Brazos river This was followed by a large influx ofAmericans entered Texas attracted by the cheap land ( ten cents an acre ) comparedwith $125 an acre in the US Colonists were also given a 7 year exemption from taxes Life in the new land was rough While at work they kept guard against the Indians whoroved about stealing the stock at times making a night attack upon a cabin ormurdering and scalping some solitary herdsman or traveler The Mexicans did nothingto protect or govern the colony The settlers created a code of laws for theadministration of justice and the settlement of civil disputes The land titles were dulyrecorded and a local militia was organized Austin was the supreme authority thejudge and commandant In 1827 New Orleans was abuzz with talk of the leagues ofland that Mexico was giving to those who would colonize in Texas By 1827 there were12000 Americans living in Texas By 1835 there were 30000 Americans and onlyaround 8000 Mexicans

Outlaws

Many criminals from Mexico and the United Staes fleed to eastern Texas to escapejustice Fraudulent debtors who had chalked on their shutters the cabalistic letters GT T Gone to Texas The outlaws of the neutral ground organized themselves intobands and fought over land titles and for political domination and in 1826 commenced

a war against the Mexican authorities under the leadership of Hayden Edwards anempresario whose contract had been annulled on account of the conflicts which hadarisen between the claims of his colonists and the original Mexican inhabitants andsquatters This emeute called The Fredonian War was easily suppressed Austin andhis colonists taking part with the Mexican authorities

Settlers discontent with Mexico

The Mexican government believed the Americans could be integrated into Mexicansociety but the societies were too different and tensions increased Most Americansremained Protestant even though they could go through the motions of being Catholicif questioned by Mexican officials and few bothered to learn Spanish One of the major grievances against Mexico by the Texans was that it was anappendage to the state of Coahuila There were eventually given 3 representatives inthe state legislature ( out of 12 ) buy were easily outvoted by Coahuilans on importantmatters Appellate courts were located in faraway Saltillo The Americans wantedTexas to be a separate state from Coahuila but not independent from Mexico and tohave its own capital They believed a closer location for the capital would help to stemcorruption and facilitate other matters of government Steven Austin traveled to Mexico City with a petition asking for separate statehoodfrom Coahuila this was not approved and he wrote an angry letter to a friend whichseemed to suggest Texas should succeed from Mexico The letter was intercepted andhe spent 18 months in prison The Americans were also becoming increasingly disillusioned with the Mexicangovernment Many of the Mexican soldiers garrisoned in Texas were convicted criminalswho were given the choice of prison or serving in the army in Texas Mexico did notprotect Freedom of Religion instead requiring colonists to pledge their acceptance ofRoman Catholicism Mexican Law required a tithe paid to the Catholic Church TheAmerican settlers could not grow what crops they wished but as other citizens ofMexico were required to do grow which crops Mexican officials dictated which were tobe redistributed in Mexico Growing cotton was lucrative at the time but most settlerswere not permitted to grow it and those that did were sometimes imprisoned

Mexican Reaction

The Mexican government had reasons to be anxious about the growing Americanpopulation in Texas President Adams and President Jackson had offered to buy theterritory There were a number of filibustering expeditions from the United States intoTexas to set up an independent the most famous of which was that of John Long ofTennessee who invaded Texas with a private army and seized Nacogdoches anddeclared himself president of the Republic of Texas Longs army was later defeated bythe Mexicans but it event drew more support in the US for acquiring Texas The check immigration into Texas from America which was mostly by Americans fromthe south with slaves president Guerrero enacted the emancipation proclamation in1829 Most Americans converted their slaves into indentured servants for life to getaround this By 1836 there were approximately 5000 slaves in Texas In 1830 all future immigration from America was forbidden by president AnastasioBustamente although thousands continued to pour in through the porous borders Bustamente also began preparations by making Texas a penal colony by sending athousand soldiers mostly criminals and convicts to stations in the country Santa Anna believed that the influx of American immigrants to Texas was part of a plotby the US to take over the region and the Mexican garrisons were strengthenedMexico increased custom duties on exports increasing the cost of trade with the US Mexican colonization of Texas was encouraged The final straw for Americans in Texas was Santa Annas annulment of the FederalConstitution of 1824 and feared they would lived under a tyrant with no representationat all Many Americans began to argue that they should separate from Mexico theywere also supported by many Mexican liberals The most active of these was Lorenzo deZavala leader of the Mexican Congress in 1823 The Texans choose independence andchose David Burnet as president and Zavala as vice president

Fighting Begins

Much of Mexico led by the states of Yucatan Zacatecas and Coahuila promptly rose inrevolt of Santa Annas actions Santa Anna spent two years suppressing the revoltsUnder the Liberal banner the Mexican state of Zacatecas revolted against Santa AnnaThe revolt was brutally crushed in May 1835 As a reward Santa Anna allowed hissoldiers two days of rape and pillage in the capital city of Zacatecas civilians weremassacred by the thousands Santa Anna also looted the rich Zacatecan silver mines atFresnillo He then ordered his brother-in law General Martin Perfecto de Cos to march into Texasand put an end to disturbances against the stateMost American settlers in Texas orTexicans were on the whole loyal to Mexico before and few were members of theindependence party But after the annulling of the Constitution of 1824 imprisonmentof Austin and the news of what had happened at Zacatecas a majority supported theindependence movement On September 20 General Cos landed at Copano with an advance force of about 300soldiers bound for Goliad San Antonio and San Felipe de Austin Austin was released in July having never been formally charged with sedition and wasin Texas by August Austin saw little choice but revolution A consultation was scheduledfor October to discuss possible formal plans to revolt and Austin sanctioned it

Gonzales

Colonel Domingo Ugartechea who was stationed in San Antonio ordered the Texians toreturn a cannon given to them by Mexico that was stationed in Gonzales The Texiansrefused Ugartechea sent Lieutenant Francisco Castantildeeda and 100 dragoons to retrieveit When he arrived at the rain-swollen banks of the Guadalupe River near Gonzalesthere were just eighteen Texians to oppose him Unable to cross Castantildeeda establisheda camp and the Texians buried the cannon and called for volunteers Two Texianmilitias answered the call Colonel John Henry Moore was elected head of the combinedrevolutionary militias and they dug up the cannon and mounted it on a pair ofcartwheels A Coushatta Native American entered Castantildeedarsquos camp and informed himthat the Texians had 140 men On October 1 1835 at 7 pm the Texians headed out slowly and quietly to attackCastantildeedarsquos dragoons At 3 am they reached the camp and gunfire was exchangedThere were no casualties except for a Texian who had bloodied his nose when he fell offhis horse during the skirmish The next morning negotiations were held and theTexians urged Castantildeeda to join them in their revolt Despite claiming sympathy for theTexian cause he was shocked by the invitation to mutiny and negotiations fell throughThe Texians created a banner with a crude drawing of the disputed cannon and thewords Come and take it written on it Since they had no cannon balls they filled itwith scrap metal and fired it at the dragoons They charged and fired their muskets andrifles but Castantildeeda decided not to engage them and led the dragoons back to SanAntonio Thus the war had begun

Capture of Bexar ( San Antonio )

General Martin Perfecto de Cos Next the Texans captured Bexar under the defence of General Cos When GeneralAustin gave his army of volunteers the boring task of waiting for General Cosrsquo army tostarve many of the volunteers simply left Throughout November 1835 the Texianarmy dwindled from 800 to 600 men and the officers began to bicker about strategyand why they were fighting against the Mexicans Several officers resigned includingJim Bowie who went to Gonzales The siege of Bexar which began on October 12

1835 would demonstrate how little leadership the Texan Army had Austin had beenappointed Commander of all the Texan forces but his talents were not well suited formilitary life The siege ended on December 11 with the capture of General Cos and his starvingarmy despite Austins leadership The Mexican prisoners were paroled and sent back toMexico after being made to promise not to fight againThe early victories of the Texans were greatly attributed to their effective hunting rifleswhich could fire at distant targets and with more accuracy than the smooth boremuskets of the Mexican infantry The remaining Texan army poorly led and with no collective motivation prepared toadvance towards Matamoros hoping to sack the town Although the MatamorosExpedition as it came to be known was but one of many schemes to bring the war toMexico nothing came of it On November 6 1835 the Tampico Expedition under JoseacuteAntonio Mexiacutea left New Orleans intending to capture the town from the Centralists Theexpedition failed These independent missions drained the Texan movement of suppliesand men bringing only disaster for months to come

Battle of the Alamo

Santa Anna decided to take the counter-offensive General Cos informed Santa Anna ofthe situation in Texas and the general proceeded to advance north with his Army ofOperations a force of about 6000 The army had gathered in San Luis Potosiacute and soonmarched across the deserts of Mexico during the worst winter recorded in that regionThe army suffered hundreds of casualties but it marched forward arriving in Texasmonths before it was expected Taking Bexar (San Antonio ) the political and militarycenter of Texas was Santa Annas initial objective The defenders inside the Alamo awaited reinforcement At dawn on the first of MarchCapt Albert Martin with 32 men (himself included) from Gonzales and DeWitts Colonypassed the lines of Santa Anna and entered the walls of the Alamo never more to leavethem These men chiefly husbands and fathers owning their own homes voluntarilyorganized and passed through the lines of an enemy four to six thousand strong to join150 of their countrymen and neighbors in a fortress doomed to destruction No furtherreinforcement arrived The Alamo was defended by about 183-189 men under the command of William BarretTravis and Jim Bowie Most of the Alamo defenders were white men of Spanishancestry Numerous sick and wounded from the siege of Bexar perhaps raising theTexan military total to around 250 as well as non-combatants were also reportedpresent afterwards The Battle of the Alamo ended on March 6 after a 13 day siege inwhich all Texan combatants were killed The alcalde of San Antonio reported cremationof 182 defenders bodies one defenders burial by a Mexican army relative was allowedSanta Annas army casualties have been estimated as about 600 - 1000 troopsmdashthequoted number of Mexican soldiers killed varies greatly The defense of the Alamoproved to be of no military consequence for the Texan cause but its martyrs were soonhailed as heroes The most important result during this time was the 1836 Conventionsigning of the Texas Declaration of Independence from Mexico on March 2 Soon Santa Anna divided his army and sent flying columns across Texas The objectivewas to force a decisive battle over the Texan Army now led by General Sam Houston

Goliad

General Joseacute Urrea marched into Texas from Matamoros making his way north followingthe coast of Texas thus preventing any foreign aid by sea and opening up anopportunity for the Mexican Navy to land much needed provisions Urreas forces wereengaged at the Battle of Agua Dulce on March 2 1836 which would soon lead to theGoliad Campaign General Urrea was never defeated in any engagement his forcesconducted in Texas

Joseacute Urrea

At Goliad Urreas flying column caught Colonel James Fannins force of about 300 menon the open prairie at a slight depression near Coleto Creek and made three charges ata heavy cost in Mexican casualties Overnight Urreas forces surrounded the Texansbrought up cannon and reinforcements and induced Fannins surrender under terms thenext day March 20 About 342 of the Texan troops captured during the GoliadCampaign were executed a week later on Palm Sunday March 27 1836 under SantaAnnas direct orders widely known as the Goliad Massacre

The impact of the Goliad Massacre was crucial Until this episode Santa Annasreputation had been that of a cunning and crafty man rather than a cruelonetogether with the fall of the Alamo branded both Santa Anna and theMexican people with a reputation for cruelty and aroused the fury of the people ofTexas the United States and even Great Britain and France thus considerablypromoting the success of the Texas Revolution

Houston retreats

Houston immediately understood that his small army was not prepared to fight SantaAnna out in the open The Mexican cavalry experienced and feared was something theTexans could not easily defeat Seeing that his only choice was to keep the armytogether enough to be able to fight on favorable grounds Houston ordered a retreattowards the US border and many settlers also fled in the same direction A scorchedearth policy was implemented denying much-needed food for the Mexican army Soonthe rains made the roads impassable and the cold season made the list of casualtiesgrow in both armies Santa Annas army always on the heels of Houston gave unrelenting chase The townof Gonzales could not be defended by the Revolutionaries so it was put to the torchThe same fate awaited Austins colony of San Felipe Despair grew among the ranks ofHoustons men and much animosity was aimed towards him All that impeded SantaAnnas advance were the swollen rivers which gave Houston a chance to rest and drillhis army Events moved at a quick pace after Santa Anna decided to divide his own flying column

and race quickly towards Galveston where members of the Provisional Government hadfled Santa Anna hoped to capture the Revolutionary leaders and put an end to thewar which had proven costly and prolonged Santa Anna as dictator of Mexico felt theneed to return to Mexico City as soon as possible Houston was informed of SantaAnnas unexpected move Numbering about 700 Santa Annas column marched eastfrom Harrisburg Texas Without Houstons consent and tired of running away theTexan army of 900 moved to meet the enemy Houston could do nothing but followAccounts of Houstons thinking during these moves is subject to speculation as Houstonheld no councils of war

Battle of San Jacinto

On April 20 both armies met at the San Jacinto River Separating them was a largesloping ground with tall grass which the Texans used as cover Santa Anna elated atfinally having the Texas Army in front of him waited for reinforcements which were ledby General Cos On that same day a skirmish was fought between the enemies mostlycavalry but nothing came of itTo the dismay of the Texans Cos arrived sooner than expected with 540 more troopsswelling Santa Annas army to over 1200 men Angered by the loss of opportunity andby Houstons indeciseveness the Texas Army demanded to make an attack About 330in the afternoon on April 21 after burning Vinces Bridge the Texans surged forwardcatching the Mexican army by surprise Hours before the attack Santa Anna hadordered his men to stand down noting that the Texans would not attack his superiorforce Also his army had been stretched to the limit of endurance by the ongoing forcedmarches His force was overwhelmed by Texians pushing into the Mexican camp An 18-minute-long battle ensued but soon the defenses crumbled and a massacre ensued Popular folk songs and legends hold that during the battle Santa Anna was busy withand was distracted by a comely mixed race indentured servant immortalized as TheYellow Rose of Texas Santa Annas entire force of men was killed or captured by Sam Houstons heavilyoutnumbered army of Texans only nine Texans died This decisive battle resulted inTexass independence from MexicoSanta Anna was captured when he could not cross the burned Vinces Bridge and hewas brought before Houston who had been wounded in the ankle Santa Anna agreedto end the campaign General Vicente Filisola noting the state of his tired and hungryarmy marched back to Mexico but not without protests from Urrea Only Santa Annahad been defeated not the Army of Operations and Urrea felt that the campaign shouldcontinue but Filisola disagreed

Treaty of Velasco

Santa Anna surrenders at San Jucinto

With Santa Anna a prisoner his captors forced him to sign the Treaties of Velasco ( onepublic one private ) on May 14 The public treaty was that he would not take up armesagainst the republic of Texas The private treaty was to recognize Texass independence The initial plan was to send him back to Mexico to help smooth relations between thetwo states His departure was delayed by a mob who wanted him dead Declaringhimself as the only person who could bring about peace Santa Anna was sent toWashington DC by the Texan government to meet President Jackson in order toguarantee independence of the new republic But unknown to Santa Anna the Mexicangovernment deposed him in absentia thus he no longer had any authority to representMexico

After some time in exile in the United States and after meeting with US presidentAndrew Jackson in 1837 he was allowed to return to Mexico aboard the USS Pioneer toretire to his magnificent hacienda in Veracruz called Manga de Clavo

When Santa Anna returned to Mexico the Mexican legislature declared the treaties nulland void since they were signed while the president was prisoner Mexico was toodisturbed by its own internal troubles to mount a serious invasion of Texas Texas became a republic after a long and bloody fight but it was never recognized assuch by Mexico The war continued as a standoffSanta Anna re-emerged as a hero during the Pastry War in 1838 He was re-electedPresident and soon after he ordered an expedition led by General Adrian Woll aFrench soldier of fortune into Texas occupying San Antonio but briefly There weresmall clashes between the two states for several years afterward The war with Texasdid not truly come to an end until the Mexican-American War of 1846

In 1838 Santa Anna discovered a chance to redeem himself from his Texan loss whenFrench forces landed in Veracruz Mexico

Republic of Yucataacuten and the Republic of Rio Grande

After Santa Anna annuled the Federalist constitution of 1824 they were many revoltsagainst the centralisation of power two actually formed republic besides Texas theYucatan and the Mexican states of Coahuila Nuevo Leoacuten and Tamaulipas formed theRepublic of Rio Grande

Republic of Yucataacuten and the Mayan Caste War 1847 - 1849

Flag of the Republic of Yucataacuten

In 1840 the local Yucatan Congress approved a declaration of independence SantaAnna refused to recognize Yucataacutens independence and he barred Yucataacuten ships andcommerce in Mexico and ordered Yucataacutens ports blockaded He sent an army to invadeYucataacuten in 1843 The Yucatecans defeated the Mexican force but the loss of economicties to Mexico deeply hurt Yucataacuten commerce Yucatan became part of Mexico again in1843 the central government rescinded earlier concessions and in 1845 Yucataacuten againrenounced the Mexican government declaring independence effective 1 January 1846

Cult of the speaking Cross When the Mexican-American War broke out Yucataacuten declared its neutralityIn 1847 theso-called Caste War (Guerra de Castas) broke out a major revolt of the Maya peopleagainst the misrule of the Hispanic population in political and economic control WhenMexico was preoccupied with the war with America many Maya united under theMayan-Christian cult of the Speaking Cross to reclaim there land from the whites (dzul )This was a cult of a cross carved in a tree in the Yucatan that bore a resemblance tothe Maya tree of life La Ceiba The Mayans took over the peninsula and almost took thelast white stronghold of Merida when the Mayans abandoned the fight to plant By1855 the whites had retaken most of the Yucataacuten but some parts remained in controlof the cult of the Speaking Cross until the early 20th century

The government in Meacuterida appealed for foreign help in suppressing the revolt withGovernor Meacutendez taking the extraordinary step of sending identical letters to BritainSpain and the United States offering sovereignty over Yucataacuten to whatever nation firstprovided sufficient aid to quash the Maya revolt The proposal received serious attentionin Washington DC the Yucatecan ambassador was received by US President James KPolk and the matter was debated in the Congress ultimately however no action wastaken other than an invocation of the Monroe Doctrine to warn off any European powerfrom interfering in the peninsula

After the end of the Mexican-American War Governor Barbachano appealed to MexicanPresident Joseacute Joaquiacuten de Herrera for help in suppressing the revolt and in exchangeYucataacuten again recognized the central governments authority Yucataacuten was againreunited with Mexico on 17 August 1848

Republic of Rio Grande 1840

The Republic of Rio Grande flag

On January 17 1840 a constitutional convention was held at the Oreventildea Ranch nearLaredo Here it was decided that the Mexican states of Coahuila Nuevo Leoacuten andTamaulipas would withdraw themselves from Mexico and would form their own federalrepublic with Laredo as the capital After the loss the Battle of Morales the republicmoved its capital to Victoria Texas There was support from the new Republic of Texas

for the Republic of the rio Grande and 140 Texans joined the republics army InNovember representatives of Generals Canales and Arista met to discuss the warDuring this meeting the Mexican government offered General Canales the position ofbrigadier general in the Mexican army in exchange for his abandoning the cause of theRepublic of the Rio Grande General Canales accepted the offer on November 6 Uponthis event the Republic of the Rio Grande failed

The Pastry War

In 1838 France demanded compensation for a French pastry chef whose stock waseaten by Mexican troops in 1828 For years Mexico failed to resolve the matter andFrance demanded 600000 pesos in payment and when payment Mexico had alsodefaulted on millions of dollars worth of loans from France Diplomat Baron Deffaudisgave Mexico an ultimatum to pay or the French would demand satisfaction When thepayment was not forthcoming from president Anastasio Bustamante (1780ndash1853) theking sent a fleet under Rear Admiral Charles Baudin to declare a blockade of all Mexicanports from Yucataacuten to the Rio Grande to bombard the Mexican fortress of San Juan deUluacutea and to seize the port of Veracruz Virtually the entire Mexican Navy was capturedat Veracruz by December 1838 Mexico declared war on Francewas not receivedblockaded Vera Cruz with 26 ships and 4000 troops Mexico agreed to pay but Franceupped the ante to 800000 pesosfor the cost of the blockading fleet This was too muchfor the Mexicans who sent a few thousand troops to the old fortress of San Juan deUlua Thus began the Pastry War Santa Anna arrived on December 4 The Frenchlanded 3000 troops and Santa Anna personally led the troops in the street fighting thatfollowed Santa Anna was wounded in the left leg and had his leg amputated below theknee The French were driven back to their ships and agreed to their earlier demand of600000 pesosSanta Anna was able to use his wound to re-enter Mexican politics as ahero

President Again

Soon after Santa Anna was once again asked to take control of the provisionalgovernment as Bustamantes presidency turned chaotic Santa Anna accepted andbecame president for the fifth time Santa Anna took over a nation with an emptytreasury The war with France had weakened Mexico and the people were discontentedAlso a rebel army led by Generals Jose Urrea and Joseacute Antonio Mexiacutea was marchingtowards the Capital at war against Santa Anna The rebellion was crushed at the Battleof Mazatlaacuten by an army commanded by the president himself

Santa Annas rule was even more dictatorial than his first administration Anti-Santanista newspapers were banned and dissidents jailed In 1842 a military expeditioninto Texas was renewed with no gain but to further persuade the Texans of the benefitsof American annexation

Exile and Death

His demands for ever greater taxes aroused ire and several Mexican states simplystopped dealing with the central government Yucataacuten and Laredo going so far as todeclare themselves independent republics With resentment ever growing against thepresident Santa Anna once again stepped down from power Fearing for his life SantaAnna tried to elude capture but in January 1845 he was apprehended by a group ofIndians near Xico Veracruz turned over to authorities and imprisoned His life wasspared but the dictator was exiled to Cuba

In 1846 the United States declared war on Mexico Santa Anna wrote to Mexico Citysaying he no longer had aspirations to the presidency but would eagerly use his militaryexperience to fight off the foreign invasion of Mexico as he had in the past PresidentValentiacuten Goacutemez Fariacuteas was desperate enough to accept the offer and allowed SantaAnna to return Meanwhile Santa Anna had secretly been dealing with representatives

of the United States pledging that if he were allowed back in Mexico through the USnaval blockades he would work to sell all contested territory to the United States at areasonable price Once back in Mexico at the head of an army Santa Anna reneged onboth of these agreements Santa Anna declared himself president again andunsuccessfully tried to fight off the United States invasion

In 1851 Santa Anna went into exile in Kingston Jamaica and two years later movedto Turbaco Colombia In April 1853 he was invited back by rebellious conservativeswith whom he succeeded in retaking the government This reign was no better than hisearlier ones He funneled government funds to his own pockets sold more territory tothe United States (see Gadsden Purchase) and declared himself dictator for life with thetitle Most Serene Highness The Ayutla Rebellion of 1854 once again removed SantaAnna from power

Despite his generous payoffs to the military for loyalty by 1855 even his conservativeallies had had enough of Santa Anna That year a group of liberals led by Benito Juaacuterezand Ignacio Comonfort overthrew Santa Anna and he fled back to Cuba As the extentof his corruption became known he was tried in absentia for treason and all his estatesconfiscated He then lived in exile in Cuba the United States Colombia and StThomas During his time in New York City he is credited as bringing the first shipmentsof chicle the base of chewing gum to the United States but he failed to profit fromthis since his plan was to use the chicle to replace rubber in carriage tires which wastried without success The American assigned to aid Santa Anna while he was in theUnited States Thomas Adams conducted experiments with the chicle and called itChiclets which helped found the chewing gum industry Santa Anna was a passionatefan of the sport of cockfighting He would invite breeders from all over the world formatches and is known to have spent tens of thousands of dollars on prize roosters

In 1874 he took advantage of a general amnesty and returned to Mexico Crippled andalmost blind from cataracts he was ignored by the Mexican government when theanniversary of the Battle of Churubusco occurred Santa Anna died in Mexico City twoyears later on June 21 1876 penniless and heartbroken

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Not so secret Negotiations Mexican President Overthrown Polk orders Zachary Taylor to the border

Taylor on the Rio Grande The Thornton Affair War is Declared

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Prelude to the Mexican American War

The Situation after the Independence of Texas

The United States recognized the independence of Texas in 1837 Many congressmenbelieved that annexing Texas too soon would led to war with Mexico The Americanpresident after Texas won its independence Andrew Jackson was not for immediateannexation Prudence said he seems to dictate that we should still stand aloofand maintain our present attitude if not till Mexico or one of the great foreign powersshall recognize the independence of the new Government at least until the lapse oftime or the course of events shall have proved beyond all dispute the ability of thatcountry to maintain their separate sovereignty and to uphold the Governmentconstituted by them

President Tyler The following president Van Buren also felt America was not ready to go to war withMexico over Texas The matter of Texas admission to the United States also becameembroiled in the slavery issue If Texas was admitted to the Union it would become aslave state and northern states opposed its annexation and the Whig party in the north

So Far from

God The USWar With

Mexico 1846-1848This well-

writtencomprehensive

history of the wartakes into

account thepolitical anddiplomatic

dimensions aswell as the

military

A GloriousDefeat Mexico

and Its War withthe United States

were nearly united in their opposition to the annexation of Texas It required a majorityof two-thirds of the Senate to annex a foreign territory in accordance with theprovisions of the Constitution and that as half of the Senators represented freeStates such a majority was at present unattainable and was proved when the measurefailed in June 1844 It was discovered by President Tylerwho was pro-annexation thatwhat could not be effected by treaty could as well be performed by a joint resolution ofthe two houses of Congress Such a resolution required only a bare majority in eachbranch No time was lost by Tyler in making the choice offered to him by the jointresolutions On the 3rd March a few hours before his term of office expired hedispatched a messenger to the American agent in Texas to propose the resolution ofannexation to the acceptance of the Texan Government On the 4th July Texasconsented to be annexed and the December 29 1845 it joined the Union

American manifest destiny But more support for annexing Texas and other territories was growing There was afear England would purchase California an under this mistaken belief that Britainactually had purchased California the American Commodore Thomas Catesby Jonesseized Monterey California in 1842 for a day before returning it took Mexican rule

President James Polk In 1844 James Polk won the presidency on a platform that included annexation Prior toPolks election president John Tyler introduced an annexation resolution to Congresswhich passed the House of Representatives in January 1845 and the Senate in the nextmonth Texas joined the Union on December 29 1845 As soon as the joint resolution annexing Texas passed the Unites States Congress theMexican minister to the US lodged a formal protest and asked for his passport TheMexican Senate broke relations with the United States on March 28 1845 and gaveHerrera authority to raise troops and prepare for war The new president PresidentPolk ordered army troops to the border and sent navy ships to the Mexican coast Notwishing to be labeled a war eagle he made one last effort at peace by sending JohnSlidell to try to negotiate with Mexican president Jose Joaquin Herrera

The Border Question

a survey of theMexican War

from a Mexicanperspective

This HistoryChannel specialhosted by Oscar

de la Hoyalooks at the war

from theperspective ofboth countriesand chronicles

the fighting fromits inception to itsconclusion withthe Treaty ofGuadalupe

Hidalgo

The matter of prime importance was the boundary dispute between western Texas andMexico Throughout Spanish and Mexican history the western border of the Texasterritory had been the Nueces River In 1836 the Congress of the Republic of Texasclaimed the Rio Grande as the western boundary They based this on the facts thatwhen Texas was under Mexican rule the Mexican government had allowed someAmericans settle in the territory between the Nueces and the Rio Grande and that whenSanta Anna agreed to withdraw his troops after his defeat and capture at San Juncintohe withdrew them across the Rio Grande as per the Treaties of Velasco However theMexican government never formally accepted the treaty The Americans also claimedthe right of self defense against Indian raids from Indians that were said to inhabit thedisputed area The Texans claimed the Rio Grande to its source which included parts of modern day New Mexico Oklahoma Kansas Wyoming and Colorado

President Jos Joaqu n de Herrera

Not so secret Negotiations Slidell also carried secret instructions to try to purchase California ( Mexican AltaCalifornia ) and the remainder of New Mexico (Nuevo M xico) $5000000 was offeredfor the New Mexico territory and $25000000 or more for California The Mexican presssoon found out these secret details and when it became common knowledge in Mexico itcaused an uproar Rebellion was threatened if President Herrera negotiated with theAmericans to sell Mexican soil

Military opponents of President Jos Joaqu n de Herrera supported by populistnewspapers considered Slidells presence in Mexico City an insult After a morenationalistic government under General Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga came to power thenew government publicly reaffirmed Mexicos claim to Texas Slidell convinced thatMexico should be chastised returned to the United States

Mexican President Overthrown

Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga

While the US was plotting to invade the Mexicans could not unite in the face thisdanger and continued their old patterns of conservative-liberal strife Herrera withmuch difficulty was able to assemble a force of 6000 men This was put under thecommand of the ultra-conservative General Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga and sent to thenorth to San Luis Potos to reinforce Mexican troops along the border Paredes got asfar as San Luis Potos but instead of marching north against the invaders in December14 1845 he rose in revolt of President Herrera Paredes was infuriated that Herrerawould even allow the American envoy into Mexico Paredes entered Mexico City onJanuary 2 1846 On the following day he was named president of Mexico by a junta ofnotables he had assembled from heads of governmental departments

Polk orders Zachary Taylor to the border

Zachary Taylors army in Corpus Christi

President Polk still needed a stirring casus bell for popular support for the war andwanted a show of force to help in the negotiations of Slidell to buy Califorina instead ofhaving to resort to arms He ordered General Zachary Taylor into the disputed area onAugust 30 with the seventh regiment of infantry and three companies of dragoons (Dragoon is the traditional name for a soldier trained to fight on foot but who transportshimself on horseback ) ans militia from Alabama MississippiLouisiana Tennessee andKentuckyabout 4000 in all He was told The assembling of a large Mexican army onthe borders of Texas and crossing the Rio Grande with a considerable force will beregarded by the Executive as an invasion of the United States and the commencementof hostilitiesIn case of war either declared or made manifest by hostile acts your mainobject will be the protection of Texas but the pursuit of this object will not necessarilyconfine your action within the territory of Texas Mexico having thus commencedhostilities you may in your discretion cross the Rio Grande disperse or capture theforces assembled to invade Texas defeat the junction of troops uniting for thatpurpose drive them from their positions on either side of the river and if deemedpracticable and expedient take and hold possession of Metamoras and other places inthe country

General Zachary Taylor

General Taylor instead of proceeding immediately to the Rio Grande agreeably to hisinstructions stopped at Corpus Christi at the mouth of the Nueces the extreme point ofTexas proper and Oct 4th 1845 wrote to the Secretary Mexico having as yet madeno positive declaration of war or committed any overt act of hostilities I do not feel atliberty under my instructions particularly those of July 8th to make a forwardmovement to the Rio Grande without authority from the war department As there wasno invasion to repel and as his march into the Mexican territory in time of peace wouldbe an act of aggression he prudently waited for further orders

On the 12th January 1846 the first dispatch was received from Slidell in Mexico fromwhich it appeared probable that although the Mexican Government had not yet refusedto receive him it would enter into no negotiation with him except in reference toTexas It had been hoped that Mexico would agree to sell California in exchange for theclaims against Mexico The very next day peremptory orders were sent to Taylor toadvance to the Rio Grande to try to provoke the Mexican forces in Laredo or Matamoros

General Taylor in pursuance of orders commenced his march into the Mexicanterritory Not an American not a Texan was to be found South of Corpus Christi Afterproceeding through the desert about one hundred miles he met small armed partiesof Mexicans who seemed disposed to avoid us On approaching Point Isabel a Mexicansettlement and the site of a Mexican Custom House he found the buildings in flamesAt the same time he received a protest from the Prefect of the Northern District ofTamaulipas against his invasion of a territory which had never belonged to the Texasan invasion of which no notice had been given to the Government of Mexico and forwhich no reason had been assigned The protest concluded with assuring Taylor that solong as his army shall remain in the territory of Tamaulipas the inhabitants mustwhatever professions of peace you may employ regard you as openly committinghostilities and for the melancholy consequences of these they who have been theinvaders must be answerable in the view of the whole world

Taylor on the Rio Grande

On the 28th March Taylor without having met with the slightest opposition planted hisstandard on the bank of the Rio Grande and placed a battery of eighteen pounders onethe east bank of the Rio Grande opposite Matamoros and started constructing a fortknown as Fort Texas later known as Fort Brown

The new Mexican president Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga was not intimidated by this showof force He expelled the US envoy from Mexico declared his willingness to fight and

sent thousands of troops to the city of Matamoros In April 1846 he appointed GeneralMariano Arista as commander of the Army of the North to fight the Americans

Five days after our arms had thus threatened and insulted Metamoras General Ampudiareached the city with reinforcements and immediately addressed a letter to theAmerican General complaining that his advance to the Rio Grande had not onlyinsulted but exasperated the Mexican nation and requiring him within twenty- fourhours to remove his camp and retire beyond the Nueces adding If you insist onremaining upon the soil of the department of Tamaulipas it will clearly result that armsand arms alone must decide the question As Taylor had been sent to Tamaulipasexpressly to produce this very result he took occasion of this letter to hasten thedesired crisisHe therefore resorted to an expedient which would compel Ampudia to firethe first shot and thus according to the wishes of the Cabinet to make the intendedwar one of defence a war by the act of Mexico There were two American armedvessels at Brazos Santiago and these he ordered to blockade the mouth of the RioGrande thus cutting off all communication with Metamoras by sea It will at any ratecompel the Mexicans to withdraw their army from Metamoras where it cannot besustained or to assume the offensive on this side of the river

Notwithstanding the blockade the Mexicans did not attack Taylor whereupon hedetermined it seems not to remain any longer idle Accordingly the very day onwhich he informs the Secretary that the relations between himself and the Mexicansremained the same and when not a single shot had been fired by the latter he reports with a view to check the depredations of small parties of the enemy on this side of theriver Lieutenants Dobbins of the 3d Infantry and Porter 4th Infantry were authorizedby me a few days since to scour the country for some miles with a select party of menand capture and destroy any such parties that they might meet It appears theyseparated and that Lieutenant Porter at the head of his own detachment surprised aMexican camp drove away the men and took possession of their horses In this affairPofter and one man was killed whether any or how many Mexican lives weresacrificed does not appear

The Thornton Affair

His next letter of 26th April reports on April 24 what was to be known as theThornton Affair occurred which gave Polk his cause for war Taylor wrote that a partyof dragoons sent out by me on the 24th instant to watch the course of the river aboveon this bank engaged with a very large force of the enemy and after a short affairin which some sixteen were killed and wounded appear to have been surrounded andcompelled to surrender

It appears that Captain Seth Thornton the commander of the party of with 70 dragoons acting on the advice of a local guide investigated an abandoned hacienda discovereda small body of Mexicans on the summit of a rising ground about 25 miles from theUS camp He immediately charged upon them but the main body of about 2000Mexican soldiers under the command of Colonel Anastasio Torrej n were on the otherside of the hill and therefore unseen coming up captured the assailants after a battleof a few hours Another letter published in the Philadelphia Inquirer says 16Americans including Captain Seth Thornton were killed and an unknown number ofMexicans were killed 49 Americans were taken prisoner and held at MatamorosTamaulipas

War is Declared

General Taylor after mentioning the affair in the words we have given announces tothe Cabinet the attainment of the long desired result Hostilities may now beCONSIDERED AS COMMENCED Upon the Strength of this despatch the Presidentannounced to Congress and the world Mexico has passed the boundary of the UnitedStates has invaded our territory and shed American blood upon the American soil OnMay 13 1846 Congress declared war on Mexico despite protests by the Mexicangovernment Mexico officially declared war on July 7

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American War 1846-47

The Mexican American War

Comparisons of Mexico and America American Plans for the Invasion of Mexico Gen Taylor in Matamoros Battle of Palo Alto Battle of Resaca de la Palma Preparations for the invasion of Mexico The March on Monterey Battle of Monterey Surrender of Monterey Conquest of New Mexico and California Return of Santa Anna Battle of Buena Vista Siege of Vera Cruz Battle of Cerro Gordo Battle of Chapultepec Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo The Gadsen Purchase

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Comparisons of Mexico and America

At the outset of the war Mexico had a population of 7 million and a

bankrupt and stagnant economy while the US had a population of 20 million and a dynamic and growing economy The contrast between the armies was

even more pronounced The Mexican military lacked a professional officer corps and its army was in great want of resources Mexican soldiers were often fed

and cared for by their women who followed the troops The army had antiquated short range artillery and solders often only fired their guns for the first time in battle Lack of medical services meant the wounded often had to be abandoned The US in

contrast had a professional officer corps and the most advanced artillery including the US Army horse artillery or flying artillery which played a decisive role in several key

battlesThe violence of the war and its unjust nature was very tramatic to Mexican pride and is still asource of resentment for Mexicans today which can be seen in the Reconquista movement in

Mexico to recover the lost Mexican territories

American Flying Artillery

Both sides used smoothbore muskets but the frontiersmans rifle of the time with its spiral groovedbore was much more accurate The rifle was expensive and the US Army was slow to adopt it

Mexico had no small arm factories of its own and had to make do with obsolete Europeandiscards

So Far from GodThe US War With

MexicoThis well-writtencomprehensive

history of the wartakes into accountthe political and

diplomatic dimensionsas well as the

military

A Glorious DefeatMexico and Its War

with the UnitedStates

The MexicanAmerican War from aMexican perspective

Early photograph of American dragoons entering SaltilloDragoon were soldiers trained to fight on foot but trained in horseback riding and combat The name probably derivesprobably from the dragoons primary weapon a carbine or short musket called the dragon like a fire breathing dragon

American Plans for the Invasion of Mexico

Map of the Mexican American War The plan of the campaign in Mexico for the year 1846 seems to have been arranged jointly byconsultations between the President Secretary at War and General Scott The President declaredthat in his opinion the immediate appearance in arms of a large and overpowering force wouldbe the best means of producing peace

At this time General Scott as commander of the army was stationed at Washington engaged inarranging and superintending the various staff duties of the army He would be naturally consulted onthe plans to be formed and the means to execute them The whole detail of the physical and socialcondition of Mexico were almost utterly unknown in the United States and that information on thesetopics had to be obtained by inquiry and study before even a general of the army could make prudentmilitary arrangements

The American strategy called for a three pronged offensive General Stephen W Kearny wouldleave from Fort Leavenworth with the army of the West and occupy New Mexico and California with1500 hundred men The Army of the Center under Doniphan would was ordered to northern

The Mexican-American War

This History Channelspecial hosted byOscar de la Hoya

looks at the war fromthe perspective of

both countries

Mexico and the Army of Occupation would head for Mexico City under Zachary Taylor

Gen Taylor in Matamoros Three days after the Thornton affair the camp of Captain Walkers Texan Rangers was surprisedand several killed and wounded This was between Point Isabel andMatamoros In the mean whileit was ascertained that a large body of the Mexican army had crossed the river (Rio Grande) above3 and that another corps was about to cross below General Taylor was convinced that the objectol attack was Point Isabel which had been left in care of a small detachment and where a largedepot of provisions invited the enemy Leaving an unfinished field-work under the command of Major Brown andgarrisoned by the 7th infantry with Lowds and Braggs companies of artillery he marched for PointIsabel on the 1st of May with his main force and arrived on the next day The departure of General Taylor with his army furnished the enemy in Matamoras with theopportunity for a safe attack on Fort Brown At five in the morning of the 3d of May a heavybombardment was commenced from the batteries in Matamoras and continued at intervals till the10th when the defenders of the fort were relieved In this defense Major Brown CaptainHawkins and Captain Mansfield were greatly distinguished both for skill and gallantry The former was killed by a shell and the defense was vigorously continued byCaptain Hawkins Captain Mansfield was an engineer officer under whose direction the fort wasbuilt and by whose skilful conduct the defenses were increased and strengthened during the siege

The siege of Fort Brown was raised by the arrival of the victorious army of Taylor which had justfought the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma It appears that General Arista who was nowin command of the Mexican army had assembled in all about eight thousand men at Matamoras andbeing well advised of the strength of the American forces thought the time had arrived for a decisiveblow

The capture of Captain Thorntons party had also emboldened the Mexican troops Arista saw thatPoint Isabel the depot of large quantities of provisions and military munitions was comparativelydefenceless To take this place would therefore both cut off the supplies of Taylors army and leave itisolated in the heart of the enemys country The plan of Arista was to cross the Rio Grande get in therear of General Taylors army capture Point Isabel and then fall on the American army The plan wasjudicious and was only prevented from being carried out by the accidental information brought toGeneral Taylor by one of Thorntons party sent in by the Mexican commander

Battle of Palo Alto

Death of Major Ringgold at Palto Alto who was an officer of the flying artillerywas one of the 5 Americans who died in the battle

The next day (the 8th) the march was resumed and at noon the enemy was discovered drawn up inbattle array upon a prairie three miles from the Palo Alto The army was halted and the men refreshed

at a pool

At two P M the army advanced by heads of columns till the Mexican cannon opened upon themwhen they were deployed into line and Ringgolds Light Artillery on the right poured forth its rapid anddeadly fire on the enemy The Mexican cavalry mostly Lancers were on their left and were forcedback by the destructive discharges of artillery To remedy this General Arista ordered Torrejongeneral of cavalry to charge the American right This he did but was met by the Flying Artillery underLt Ridgely and by the 5th Infantry The Lan- cers were again driven back At this period the prairiegrass was set on fire and under cover of its smoke the Americans advanced to the position justoccupied by the Mexican cavalry Again a Mexican division of Lancers charged under the command ofCol Montero but with as little success The continuous fire of artillery disordered and drove back theenemys columns On the left wing of our army attacks of the Mexicans were met by Duncans batteryand by other troops of that division The combat on our side was chiefly carried on by artillery andnever was there a more complete demonstration of the superior skill and energy of that Arm of serviceas conducted by the accomplished graduates of West-Point He who was the life and leader of theLight Artillery MAJOR RINGGOLD was in this engagement mortally wounded and died in a few days

The battle terminated with the possession by the Americans of the field and the retreat during thenight of the Mexicans Arista dating his despatch says in sight of the enemy at night This might betrue but he was in retreat and took a new position several miles off at Resaca de la Palma A ravinehere crossed the road and on either side it was skirted with dense thickets This ravine was occupiedby the Mexican artillery The position was well chosen and with troops better skilled in the use ofartillery and with greater energy of body might have easily been defended

Battle of Resaca de la Palma

General Taylor had encamped on the field of battle from which he did not depart till two p M the nextday In two hours the American army came in sight of the Mexican array The dispositions of ourtroops were soon made A battery of artillery under Lt Ridgely moved up the main road while the 3d4th and 5th Regiments of Infantry deployed on either flank to support it and act as skirmishers Theaction commenced by the fire of the Mexican artillery which was returned by Ridgelys battery and bythe infantry on the wings In this firing the Mexican cannon were well managed by Generals La Vegaand Requena and the effect began to be severely felt on the American lines It was necessary todislodge them and this duty was assigned to Captain May of the Dragoons It was here that this officerbecame so distinguished The charge was gallantly made The Dragoons cut through the enemy Theartillerymen were dispersed and General La Vega taken prisoner

The Dragoons however had advanced beyond support and in turn fell back on the main body Theregiments of infantry now charged the Mexican line and the battle was soon ended Their columnsnow broken by successive charges were unable to bear the continued and well-directed fire pouredupon them by both infantry and artillery They fled pre- cipitately from the field and were rapidly

pursued by the American rearguard The Mexicans lost many prisoners and ceased not their flight tillthey either crossed or were overwhelmed in the waters of the Rio Grande In these engagementsneither cowardice nor feebleness was attributed to them They fought gallantly behaved well andwere only conquered by that union of physical strength and superior skill with which some nations arefortunately gifted by the natural influence of climate and the artificial developments of science

Preparations for the invasion of Mexico

From the period at which the American army occupied Metamoras after the battle of Resaca de laPalma both the general government at home and the officers of the army on the Rio Grande werebusied with preparations for an advance into the interior of Mexico The Rio Grande was assumed asthe military base-line of operations although the real base was necessarily the Mississippi

More than three months were consumed in these preparations In the mean time the Mexican villagesof Reinosa Comargo Mier and Revilla surrendered and were occupied Comargo a town about onehundred and eighty miles above the mouth of the Rio Grande was the point selected as the depot ofsupplies Here the various divisions which were to compose the particular army of General Taylor weregradually concentrated The entire army of General Taylor consisted of about nine thousand men

The March on Monterey

A small portion was assigned to garrisons while the main body numbering six thousand six hundredwere destined for the march to Monterey On the 20th of August General Worth began his march forMonterey the capital of New Leon and on the 5th of September the general- in-chief left Comargoleaving that town garrisoned by about two thousand men Worth reached Ceralvo about seventy mileson the 25th of August and at that point sent out reconnoitering parties who discovered strong bodiesof the enemy in front Being reinforced he advanced to the village of Marin where the entire army wasin a few days concentrated under the command of General Taylor

Battle of Monterey

Monterey The city of Monterey is situated in the valley of the San Juan and in the rear and around itrise the mountain ridges of the Sierra Madre

In front the road from Ceralvo and Marin entered the town On the heights in rear of the town andbeyond the river works were erected which commanded the valley and the approaches from the northAbove the Saltillo road was a height upon which was the Bishops Palace and near it other heights allfortified In front of the city was the Cathedral Fort or citadel which was regularly fortified and abouttwo thousand yards in front and below the Bishops Palace The opposite side of the city to the left as

the Americans approached were forts also erected and there were barricades in the streets of thecity

Siege of Monterey

Both the natural and the artificial defenses of Monterey seem to have been very strongNotwithstanding this neither the extant of the defenses nor the garrison within them seem to have beenknown to the American army previous to its arrival in front of the city

The army however pressed forward and on the 19th of September arrived at Walnut Springs threemiles from Monterey having met with no more serious resistance than that of skirmishing parties ofMexican cavalry

Monterey was then under the command of General Pedro Ampudia and the garrison under hiscommand consisted of about seven thousand regular troops and two or three thousand irregularsNotwithstanding this strong garrison superior in numbers to the American army General Taylorthought it possible to carry the place by storm with the bayonet and the artillery

In the afternoon of the 20th of September General Worth with his division was ordered to make adetour to the right turn the hill of the Bishops Palace take a position on the Saltillo road and ifpracticable carry the enemys works in that quarter This movement was executed during the eveningand the troops remained upon their arms just beyond the range of the enemys shot During the nighttwo 24-pounder howitzers and i ten-inch mortar were placed in battery against the citadel

On the morning of the 21st the main battle came on Twiggs and Butlers Divisions supported by theLight Artillery were both ordered forward Mays Dragoons and Woods Texan Cavalry weredetached to the right to the support of General Worth A column of six hundred and fifty men withBraggs Artillery was ordered to the left to attack the lower part of the town The point of attack wasdesignated by Major Mansfield who accompa- nied the parly in its advance The front defense herewas a redoubt into the rear of which in spite of its fire the column rapidly moved and commenced itsassault on the town Here it was opposed by entrenched streets and barricaded houses On one ofthese the company of Captain Backus succeeded in getting and fired upon the redoubt Garlandsforce however were withdrawn It was then that General Taylor ordered up the 4th Infantry and theVolunteer regiments from Ohio Tennessee and Mississippi commanded by Colonels

Mitchell Campbell and Davis The two last regiments with three companies of the 4th regimentadvanced against the redoubt The last companies being in front were received with a deadly firewhich killed or disabled one-third of the men and they were compelled to retire The brigade ofGeneral Quitman (Tennessee and Mississippi) pushed on and with the aid of Captain Backusscompany (on the roof of a house) captured the fort with its cannon and ammunition In the mean whilethe Ohio regiment with General Butler and Colonel Mitchell entered the town to the right andadvanced against the second battery but the fire was so severe that the regiment was withdrawn General Butler who had advanced with it being wounded The guns of the first battery were turnedupon the second and Colonel Garland was again ordered forward with another column They werecompelled to pass several streets trenched and barricaded and after another severe contest retired ingood order Up to this time it is obvious no important success had been obtained against the lower

town The Mexican cavalry had also made severa charges but always unsuccessfully On the sameday (the 2 1st) Worths Division had advanced to the right defeated the enemy and carried severalfortified heights At night General Taylor ordered a large part of Twiggs and Butlers Divisions back toWalnut Springs a portion remaining to guard the battery in the ravine while Gar- lands command heldthe captured redoubt on the enemys extreme right

The Surrender of Monterey retreat of Mexican troops

At dawn of the 22d Worth and his Division which had bivouacked on the Saltillo road recommencedthe advance The height above the Bishops Palace was stormed and taken when the Palace and theguns of both were turned upon the enemy below The guns of the Citadel continued during this day tofire upon the American positions but General Taylor made no important movement in front Theturning of the enemys position by Worth and the capture of the Bishops Palace gave a new face toaffairs This was the key to Monterey and General Ampudia concentrated his troops in the heart of thecity General Taylor on the morning of the 23d found nearly all the works in the lower part of the cityabandoned He immediately ordered General Quitman to enter the place but here a new resistancewas made The houses were fortified and our troops actually dug through from house to house Onthe upper side of the city Worths Division had also gained a lodgment The firing continued during the23d the Americans having possession of the greater part of the city and the Mexicans confined intheir defence chiefly to the Citadel and Plaza That evening (at 9 p M) General Ampudia sent inpropositions to General Taylor which after some negotiation resulted in the surrender and evacuationof Monterey The main part of the capitulation was that the Mexican troops should retire beyond a lineformed by the Pass of Rinconada the city of Linares and San Fernando de Prezas and that theforces of the United States would not advance beyond that line before the expiration of eight weeks oruntil the orders or instructions of the respective governments should be received

The Mexicans marched out with their arms and the terms were unusually favorable to them For thisconcession there were strong reasons A change of government had just taken place in Mexicobelieved to be favorable to peace and to have reduced the citadrl of Monterey would have cost thelives of many men Besides al this the American army had but a short supply of provisions and wereone hundred and eighty miles distant from their depot The American loss in this battle was (killed andwounded) four hundred and eighty-eight a large portion of whom fell in the attacks of the 21st on thelower town

End of the armistice

The War Department did not choose to continue the armistice but on the 13th of October directedGeneral Taylor lo give notice that the armistice should cease and that each party should be at libertyto resume hostilities In communicating this notice to General Santa Anna then in command of theMexican army General Taylor took occasion to suggest the idea of an honorable peace To this theMexican chief replied You should banish every idea of peace while a single North American inarms treads upon the territory of this republic

Conquest of New Mexico and California

Immediately after the opening of hostilities in the valley of the Rio Grande of which notice has beentaken in preceding chapters of this work among the expeditions which were organized by the Federalauthorities was one to move against and take possession of California and New Mexico twoprovinces in the northern part of the eneraj^s country The command of this expedition had beenvested in General Stephen W Kearney and the force under his command embracing the Firstregiment of Missouri Mounted Volunteers under Colonel Alexander W Doniphan two companies oflight- artillery Captains Weighiman s and Fischers) from St Louis five troops of the First regimentUnited States dragoons The Saclede Rangers a volunteer troop from St Louis and twocompanies of infantry (volun-teers) from Cole and Platte counties Missouri under Captains Augneyand Murphy sixteen hundred and fifty-eight men in all with twelve six-pounders and four twelve-poundhowitzers had rendezvoused at Fort Leaven-worth and the most energetic measures had beenadopted to insure its early departure and its ultimate successIn Northern California Mexican GeneralJoseacute Castro and Governor Piacuteo Pico fled further south into loyalist Mexico When Stocktons forcessailing south to San Diego stopped in San Pedro he dispatched 50 US Marines The force enteredLos Angeles unresisted on August 13 1846 It is known as the Siege of Los Angeles the nearly

bloodless conquest of California seemed complete Stockton however left too small a force in LosAngeles and the Californios acting on their own and without help from Mexico led by Joseacute MariaacuteFlores forced the American garrison to retreat in late September More than 300 reinforcements sentby Stockton led by US Navy Captain William Mervine were repulsed in the Battle of DominguezRancho October 7 through October 9 1846 near San Pedro 14 US Marines were killed The ranchovaqueros banded together to defend their land fought as Californio Lancers They were a force theAmericans had not prepared for Meanwhile General Stephen W Kearny with a squadron of 139dragoons finally reached California after a grueling march across New Mexico Arizona and theSonora desert on December 6 1846 and fought in a small battle with Californio Lancers at the Battleof San Pasqual near San Diego California where 22 of Kearnys troops were killed Kearnyscommand was bloodied and in poor condition but pushed on until they had to establish a defensiveposition on Mule Hill near present-day Escondido The Californios besieged the dragoons for fourdays until Commodore Stocktons relief force arrived Later their re-supplied combined forcemarched north from San Diego on December 29 entering the Los Angeles area on January 81847[24] linking up with Freacutemonts men With US forces totaling 607 soldiers and marines theyfought and defeated a Californio force of about 300 men under the command of captain-generalFlores in the decisive Battle of Rio San Gabriel[25] and the next day January 9 1847 they fought theBattle of La Mesa On January 12 1847 the last significant body of Californios surrendered to USforces That marked the end of the war in California On January 13 1847 the Treaty of Cahuengawas signed

On January 28 1847 US Army Lieutenant William Tecumseh Sherman and some army units arrivedin Monterey California The next day the famous Mormon Battalion commanded by fellow dragoonLt Col Philip St George Cooke arrived at San Diego after making a remarkable march from CouncilBluffs Iowa Territory Other US forces continued to arrive in California On March 15 1847 ColJonathan D Stevensonrsquos Seventh Regiment of New York Volunteers of about 900 men started arrivingin California All of these men were in place when word went out that gold was discovered inCalifornia January 1848

Return of Santa Anna

The defeats at Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma caused political turmoil in Mexico turmoil whichAntonio Loacutepez de Santa Anna used to revive his political career and return from self-imposed exile inCuba in mid-August 1846 He promised the US that if allowed to pass through the blockade hewould negotiate a peaceful conclusion to the war and sell the New Mexico and Alta Californiaterritories to the United States Once Santa Anna arrived in Mexico City however he reneged andoffered his services to the Mexican government Then after being appointed commanding general hereneged again and seized the presidencyHe began to revtalize the army at San Luis Potosi in a fewmonths he had assembled an army of 25000

Battle of Buena Vista

Tell Santa Anna to go to hell Gen Taylors reply to Santa Annas demand for surrender

On February 22 1847 Santa Anna personally marched north to fight Taylor with 20000 men Taylor with 4600 men had

entrenched at a mountain pass called Buena Vista Santa Anna suffered desertions on the way north and arrived with15000 men in a tired state He demanded and was refused surrender of the US army he attacked the next morningSanta Anna flanked the US positions by sending his cavalry and some of his infantry up the steep terrain that made upone side of the pass while a division of infantry attacked frontally along the road leading to Buena Vista Furious fightingensued during which some US troops were routed but were saved by artillery fire against a Mexican advance at closerange by Captain Braxton Bragg and a charge by the mounted Mississippi Riflemen under Jefferson Davis Having suffereddiscouraging losses and word of upheaval in Mexico city Santa Anna withdrew that night leaving Taylor in control ofNorthern Mexico Polk distrusted Taylor whom he felt had shown incompetence in the Battle of Monterrey by agreeing tothe armistice and may have considered him a political rival for the White House Taylor later used the Battle of BuenaVista as the centerpiece of his successful 1848 presidential campaign

Siege of Vera Cruz

On March 7 1847 a force of 70 troopships approached Veracruz and two days later began to bombard the city with thegoal of taking Mexico City Rather than reinforce Taylors army for a continued advance President Polk sent a second armyunder General Winfield Scott which was transported to the port of Veracruz by sea to begin an invasion of the Mexicanheartland Scott performed the first major amphibious landing in the history of the United States in preparation for the Siegeof Veracruz A group of 12000 volunteer and regular soldiers successfully offloaded supplies weapons and horses nearthe walled city Included in the invading force were Robert E Lee George Meade Ulysses S Grant and ThomasStonewall Jackson The city was defended by Mexican General Juan Morales with 3400 men Mortars and naval gunsunder Commodore Matthew C Perry were used to reduce the city walls and harass defenders The city replied as best itcould with its own artillery The effect of the extended barrage destroyed the will of the Mexican side to fight against anumerically superior force and they surrendered the city after 12 days under siege US troops suffered 80 casualtieswhile the Mexican side had around 180 killed and wounded about half of whom were civilian During the siege the USside began to fall victim to yellow fever

Battle of Cerro Gordo

Scott then marched westward toward Mexico City with 8500 healthy troops while Santa Anna set up a defensive positionin a canyon around the main road at the halfway mark to Mexico City near the hamlet of Cerro Gordo Santa Anna hadentrenched with 12000 troops and artillery that were trained on the road along which he expected Scott to appearHowever Scott had sent 2600 mounted dragoons ahead and the Mexican artillery prematurely fired on them and revealedtheir positions Instead of taking the main road Scotts troops trekked through the rough terrain to the north setting up hisartillery on the high ground and quietly flanking the Mexicans Although by then aware of the positions of US troops SantaAnna and his troops were unprepared for the onslaught that followed The Mexican army was routed The US armysuffered 400 casualties while the Mexicans suffered over 1000 casualties and 3000 were taken prisoner

On the same day another army attacked the Convent of Churubusco which was defended by troops under Pedro Anayaas well as the St Patrick Battalion of of US deserters of mostly Irish descent who felt a kinship with Catholic Mexicans andwere subject to discrimination in the US army The Battalion fought until their last shot was spent and surrendered Thedeserters were court martialed and many were hung those that were not had the letter D branded on their checks

Battle of Chapultepec

On September 8 1847 in the costly Battle of Molino del Rey US forces had managed to drive the Mexicans from theirpositions near the base of Chapultepec Castle guarding Mexico City from the west However Army engineers were stillinterested in the southern approaches to the city General Winfield Scott held a council of war with his generals andengineers on September 11 Scott was in favor of attacking Chapultepec and only General David E Twiggs agreed Mostof Scotts officers favored the attack from the south including Major Robert E Lee A young Captain Pierre Beauregardgave a text book speech that persuaded General Pierce to change his vote in favor of the western attack Scott officiallydeclared the attack would be against Chapultepec

Antonio Loacutepez de Santa Anna was in command of the army at Mexico City He understood that Chapultepec Castle was animportant position for the defense of the city The castle sat atop a 200-foot (60 m) tall hill which in recent years was beingused as the Mexican Military Academy General Nicolaacutes Bravo however had less than 1000 men (832 Total including 25010th Infantry 115 Queretaro Battalion 277 Mina Battalion 211 Union Battalion 27 Toluca Battalion and 42 la PatriaBattalion with 7 guns) to hold the hill including 200 cadets some as young as 13 years old A gradual slope from the castledown to the Molino del Rey made an inviting attack point

According to the military records at the General National Archives in Mexico City Chapultepec Castle was only defended by400 men 300 from de Batalloacuten de San Blas under command of Lieutenant Colonel Felipe Xicoteacutencatl and the castlesgarrison of 100 men including the cadets

Scott organized two storming parties numbering 250 hand picked men The first party under Captain Samuel Mackenziewould lead Gideon Pillows division from the Molino east up the hill The second storming party under Captain Silas Caseywould lead John A Quitmans division against the southeast of the castleThe Americans began an artillery barrage againstChapultepec at dawn on September 12 It was halted at dark and resumed at first light on September 13 At 0800 thebombardment was halted and Winfield Scott ordered the charge Following Captain Mackenzies storming party were threeassault columns from George Cadwaladers brigade of Pillows division On the left were the 11th and 14th regiments underColonel William Trousdale in the center were 4 companies of the Voltigeur regiment under Colonel Timothy PatrickAndrews and on the right were the remaining 4 Voltigeur companies under Lieutenant Colonel Joseph E Johnston Pillowwas quickly hit in the foot but ordered the attack forward Andrewss column followed Mackenzie out of the Molino andcleared a cypress grove to their front of Mexican troops as Trousdale and Johnston moved up on the flanks The attackstalled when Mackenzies men had to wait for storming ladders to arrive and there was a lull in the battle

To the southwest 40 Marines led Captain Caseys storming party followed by James Shields brigade of volunteers northtowards Chapultepec Again the storming party stalled while waiting for ladders and the rest of Shields men halted in theface of Mexican artillery The scaling ladders arrived and the first wave ascended the walls In fact so many ladders arrivedthat 50 men could climb side by side George Pickett (later famous for Picketts Charge and the Battle of Five Forksduring the American Civil War) was the first American to top the wall of the fort and the Voltigeurs soon planted their flagon the parapet Colonel Trousdales column supported by Lieutenant Thomas J Jacksons artillery faced superior numbersof Mexicans in a spirited defense Newman S Clarkes brigade brought new momentum to the fight on Pillows frontGeneral Shields was severely wounded when his men poured over the walls but his troops managed to raise the USFlag over the castle Caught between two fronts General Bravo ordered a retreat back to the city Before he couldwithdraw Bravo was taken prisoner by Shields New York volunteers The Mexicans retreated at night down the causewaysleading into the city Several Mexican cadets wrapped themselves around Mexican flags and jumped from the wallsdisregarding height to prevent the seizure of the Mexican flag from the attackers Santa Anna watched disaster befallChapultepec while an aide exclaimed let the Mexican flag never be touched by a foreign enemyLos Nintildeos Heacuteroes

During the battle six Mexican military cadets refused to fall back when General Bravo finally ordered retreat and fought tothe death against superior US forces Their names were teniente(lieutenant) Juan de la Barrera and cadets AgustinMelgar Juan Escutia Vicente Suarez Francisco Marquez and Fernando Montes de Oca One by one they fell when onewas left (Juan Escutia) and the US forces were about to kill him he grabbed the Mexican flag wrapped it around himselfand jumped off the castle point It is said that the American commander saluted the cadaver of Escutia wrapped in theMexican flag

A moving mural decorates the ceiling of the palace showing Juan Escutia wrapped in the flag apparently falling from above A monument stands in Chapultepec Park commemorating their courage The cadets are eulogized in Mexican history asthe Los Nintildeos Heacuteroes the Child Heroes or Heroic CadetsThe battle had been a significant victory for the US Lastingthroughout most of the day the fighting had been severe and costly Generals Twiggs and Shields had both been woundedas well as Colonel Trousdale The heaviest losses occurred during Quitmans attack on the Beleacuten Gate Every member ofQuitmans staff had lost their lives in the close fighting on the causeway

Santa Anna lost General Bravo as a POW and General Juan N Peacuterez was killed In a fit of rage Santa Anna slappedGeneral Terreacutes and relieved him of command for losing the Beleacuten Gate In his memoirs Santa Anna branded Terreacutes as atraitor and made him the scapegoat for the defeat at Mexico CityThe efforts of the US Marines in this battle andsubsequent occupation of Mexico City are memorialized by the opening lyrics to Marines hymn From the Halls ofMontezuma is a reference to the Chapultepec Castle also known as the Halls of Montezuma The Marine Corps alsoremembers this battle with the blood stripe on the dress blues uniform of NCOs and Officers who took over 90casualties

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

President Polk ambitous for a larger slice of Mexico of Mexico than he had originally detailed to envoyTrist There were supporters in Mexico and the US who thought the US should annex all of Mexico

President Polk tried to recall Trist but was unable to communicate with him

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo signed on February 2 1848 by American diplomat Nicholas Tristended the war and gave the US undisputed control of Texas established the US-Mexican border of

the Rio Grande River and ceded to the United States the present-day states of California NevadaUtah and parts of Colorado Arizona New Mexico and Wyoming In return Mexico received US$15000000mdashless than half the amount the US had attempted to offer Mexico for the land before theopening of hostilitiesmdashand the US agreed to assume $325 million in debts that the Mexicangovernment owed to US citizens The acquisition was a source of controversy at time especiallyamong US politicians that had opposed the war from the start A leading US newspaper the WhigIntelligencer sardonically concluded that

The Gadsen Purchase

By 1853 with the 15 million already spent Santa Anna decided the treasury couldonly be saved by selling more Mexican territory to the US The US wanted the MesillaValley in lower New Mexico and Arizona to build a new railroad in California Santa Annaagreed to sell the land for $10 million By doing so Santa Anna alienated the liberalopposition that he found himself exiled for the eleventh and last time The liberalsproclaimed the Revolution of Ayutla

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The outcome of the Mexican American War with the loss of half of Mexicos territoryshocked the Mexicans into seeking a new direction to perserve the country The laststraw with the old order came with Santa Annas selling yet more Mexican territory withthe Gadsen Purchase in 1853 The Revolution of Ayutla was named after The Plan ofAyutla announced in the town of Ayutla on March 1 1854 which sought to removeSanta Anna and convening a constituent assembly in order to draft a federalconstitution The Revolution of Ayutla brought together some of the most creative mindsin Mexico The new liberal government ushered in a new era known as the Reform ( LaReforma) which set about to dismantle the old military and church led conservativestate and bring about a new secular democratic state This brough them into conflictwith those who supported the old order and eventually led the country to civil war

Juan Alvarez

Santa Anna returned to power in a coup in 1852 and sought to fashion himself the newMexican emperor insisting he be called His Most Serene Highness and creating an evenmore centralized state In Guerrero Juan Alvarez rose against the Santa Anna regimewith widespread peasant support After over a year of guerrilla warfare theneighboring states of Morelos Michoacan Oaxaca and Nuevo Leon joined the revolt The army garrisons in Zacatecas and San Luis Potosi denounced Santa Anna who wentinto exile in August 1855 and Alvarez rode into Mexico City in trimuph and becameprovisional president Ignacio Comonfort became secretary of war and Benito Juarezsecretary of Justice This began the peroid known as the Reform as the liberals beganto dismantle the old conservative state One of the first acts was to abolish the fuerosthe special courts for members of the clergy and military and make them go to civilcourts for cases dealing with civil or criminal law

Alvarez becomes President

Almost as soon as Alvarez entered the capital the liberal coalition began to fall apart over the fueros law The moderates ( moderados) favored compromise while theliberals (puros) refused The leader of the young socially motivared intellectuals wasBenito Juarez a Zapotec Indian from Oaxaca sought to reduce the power of thechurch while Ponciano Arriaga wanted drastic land reform and Ignancio Comonfort was amoderate on most issues Alvarez tried to balance these various interests in his cabinet

but gave up and named Comonfort his successor

Comonfort becomes President

Ignacio Comonfort

In 1856 President Comonfort issused a law prohibiting the Church from owning propertynot directly related to its operations to break up the vast landholding of the church These holding would be put up for sale at a public auction

The 1857 Constitution ( Constitucioacuten Federal de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos de 1857 )

In accordence with the The Plan of Ayutla delegates met to draft a new constitutionand was debated between the moderates and liberals The Constitution of 1857 wasmodeled after the one of 1824 the major difference being that the legislature was to beunicameral instead of bicameral to make it stronger in case of dictatorship and thepresident was to be limited to one four year term

The Constitution of 1857 had more liberal declarations than the one of 1824 In the newconstitution freedom of speech press assembly and education were declared as washabeas corpus While freedom of religion was not declared the Catholic Church was notdeclared to be the state church The church was not happy with this and issued decreesattempting to nullify the new constitution and threatened excommunication for thosewho sought to purchase church property at auctions The pressing conflict for mostMexicans was wether to swear allegiance to the new Constitution They would beheretics if they did so in the eyes of the church and traitors if they did not in the eyesof the state this conflict led to the vicious war of reform

The War of the Reform 1857-61 ( La Guerra de Reforma de Meacutexico )

Felix Zuloaga

The subsequent War of the Reform raged in Mexico from 1858 to 1861 Like mostMexican Wars this one began with a plan the Plan de Tacubaya declared by theconservative general Felix Zuloaga and a junta of conservative genrals and clergy wholed a coup (golpe) dissolved the Congress and arrested Juarez President Comonfortwas unable to resolve the issue and resigned but was able to free Juarez and otherliberals while he still hels some power Liberals in the provences declared their supportfor the new Constitution and Reform laws The army declared Zuloaga the newpresident and Juarez managed to escape where the liberals declared him president andstarted a three year war The liberals established their capital in Veracruz where theycould gather custom duties and arms For the first two years the better trainedconservative army won most of the major engagements with the liberals The civil warwas very vicious Captured prisoners on both sides were often shot Priests whorefused sacraments to liberals were shot as were doctors in conservative held areas whotreated liberals

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Benito Juarez

The liberals nationalized church lands and declared freedom of religion By 1860 the warbegan to favor the liberals with the leadership of the generals Ignacio Zargoza andJesus Ortega and infighting among the conservativesIn late 1861 the liberals won avictory against the conservative general Miramon at San Migual Calpulalpan and theliberal army entered Mexico City

With the War of the Reform over Mexico needed peace to rebuild after the devastationit had wrought However this was not to be Juarez won the presidental election of1861 but the liberals were divided on what punishment should be given to theirenemies The new president chose a more lenient policy which angered to more radicalliberals and kept the new government in a state of turmoil But the biggest problem wasyet to come

Juarez inhereted a bankrupt country The sale of church lands had not brought in asmuch income as was hoped and the economy was stagnant Mexicos foreign creditorsbegan clamoring for repayment of debts some over fifty years old The Mexicans stillowed 80 million in foreign debts and 64 million of this was owed to the British Theconservative President Miramon had borrowed heavily as well from the half brother ofNapoleon III of France Juarez repudiated the debts of the conservatives but this didnot satisfy the foreign bankers To get some breathening space for the economy torevive Juarez declared a two year moratorium on payment of the foreign debt OnOctober 31 1861 Spain England and France agreed to the Convention of London whichdeclared an occupation of the Mexican coast until their claims were satisfied throughcustom duties France under the leadership of Napoleon III sought to use theopportunity of the crisis and the American Civil war to establish a colony in the NewWorld

In december 1861 6000 Spanish troops landed at Veracruz followed by sevenhundred British soldiers and two thousand French when it became apparent that theFrench sought to conquer Mexico Spain and England withdrew their troops

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French intervention and the Second Mexican Empire 1864 - 1867

Coins of the Second Empire of Mexico

Napoleon III and his plans for Empire

Napoleon III had a more grandiose plan than debt collection when he sent troops toMexico Urged on by his own dream of emulating the great Napoleon and his Spanishwife Eugenie he was determined to make France great again He also wished to build acanal and railway across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec to make another greatengineering feat like the Suez Canal Napoleon III convinced the Austrian archdukeMaximilian von Habsburg that the Mexican people would welcome him as a king America was too involved with its own Civil War to enforce the Monroe Doctrine andNapoleon sent an expeditionary force of 27000 to Mexico As mentioned before theSpanish and British withdrew their troops when they learned of the French intentions

The Battle of Puebla

The French defeat at Puebla

The Crown ofMexicoMaximilianand His Empress

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The French marched on from the coast to Mexico City under the command of CharlesLatrille The French expected to be welcomed by the conservatives and the clergy TheMexicans dug in at Puebla and heavily fortified it under General Ignacio Zaragozawhere around 4500 Mexicans troops faced off against around 6000 French The Frenchexpected the Mexicans to retreat in the face of an aggressive assault and attackedrecklessly The French ran low on ammunition and many of their troops were weakenedby sickness On May 5 1862 the Mexican forces managed to drive back the French toVeracruz and the date became the major Mexican Celebration of Cinco de Mayo TheMexicans lost 83 men while the French lost 462

Ferdinand Maximilian and his wife Marie Charlotte Upon hearing of the disaster at Puebla Napoleon ordered 30000 reinforcements It wasa year before the French army was prepared to march again The French bombardedPuebla under the command of General Jesus Ortega after the death of General IgnacioZaragoza of typhoid fever for days and forced it to surrender after a siege of twomonths The French army under Marshal Elie Forey took Mexico City on May 31 afterthe Juaristas evacuated north to San Luis Potosi

Captain Jean Danjou

The Battle of Camaron

One battle at this time that of Camaron on April 30 1863 in the state of Veracruzbecame one of the most famous in the annals of the French Foreign Legion Here 60legionnaires under the command of Captain Jean Danjou who had a wooden hand meta force of roughly a thousand Mexican guerrillas where they fought until only fivelegionnaires and Captain Jean Danjou survived They surrendered and freed in aprisoner exchange

map of operations during the French Intravention in Mexico

Maximilian becomes the Emperor of Mexico On June 3 1863 the french commander selected a provisional government of 35conservatives The executive triumvirate was made up of General Juan AlmonteGeneral Mariano Salas and Bishop Pelagio Labastida In October 1863 a delegation ofMexican conservatives visited Ferdinand Maximilian in Europe and made an offer for himto become the emperor of Mexico Maximilian agreed if this was accepted by theMexican people themselves A plebiscite was held in Mexico under the control of theFrench Army which of course approved him Before Maximilian left Europe he met withNapoleon and it was agreed that Maximilian would pay the salaries of the French troopswhich would remain in Mexico until 1867He was proclaimed Maximilian I Emperor ofMexico on April 10 1864

French Legionnaires

The Administration of the Emperor Ferdinand and his wife Marie arrived in Veracruz in May of 1864 where they were coldlywelcomed by the local people On June 12 they arrived in Mexico City after paying hisrespects to the Virgin of Guadalupe at the Basilica of Guadalupe An imperial court wasestablished at Chapultepec Castle Once a week he opened the castle to the public tohear the concerns of the people and toured the provincesHe declared a free press anddeclared a general amnesty to win the support of the people

French bombard Alcapulco To the dismay of his conservative allies Maximilian upheld several liberal policiesproposed by the Juaacuterez administration ndash such as land reforms religious freedoms andextending the right to vote beyond the landholding class the emperor refused tosuspend the Reform Laws that would return church lands and even levied forced loansagainst it The emperor a Mason considered himself an enlightened despot and inaddition to this hoped to gain Mexican liberal support He drafted a new constitutionwhich provided for a hereditary monarchy religious toleration equality under the lawand did away with debt peonage He sought to use the clergy as civil servants and paysalaries in order to do away with tithing and fees He even named Jose Fernando amoderate liberal as secretary of foreign affairs The liberals for the most part were notimpressed by these actions and Maximilian only succeeded in alienating them bothliberals and conservativesMaximilian consorted with prostitutes and Carlota out of fearof catching a disease refused to sleep with him creating a succession issue This wassolved by adopting the grandson of the first emperor of Mexico

Dark Days for the republicans Juarez withdrew to San Luis Potosi and then to Chihuahua French forces then forcedhis small army further north to modern day Ciudad Juarez across the border from ElPaso The empire was its strongest from 1864 to 1865 Marshal Bazaine defeatedPorfirio Diazin Oaxaca after a six month siege After its fall the republicans only heldfour states Guerro Chihuahua Sonora and Baja

The Emperor issues the Black Decree In October 1865 the emperor believed Juarez had fled to the US which was not thecase The emperor then issued the infamous Black Decree decree mandating the deathpenalty for all captured armed Juaristas There would be no courts-martial or pardonsby the emperor Within a few days two Juarista generals were captured and shot Thisdecree however was to lead to the emperors own death The French however hadtrouble pacifying the country due to guerrilla warfare and the French were hated inmuch of the country for their drastic counter guerrilla actions

American Support for Juarez and a Confederate Offer Juarez realized he need more support and sought aid from the Lincoln administrationwhich had never recognized Maximilians government After the downfall of theConfederacy Secretary of State Seward began applying pressure on Napoleon III andallowed Juaristas to purchase arms in the US Three thousand Union veterans joined thegtJuarista army and the Mexican coast was blockaded General Grant ordered 42000men under Sheridan to Brownsville across the river from the imperial army under thecommand of Tomas Mejia and it looked as if the US would invade Mexico on behalf ofthe Juaristas but nothing came of it After the fall of the Confederacy General Joseph Shelby and his men rode south intoMexico to offer their services to Emperor Maximilian who declined to accept the ex-Confederates into his armed forces However the emperor did grant them land for anAmerican colony in Mexico

Napoleon withdraws Troops the Empress Pleads With these considerations and the rising power of Prussia Napoleon began to withdrawhis troops in late 1866 and urged Maximilian to abdicate This left Maximilian in adangerous position and considered abdicating his throne but his wife saying he mustmaintain Hapsburg dignity talked him out of it She would travel to Europe herself totalk with Napoleon and to the Pope but to no avail and later suffered an emotionalcollapseDuring the remainder of her life (1867-1927) she believed herself still to be theempress of the Mexicans

execution of Maximilian and Generals Miguel Miramon and Tomaacutes Mejia Harpers Weekly

Downfall of the Emperor

Juarez and his army assumed the offensive in the spring of 1866 During the summerthe republicans captured Saltillo Monterey Tampico Durango and later in the yearGuadalajara and Oaxaca The end came in the city of Queretaro where the last of theFrench troops in Mexico were marching to Veracruz to leave Mexico under MarshalBazaine who urged the emperor to join himthe last french soldier left on March 16Portirio Diaz who escaped his captors after the fall of Oaxaca took command of thearmy of the East and defeated a conservative army outside Mexico City and put thecapital under siege

The emperor is Betrayed

Maximilian took command of a few thousand Mexican imperial troops but wassurrounded by a republican army four times as strong The battle began on Feb 191867 and the defenders held of the republicans for almost a hundred days On May 11he decided to attempt an escape through the enemy lines However on May 15 1867before he could carry out this plana member of the imperial cavalry betrayed theemperor and opened a gate to the beseigers and Maximilian was captured along withMiramon and Mejia

Reasons for the Execution of the Emperor

Juarez decided that the emperor would be tried by court-martial and the emperorsdeath decree of 1865 that had executed so many left little room for compassion Itwas also felt that Maximilian might return and would make the new government lookweak He was also popular and even venerated by some of the Mexican population andit was feared they might rally around him in the future He was executed by firingsquad on June 19 1867 on the Hill of Bells (Cerro de las Campanas) together with hisGenerals Miguel Miramoacuten and Tomaacutes MejiacuteaTwo days late diaz captured Mexico City fromthe conservative armies

Over 50000 Mexicans had lost their lives fighting the French and the country wasdevestatedafter a decade of warfare However it was a vindication for the republicansand the Constitution of 1867 the power of the church and conservatives was brokenand a sense of Mexican nationalism began to grow It also introduced French ideasfashion and culture into Mexico Liberalism became associated with independence fromforeign aggression However the lack of a central authority for so long increased

regionalism and banditary which would lead to future domestic strife

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The modern history of Mexico begins with the liberal victory of 1867 Juarezimmediately set about making economic political and educational reforms Schoolingwas made mandatory a railway was built between Veracruz and Mexico City and toincrease commerce a rural police force the rurales was established to check banditryJuarez sought to lessen the political conThere was still some unrest among the peasantsfor land rights that flared into rebellion in Nayarit under Manuel Lozada and in Oaxacaby the brother of Porfirio Diaz Juarez and his followers spent the next decade trying to consolidate their victory andimplement the reforms of the Constitution of 1867 There was still antagonisms fromthe conservatives but it did not break out into civil war as it had in the 1860s

Juarezs Third Term

Juarez entered Mexico City to jubilation on July 15 and immediately called for apresidential election and announced himself a candidate for a third term against GeneralJesus Ortega and General porfirio Diaz The 1857 Constitution limited the president toone four year term and did not permit reelection The previous terms could be arguedto have been an emergency situation since it was during the FrenchIntervention Despite this Juarez won the presidential election an was sworn in late1867

rurales The Juarez administration focused on rebuilding the economy and creating a strongereducational foundation for Mexico Matias Romero was named secretary of the treasurywho developed a plan for the development of the transportation system and exploitingMexicos mineral resources rather than industrialization to rebuild the economy Tosecure the roads a rural police force was established the rurales an by 1869 theycontributed to the stability of the countryside and repaired Mexicos image of a land oflawlessness to foreign investors Tariffs and taxes were reformed to encourgeinvestment

Repairing the Infrastructure

Metlac Bridge One of the most important projects of the era was the development of the Mexico City -Veracruz railway which was finished in 1872 The land between the cities was quiterugged and was a geat engineering feat especially the bridging of the Metlac Riverchasm that was 900 feet wide and 375 feet deep In 1860 Mexico only had 150 miles ofrailway in contrast with the US which had over 30000 miles Despite being majorityowned by an arch conservative Juarez smoothed the way for the Ferrocarril Mexicanoor Mexican Railway Company because he believed in the importance of the raiway to thecountry was greater than politicsdespite objections to it in Congress Roads wereimproved and telegraph lines went up all over the country

Educational Reforms

In 1867 Juarez appointed a commission to reorganize the education system of MexicoThe curriculum was changed to place more encourage science and math and primaryeducation was made obligatory and free for the first time Many murals extolling thesenew ideas were painted on the school walls themselves beginning the Mexican muralistmovement

Juarez Runs for a Fourth Term

By the presidental election of 1871 Juarez decided to run for a fourth term against theadvice of many friends on the law of the Constitution of 1857 Two of his formersupporters ran against him Sebastian Lerdo de Eejadathe former secretary of foreignrelations who had the support of the professional classes and the upper classes andPorfirio Diaz who had the support of the military and conservatives Both Diaz andLerdo attacked Juarez for violating the Constitution of 1857 and the election was hotlycontested When the ballots were counted none of the candidates had the requiredmajority and according to the Constitution of 1857 the matter must be decided byCongress in which the Juaristas held power and Juarez was reelected In recation tothis Diaz announced his Plan de la Noria and rose in revolt against Juarez for violatingthe Constitution on November 8 1871 Diaz was not able to gather much support andthe army Diaz raised was quickly defeated by the federal army Juarez died in office of a heart attack on July 19 1872 and Sebastian Lerdo de Eejadawho was then chief justice of the Supreme Court became acting president till newelections could be held in October where he defeated Diaz easily

The Lerdo Presidency

Sebastian Lerdo

Lerdo continued the polices of Juarez and streesed the need for peace and order topromote the economy A raiway was planned to connect Mexico and the US and acrossthe Isthmus of Tehuantepec Lerdos had a goal of connecting all state captials to MexicoCity by telegraph was not attained but he through this effort 1600 miles off telegraphline was put up Between 1870 and 1874 the number of schools doubled A Senate wasadded to the legislature in 1875 and Lerdo thought this would add his centalizationefforts

Battle of Tecoac In 1876 following the pattern of Juarez Lerdo sought a second term in spite of theConstitution of 1857 Lerdo was reelected on July 24 1876 with a small majority andamid charges of fraud He had made himself unpopular by the means he took to securehis reelection by his disposition to limit state rights in favor of a strongly centralizedgovernmentDiaz again raised his banner of rebellion with his Plan de Tuxtepec andagain raised an army This time he had more support and his army defeated a federalarmy in Tlaxcala at the Battle of Tecoac on November 16 1876 This left Mexico Citywide open and Lerdo fled to America on a steamer from Acapulco

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Diaz When Porfirio Diaz (1830-1915) ( full name Joseacute de la Cruz Porfirio Diacuteaz Mori ) whowas a Mestizo of Mixtec and Japanese ancestry on his mothers sideseized over controlof Mexico in 1876 that had an empty treasury huge foreign debts and a largebureacracy whose salaries were in arrears Despite the efforts of the liberals mining themain engine of the economy still had not recovered from the choas of the precedingdecades Farming methods had changed little from colonial days Like Juarez beforehim Diaz felt the key to modernizing the country was to pacify it so foreigners wouldinvest in it Mexico was still troubled by banditos agraian revolts and revolt in favor ofthe ousted President Lerado on the US border Theses Diaz delt with forcefully and hadthe leaders executed shortly after capture and greatly increased the power of therurales The era of Porfirio Diacuteazrsquos government from 1876-1911 is known as thePorfiriato and its motto was Order and Progress During his 33 year rule Mexicoentered the industrial age

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video of life in Mexico during the Porfiriato (Spanish)

Within several years of taking power most European and Latin American countriesrecognized Diazs government but the US held out The US had several claims againstMexico over debts and banditos crossing into US territory These raids almost led to warwith the US in 1877 Diaz came to an agreement with the Americans and agreed torepay over 14 million in claims Diaz reduced the number of civil servants to ease theburden on the treasury and tried to stimulate trade and crack down on smuggling Atthe end of his first term Diaz was true to his no-reelection pledge and did not seekanother term For once Mexico had a peaceful transfer of power and foreigngovernments began to believe Mexican politics was maturing Diaz threw his supportbehing Manuel Gonzalez who won the election with a large majority in 1880

President Gonzalez 1880 - 84

Gonzalez lost his right arm during the sieges of Puebla in 1867

Gonzalez strove to modernize the country but the strain was too much for the treasuryDuring his administration the railway from Mexico City to El Paso Texas wasinaugurated and the Banco Nacional de Meacutexico was founded He felt he could not cutback on foreign repayment and railroad construction so he cut the salaries ofgovernment officials The administration of Gonzalez was accused of corruption andgraft and Gonzalez himself was accused of sexual improprieties Diaz ran again forpresident in 1884 and easily won In the future he would not be bothered by his former no-reelection pledge Diacuteaz had the constitution amended first to allow two terms inoffice and then to remove all restrictions on re-election

The Return of Diaz and economic Progress

Diaz continued his moderization drive and the country had great economic growth JoseLimantour secretary of the treasury made economic changes such as changing tariffsswitching Mexico to the gold standard and getting more favorable foreign loans forMexico and reduced corruption By 1890 the Mexican treasury was running in the black

one of Jose Posada calaveras(skull) cartoonssatirizing life among the upper classes There was a marked increase in railroad construction during Diazs rule from 400 milesof rail in 1876 to 15000 by 1911 and greatly helped transform the country from itsbackwardness Diaz had the laws changed to be more favorable to foreign investmentand the mines such as silver and cooper mines became much more productive silverproduction increased from 24000000 Pesos in 1877 to 85000000 Pesos in 1908 After the turn of the century oil exploration began in earnest which large oil fields inTampico and Tuxpan being exploited and soon Mexico was one of the largest petroleumprducers in the world The army was moderized and observers were sent to America France and Germany Soldiers were given modern uniforms and more modern weapons and the army wasreduced in size

The Price of Peace and Economic Progress Diaz kept the country free of civil war but at a cost He kept himself in power through askillful use of persuasion threats and intimidation and strong arm tactics of the ruralesand federal army and even assassination Elections were held but they were shams forthe most part manipulated by the powerful From 1892 onwards Diacuteazs perennialopponent was Nicolaacutes Zuacutentildeiga y Miranda who lost every election but always claimedfraud and considered himself to be the legitimately elected president of MexicoThepress was tightly censored generals were shifted from one military zone to another tokeep them from amassing political power Powerful Mexicans who cooperated with theDiaz regime were rewarded with lucrative contracts and concessions Diaz himself didnot seem to amass a personal fortune

Land Grab The effects of the Diacuteaz regime were greatly felt in agrarian land reform and land wasincreasingly concentrated into the hands of the privileged By 1910 only 2 percent of thepopulation held title to land Only 10 percent of the Indian communities held land Many farmers were forced into debt peonage to survive Land was confiscated fromorginal owners and land much land seized from the church reform laws or deemedpublic land was sold to Diaz favorites for a pittance

Hunger

The hacendado owners used their vast tracts of land to grow export crops and by 1910their was less maize produced than in 1877 Prices increased and many Mexicansstarted starving 16 percent of the population was homeless In 1910 life expectancy was 30 in contrast to 50 in the US at the time Peasantuprisings became common and were put down mercilessly The Yanqui Indians ofSonora battled the government for years but were finally defeated and forced to workon large plantations as chained slaves Diaz was advised by cientificos who promoted ascientific based social Darwinistic agenda They promoted science but many of thecientifico advisors saw the indians as unteachable and a drag on society It seemed a

waste to educate them or better their plight The high mortality among the Indians wasseen as Social Darwinism at work Under Porfirio Diacuteaz laws had been implemented which gave foreign investors the title oflarge sections of land and concentrated land holdings and many of the poor wereforced off their land Some Hacienda owners amassed vast landholding such as DonTerrazas in Chihuahua Foreigners also were given ownership of large areas of Mexicanresorces in order to develop them

This painting by Alfaro Siqueiros shows Diaz trampling the Constitution

The Economic Depression of 1907-08

The slowing US economy and high inflation cause the economy to fall into a depressionby 1907 Prices for the basics of life were increasing while wages remained the same orfell In some areas wages fell 20 while living expenses increased 80 the laissez-faire policies of the Porfiriato did little to provide relief The middle and upper classessupported the Porfiriato when the economy was good Now they were suffering asforeign banks tightened credit and the government raised taxes They joined the poorand the Indians in demanding government change in increasing numbers

Downfall of the Porfiriato

There were cracks showing in the pax Porfiriato The new economic expansion did nottrickle down and wages remained low for workers who often worked in appalingconditions The educational reforms Diaz promoted also helped bring about the Porfiriatodownfall as a greater number of the educated and members of the growing middle classwere insulted of the charade of democracy under Diaz Like many powerful leadersbefore he had overstayed his welcome By the early 1900s there were three nationalopposition groups formed some advocating violent overthrow

The Regeneracion By the early 1900s there was more opponents to Diazs rulesuch as the Flores Magonbrothers who published Regeneracion which exposed the excesses of the Diazgovernment They were forced into exile an went to San Anontio where Diaz sent anassassin to silence them After this they went further inland into the US for safety toStLouis where they continued to publish Regeneracion and smuggled it into Mexicowhich helped fuel the anti-Diaz movement They organized a revolutionary party In StLouis in 1906 they issued a plan which resounded with many Mexicans who launchedstrikes throughout Mexico In a 1908 interview with the US journalist James Creelman Diacuteaz stated that Mexicowas ready for democracy and elections and that he would step down and allow othercandidates to compete for the presidency Many liberals supported the governor ofNuevo Leoacuten Bernardo Reyes as a candidate for the presidency although BernardoReyes under the orders of Diacuteaz never formally announced his candidacy Despite Reyessilence however Diacuteaz continued to perceive him as a threat and sent him on a missionto Europe so that Reyes was not in the country for the elections

The 1910 Election

Madero

Francisco Madero an upper class politican who was affected by the plight of the peonsunder the dictator Porfirio Diacuteaz wrote the influential book on the presidential successionand argued that Mexico should return to the Constitution of 1857 with free press andfree elections Modero was a member of the upper class whose family owned largeestates He thoght political not social reform would solve the nations problems andsocial and land reforms were not part of his platform Madero did not like Diazsdependence on foreign capital and the growing domination of American businessesMadero became involved in politics and ran for president of an Anti-re-electionistparty as Diaz himself had done so long ago Diaz had him jailed on trumped upcharges at San Luid Potosi during the election in 1910 with many other anti re-electionists throughout Mexico

Despite what he had told Creelman decided to run for president again When theofficial results were announced by the government Diacuteaz was proclaimed to have beenre-elected almost unanimously This caused aroused widespread anger Diaz beganplans for his last hurrah In September he would be 80 as well as the 100th anniveraryof Mexican Independence and huge celebrations were held in which more was spentthan for education that yearThe poor were rounded up as to not offend the foreignerswho came to the celebration

On his release and subsequent flight to the US Madero issued his Plan de San LuidPotosi from San Antonio which called for the nation to rise in revolt on November20Town after town responded to the call of Viva la Revolucion The guerrilleros weresupported in the countryside as well

rebels fire on federal positions at Ciudad Juarez

Diaz was not prepared to give up and sent army units all across Mexico to control therebellion In Chihuahua the rebellion continued to grow under the leadership of PascualOrozco and local leaders such as Pancho Villa placed themselves under his commandOn Jan 2 1911 the rebels destroyed a large federal army sent against them

In late 1911 Orozco and Villa convinced Madero that the rebels should use most of theirforce to take Ciudad Juarez At the last minuteMadero changed his mind and called ofthe attack afraid stray shells might land in nearby El Paso brings the US into theconflict Orozco ignored this order an launched an attack On May 10 theoutnumbered federal commander surrendered Madero was angery at Orozco forignoring his order and did not give him a position in his cabinet and showed that thecoalition was falling apart After the victory at Ciudad Juarez others towns such asTehuacan Durango and cuatla fell to the rebels the press began to turn against Diazand many federal troops began deserting Diaz realized his time was over and sentnegotiators to talk with Madero In the following Treaty of Ciudad Juarez Diaz agreed toresigned and left for France Diaz had been overthrown but the revolution had juststarted

In 1915 Diacuteaz died in exile in Paris There was tremendous economic advance during theDiaz years yet there is no Ciudad Diaz today or even a street named after him Hisrule became associated with social and political abuses that were too great Theprogress enjoyed by the upper classes came at the expense of the masses

Afterwards Mexico was racked by 10 years of fighting known as the Mexican Revolutionwhere successive leaders tried to create a stable government

Restoredrepublic 1867-76

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Mexican Revolution

1910-20

The Mexican Revolution

httpmexicanhistoryorgrevolutionhtm[5202010 25159 AM]

The Mexican Revolution (Revolucioacuten Mexicana) 1910 -1920

Time Line of the Mexican Revolution

Pancho Villa DocumentaryExplore the life and times ofPancho Villa Now on DVDpanchovillastoriesnet

Yaqui Indians of northern Mexico who have been captured after uprising against unjust seizure of their land Sold as debt peons slaves to the infamous henequen (for ropeand twine) plantations in the Valle NacionalYucatan where they faced a life expectancy of 6 months It was cheaper to buy more Indian slaves than to keep them aliveYanqiIndians made up a large part of the army of Obregon and fought with a desperate fury Conditions such as these lead to the Mexican Revolution Photo from the muckraker

book Barbarous Mexico by John Kenneth Turner

The Revolution from 1910 -20 was very devastating to Mexico An estimated 2 million were killed But it also

destroyed the privileges of the Creoles and the virtual caste system gave rise to the mestizo nation a sense ofnational pride and appreciation of Mexican culture called mexicanidad and a greater respect for women

Feudalism and debt peonage was ended land was redistributed and unions were permitted to protect therights of the workers

video on the Mexican Revolution by the Mexican government

In May of 1910 Haleys Comet appeared over Mexico a traditional Indian portent of war and disaster

However below in Mexico everything seemed well on the surface in the pax porfiriana President Diaz whohad rules Mexico with an iron fist since 1876 was soon to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the start of theMexican War of Independence against Spain and Diazs 80th birthday Lavish celebrations were held on the

elegant Reforma Boulevard and half a million Mexicans came to watch Leaders of the world heaped praise onthe industrial progress and political stability brought about by Diaz But underneath anger was simmering over

the injustice of decadesTo stop the cycle of military revolts he offered pan o palo (bread or the stick)

Villa and ZapataA History of the

MexicanRevolution

A detailed historyof the

revolutionaries

Pancho Villadocumentary

And StarringPancho Villa as

Himself(2003)AntonioBanderas asPancho Villa

>

Ambitious political and military leaders were put on the gov payroll with high salaries or faced imprisonment orexecution A dog with a bone neither bites or barks

Diaz while professing to respect the progressive institutions which Juarez turned Mexico into adictatorship and the constitutional government to a government which no longer depended for its sovereignty

on the will of the people but solely upon the army

federal soldiers

Following the advice of his cientifico (scientist) advisers who believed the Indian and mestizos (who made up90 of the population) were only good for manual labor and their belief in social Darwinism this huge class ofpeople was not educated and systematically cheated of their land Believing the Hacienda (large estates) weremore efficient than traditional methods many Indians and campesinos (farmers) lost their farms and became

virtual slaves on the large haciendas The growth of railroads lead to a property bubble and Indians andfarmers were tricked out of their land and the ommunial egidos (shields) lands which had existed since theSpanish Conquest Farmers went into debt peonage as they were tricked out of their landoften working on

their former farms that had been taken by the haciendas Poverty increased and workers wages remained low Most large companies were foreign ownedpaid little or no taxes and paid low wages Foreign companies

exploited Mexico vast oil and mineral wealth that benefited only the Mexican wealthy elite Decades ofinjusticeonly needed a spark to explode

Both Federal and revolutionary armies made good use of 9000 miles of railroad tracks laid during the Diaz years Trains were oftenused as weapons themselves packed with explosives and sent off as rolling torpedoes to destroy enemy trains and positions

The election of 1910 provided a spark started by Diaz himself In an 1908 interview with the American James

Creelman he claimed he would not run for office in 1910 and would even allow opposition parties to runPreviously the press was controlled by Diaz and no one would run against him However when 1910 camehe

decided to run for re-election anyway and any rivals were suppressed

Francisco Madero decided to run against Diaz Madero came from a rich hacienda family but was genuinelyconcerned with the plight of the poor He took an interest in politics and in 1908 wrote a book calling for freeelections in Mexicowhich tapped into the growing anti-Diaz sentiments of the time Madero was an unusualperson for the times He neither drank or smoked was a vegetarian followed his own spiritual form of religion

and wanted peaceful change through democracy Madero ran for president and too the dismay of DiazMadero campaign crossing the country on trains giving speeches quickly gained momentum Diaz had

Madero thrown in jail on trumped up charges and won the election of June 211910 with the usual vote stuffingand intimidation

Madero was jailed in San Luis Potosi while there he drew up his Plan of San Luis Potosi and called for

Mexicans to rise up against Diaz During this time the unconnected anti-hacienda rebellions led by PanchoVilla in the north and Zapata in the south grew in strengthMadero escaped to America and was able to reenter

Mexico after Villa seized Chihuahua from federal forces By May 10

Pancho Villa (June 5 1878 ndash July 20 1923) A mestizo bandito ( Mexicans distinguish between banditos and ladrones (thieves) A ladron steals from his

neighbors banditoson the other hand rob from the rich) who became the commander of the Divisioacuten del Norte (Army of the North )started as a bandit making raids on wealthy cattle ranches in northern Mexico His birth name was Doroteo Arango and took thename Pancho Villa to honor a fallen bandit leader Villas men are mostly miners from the north His men are known as doradosgolden ones because of their golden hued uniforms and rode into battle crying Viva Villa Viva la Revolucion Famous for their

cavalry chargesoften led by Villa himself Villa tried to give each soldier a horse to make his army more mobile Legendary as a cavalry

commander and nicknamed El Centauro del Norte (The Centaur of the North) he was defeated by Obregon whoused WWI tactics in the decisive Battle of Celaya in 1915 He fought the Revolution for Land reform and equal education He caused

Americans under Pershing to invade Mexico after killing Americans and raids into America but was never caughtHe wasassassinated in 1923 after retiring

Emiliano Zapata (August 8 1879ndashApril 10 1919)

Was a small landholder and horse trainer who battled in court against Diazs land reforms in the smallcentral Mexican state of Morelos He became a general of the army that formed in that state the Ejeacutercito Libertador del Sur

(Liberation Army of the South) commonly known as Zapatistas The Zapatistas were mainly poor peasants who wished to spendmuch of their time working their land to produce an income As a result Zapatista soldiers tended to serve for several months at atime and then return home to spend most of the year farming He fought the Constitutionalist Carranza after Huerta was defeatedCarranza put a bounty on Zapatas head and a federalist officer pretended to defect to Zapatas side and killed him in an ambush

Villa stood 6 feet tall and was a well built 200 poundsmost noticeable feature were calculating eyes according to those that met him

Pascual Orozco (28 January 1882 ndash 30 August 1915)When Francisco I Madero called for an uprising against Diacuteaz in 1910 Orozco was an enthusiastic supporter and on 31 October of

that year was placed in command of the revolutionary forces in Guerrero municipality Madero promoted him to colonel and in early1911 to brigadier general remarkably these promotions were earned without any kind of military knowledge or military training On 10May of that year Orozco and his subordinate general Pancho Villa seized Ciudad Juaacuterez After Diacuteazs fall Orozco became resentful atMaderos failure to name him to the cabinet or a state governorship Orozco was particularly upset with Maderos failure to create aseries of social reforms that he promised at the beginning of the revolutionOn 3 March 1912 Orozco decreed a formal revolt againstMaderos government Madero ordered Victoriano Huerta to fight the rebellion Huertas troops defeated the orozquistas in Conejos

Rellano and Bachimba finally seizing Ciudad Juaacuterez After being wounded in Ojinaga Orozco was forced to flee to the UnitedStatesIn the USA he met with Huerta in New York to make plans to retake MexicoHe was killed on Aug 30 1915 in Texas while

trying to return to Mexico

Madero was jailed in San Luis Potosi while there he drew up his Plan of San Luis Potosi and called forMexicans to rise up against Diaz During this time the unconnected anti-hacienda rebellions led by Pancho

Villa in the north and Zapata in the south grew in strengthMadero escaped to America and was able to reenterMexico after Villa seized Chihuahua from federal forces Diaz sent armies to Morelos to deal with Zapata andto the north to attack VillaIn April the forces of Madero Orzoco and Villa lay siege to Ciudad Juarez By May10th this city had fallen in bitter house to house fighting watched by Americans across the river in El Paso andrebellions against Diaz break out throughout the country Crowds on the Zocalo ( main square ) in Mexico Citychanted Death to Diaz By May 21 Diazs offer to resign is accepted by Madero Francisco de la Barra the

ambassador to the US would serve as interim president Madero entered Mexico City in early June tocheering crowds Would this be an end to the bloodshed There was another portent as the earlier HaleysComet Almost as soon as Madero stepped off the train in Mexico City it was rocked by a major earthquake

killing over 200 Diaz goes into exile in France and dies four years later His nephew Felix Diaz will come intothe picture soon

The Madero Presidency November 6 1911 ndash February 18 1913Modero had unleashed a tiger Now lets see if he can control it

Porfiro Diaz on his way to exile

Map showing locations of major areas of activity during the Mexican Revolution

After Diaz resigned the secretary of foreign relations Leon de la Barra became the interim president Duringthis time Zapata and his forces in Morelos were ordered to disband and President Barra sent GeneralVictoriano Huerta to see that it was done These two came in conflict and Zapata blamed Madero for theattack

On October 1 1911 Modero won the national election Madero allowed freedom of the presswhich had beengagged since Diaz However both the liberal and conservative papers began to criticize him for lack of actionand letting the economy flounder When he became president he was besieged with demands from all side and found the Revolution meantdifferent things to different people and the more radical elements were displeased by his moderate steps atreform Madero seemed to think once democracy was established other pressing problemssuch as landreform could be solved by mutual agreement Madero came to the decision that the hacienda owners must bepaid for their hacienda lands but the government had no money with with to pay them this infuriatedZapatawho consider the hacienda owners as thieves that stole the land Zapata Some such as Zapata wantedland reform to break up the hacendados but Medero only appointed a commission that did not come to muchMadero appointed family members some of them conservative to important posts which undermined thereforms he advocated He gave out government contracts to family businesses to many this looked like oldstyle corrupt government Some argued that the new administration represented neither the principles of theRevolution nor even the theoretical reformism of Francisco Madero himself It represented simply the privateinterests of the Madero clan They pointed to the fact that throughout this regime not a single measure wasinstituted tending toward the amelioration of the vast evils endured by the people since the Diaz cuartelazo of1876

Possible Japanese plans in Mexico To what extent the rising power of Japan was involved in Mexico during these years will probably never beabsolutely known It is not without significance however that in the later years of the Diaz regime Japan madestrenuous but unavailing efforts to obtain a naval base on the Mexican coast and that more than four hundredJapanese veterans fought in the ranks of Maderos army while many thousands of them who applied forenlistment were only refused by the revolutionary authorities out of deference to the prejudices of the Mexicanvolunteers Diaz himself was of Japanese ancestry

Discontent with Madero and Rebellion The labor reformers were also disappointed and strikes continued Educational reformers were alsodisappointed even though Madero opened more schools he did not have enough funds to make more

sweeping changes Modero soon found himself facing revolts on many fronts In November Zapata declaredhis Plan de Ayula and recognized Orozco as head of the rebellion which grew in size On August 8 Maderoorders GenVictoriano Huerta sent to Cuernavaca with 1000 federal troops and forces Zapata to demobilizepart of his peasant army By Aug 10 Huerta orders Zapatas arrest and he flees into the countryside

Gen Huerta Madero was also criticised by conservatives as being anti-business Madero levies tax on oil companies to payfor education angering American ambassador Henry Lane Wilson Former General Reyes also launched a rebellion but he did not have mach support and he surrendered tofederal forces A third rebellion was launched by Emilio Gomez who was angry that Modero replaced him asvice president for Jose Suarez and by Jan the forces of Gomes had taken Cuidad Juarez Orozco who hadreached an agreement with Madero convinced the Gomez forces to give up their fight but this showed howweak the new government was Orozco in turn rose against Madero with a well equipped 6000 army supported by the powerful Terraza andCreel hacienda families of northern Mexico who feared land reform Orozco became resentful at Maderosfailure to name him to the cabinet or a state governorship and the slow pace of land reform and on March 3went into open revolt In his Plan Orozquista Modero was attacked for corruption and putting too manyrelatives into high positions Orozco planned to march on Mexico City Orozco amassed a large army and thefederal army was defeated at Rellano and its commander Jose Salas committed suicide

Prisoners were commonly executed by all side In some cases prisoners were lined up 2~3 deep to save on bullets Knowing this fatemany chose to fight to the death

Modero place Gen Huerta in charge of the army supported by Villa Huerta saw Villa as an ambitiouscompetitor and later accused Villa of stealing a horse and insubordination and had Villa sentenced toexecution Reportedly Villa was standing in front of a firing squad waiting to be shot when a telegram fromPresident Madero was received commuting his sentence to imprisonment from which Villa later escapedHuerta was able to defeat Orzcos forces and Orzco was forced to flee to the US

Villa after being given a last minute reprieve by Madero from execution by Huerta

More rebellions

Felix Diaz

Then yet another rebellion broke out in Veracruz on Oct 12 1912 led by Felix Diaz the nephew of Porfirioled mostly by supporters of Diaz Diaz and his forces later were forced to surrender Modero feelingcompassion for Diaz did not order his execution an action which would cost him his life Diaz was sent toprison in Mexico City close to Gen Reyes and together they plotted a coup

Coup against Modero

Decena Tragica

>

video of the Decena Tragica

On February 9 1913 the students of the Military Academy of Tlalpan near Mexico City broke into the prisonwhere General Bernardo Reyes and Felix Diaz were confined and set them free This was the signal for ageneral uprising of the troops stationed in the city At the head of several battalions Felix Diaz marched on thearsenal where the garrison received him with enthusiasm From that moment the cuartelazo was in fullcommand of the situation Mustering some five thousand men powerfully fortified and equipped withpractically inexhaustible supplies of ammunition the Felicistas started what was in reality a sham battle withthe government troops For days a raking fire from the opposing forces swept the city from end to end Thepractised mili-tary on both sides received little hurt but over six thousand helpless non-combatants many ofthem women and children were slaughtered in the streets The other maer coup leaders were and GenReyes Reyes was killed by a machine gun burst and Diaz took control and retreated with his forces Modero sentHuerta to command his troops For the next 10 day or Decena Tragica as it is known in Mexico Mexico Citywas engulfed in battle in which thousands of civilians were killed On Feb 17 Modero summoned Huerta and asked how long this would continue and Huerta assured him itwould over the next day And indeed it was as Huerta threw his lot in with the rebels Madero came to anagreement with the rebels in the American Embassy and the agreement is known as the Pact of the EmbassyThe American ambassador Henry Wilson wanted an end to the civil war since it was bad for Americanbusiness interests and was against Modero since he taxed oil production

Three Presidents in One Day

HuertaMadero was arrested by General Blanquet and later vice president Suarez was arrested as well In order togive his rule some legality Modero was forced to resign and Pedro Lascurain was sworn in as president withHuerta made secretary of the interior Lascurain then resigned and Huerta became president as there was novice president And so Mexico had three presidents in one day On Feb 21 1913 Modero and Suarez werekilled while being transferred to prison It is still not known if Diaz Huerta or someone else ordered themurders

The Dictatorship of Huerta 1913 -14Within a few days federal generals and state governors began to pledge support to Huerta However not alldid Coahuila Governer Venustiano Carranza did not recognize the new government and neither did theGoverners of Chihuahua where Poncho Villa took control of the anti-Huerta forces and Sonora where AlvaroObregon took control of anti-Huerta forces there with an army made up off Yaqui IndiansThey of coursedeclared a plan the Plan de Guadalupe which had no social reform goals just the ouster of Huerta Zapata in Morelos in the south also rebelled under the banner of Tierra y Libertad ( Land and Liberty ) seeing no hopefor land reform with Huerta or the rebels to the north Huertas regime was harsher and more brutal than Diazs Huerta jailsed110 members of Congress and 100Madero supporters are executedThe presswhich had been free under Madero is again gagged as it was inDiazs time Felix Diaz is shipped off to Japan on a diplomatic mission Huerta is supported by conservativesthe Catholic Church (which lost land and power in the last century) and the American business communityThe hard drinking Huertaoften goes from bar to bar at night and his aides must track him down to sign papers All males between 15 and 40 were obliged to serve in the army in areas under Huertas control and many weregathered at barbull fights and walking on the streets Using these tactics he created a 200000 none too loyalarmy

Soldaderas - Women in the Army

Woman had traditionally follwed their husbands in armies of Mexico to fed and care for them Those that followed the revolutionariesinto battle were called soldaderas often fought with their husbands as well They were celebrated in folk songs such as La Adelita

The first order of business for Huerta was to restore peace Initially Huerta was successful against therevolutionaries in the north and south In early 1914 huerta controlled two thirds of Mexico the major portsand most large cities This was reversed by an infusion of militery aid from the US By March and April 1913the rebels in the north and south were scoring important victories against Huerta In May the rebels to thenorth announced that all federal soldiers who were captured would be executed on the spot and the tempo ofthe Revolution became even more violent Huerta decided he needed to greatly enlarge his army then onlynumbering about 50000 in order to pacify the countryHuerta ordered ultimately ordered the army enlarged to250000 much of which was done under forced conscription Many of these soldiers surrendered or were ofsuch poor quality as to be useless As his military position began to crumble Huerta muzzled the press and anetwork of secret informers was employed Soon the prisons were full of political prisoners Politicalassassination was also used Increasing protests against Huertss rule by the legislature and both houses weredissolved by Huerta The economy began to suffer as Huerta packed many working men into the army Huerta issued worthlesspaper currency as did the rebels in the north and south and in other states By 1913 there were over 20different paper currencies in Mexico The US also refused to recognize Huertas government despite theaction the American ambassador Henry Wilson It is easy to label Huertas regime as a conservative reactionbut Huerta tried to make some improvements despite the situation More funds were allocated to educationand to improve the lot of the Indians Huerta was half Huichol Indian himself He increased the taxes on thelands of the hacendados which would force the owners to sell some of their lands

American Occupation of Vercruz

President Wilson decided Huerta would have to go First he tried supporting the rebels in the north and whenthis was not enough he decided on military intervention In early 1914 ordered an American fleet to patrolMexican waters The US learned that the German ship Ypiranga would arrive in Veracruz with arms for Huerta on April 21Wilson gave orders for the occupation of Vercruz and hundred of lives were lost in securing the city Thisheavy handed act led to outrage among the Mexicans and America stores in the country were looted and otheranti-American acts occurred The Americans under Wilson imposed an arms embargo after taking Veracruz The Constitutionalists in themorth still received military aid from the US The economic and military situation of Huerta became untenableand Huerta decided to resign on July 8 1914 The years following this were even more chaotic and the countrydescended into anarchy as the battles between the revolutionaries for power began In 1914 Venustiano Carranza decided that a convention should be held of all revolutionary factions atAguascalientes to decide on a provisional president of Mexico The convention chose against the wishes ofCarranza Eulalio Gutierrez as provisional president Villas troops marched to Mexico City to install GutierrezThe convention exposed the differences between the fighters The Zapatistas Villistas wanted land reform andIndian rights while the Carrancistas and Obregonistas were more concerned with adhering to the Constitutionand it was obvious that this was a calm before the country was engulfed in another civil war

Villa in throne chair seated next to Zapata at theit meeting at Xochimilco

In December 1914 Villa and Zapata meet for the first time in Xochimilco and agreed upon their disdain forCarranza middle class revolutionaries and agreed to support each other By early 1915 civil war was ragingin many states and Eulalio Gutierrez abandoned Mexico City which Obregon took unopposed By now therewere many who claimed to be president Eulalio Gutierrez who had fled to Nuevo Leon Carranza roqueGarza by the Zapatistas and Pancho Villa in Chihuahua None of these governments recognized the currencyor laws of the other

War of the Generals

Battle of Celaya The northern generals-ObregonCarranza and Villa claimed they wanted to reestablish the constitution of 1857 andwere sometimes called the Constitutionalists

This chaotic situation was cleared somewhat by the most famous battle of the revolution the battle of Celaya Here Obregon engaged Pancho Villa who had never been defeated in a major battle Pancho Villas majorstrength was his cavalry by this time World War I was ragging and Obregon noted in battle reports how barbedwire stopped cavalry charges In early April Villa attacked with an estimated 25000 and his forces were cutdown by Obregon machine guns while they tried to surmount the barbed wire Villa lost an estimated 4000killed while Obregon only lost over a little over a hundred killed this battle weakened Villa and led to hiseventual defeat The Constitutionalists were gaining the upper hand and the US decided to back theConstitutionalists by giving Carranza diplomatic recognition in October 1915

one of the many children soldiers used by all sides in the Revolution

Pancho Villa who had sought diplomatic recognition from the US for years was incensed and began to attackUS civilians On Jan 9 1916 Villistas murdered 15 American mining engineers at in Chihuahua On March 161916 485 Villistas invaded America and attacked the town of Columbus New Mexico killing 18 AmericansThe clamor for intervention was immediate President Wilson sent a small expedition of 6000 troops underGeneral John Black Jack Pershing into northern Mexico Pershing could not locate Villa and recieved no helpfor the local people who were pro-Villa Carranza began to get nervous about having American troops inMexico and ordered Pershing to withdraw Pershing was not ready to retreat and continued south where heclashed with Carrancista troops After this he was ordered to withdraw slowly north and did not leave Mexicountil Jan 1917

The Constitution of 1917

Mexican teachers trained in America during the Carranza presidency The new constitution guaranteed universal education for all andnot just for the children of the wealthy and middle class as had been done in the Diaz years The new Constitution drawn up in

Queretaro provided the principles that govern Mexico to the present

Carranzas position grew stronger and it was decided to have another convention to draw up a newconstitution Not wanting to lose control of this convention as he had at Aguascalientes no Villistas orZapatistas were allowed The delegates met a Queretaro and Carranza drafted a constitution similar to that of1857 with stronger executive control This was unacceptable to the radical reformers led by Francisco Mugicawho held a majority and voted in major reform articles The power of the church was limited the delegatesseeing it as a historic block to many reforms Education was to be secularLands illegally seized during thePorfiriato were to be restored Only nationals or foreigners who declared themselves Mexican could ownproperty There was to be an eight hour workay and a six day workweek and a minimum wage Workers wereallowed to unionize and go on strike Carranza agreed to the constitution with great reluctance but signed it inorder to have enough support to become president in the next election which he won in March 1917

The Carranza Presidency

CarranzaWhen Carranza took office in May 1917 there was still civil war raging and the economy was in shatters Thepaper currency was worthless Gold and copper production the main engine of the economy were down over50 since the Revolution The transportation system was wrecked and food shortages drove up the price offood Carranza had no plan to fully enforce the new Constitution only a little land was redistributed and thatwas mostly from his political enemies Strikes were put down by the army while World War I was still going on and Carranza received a proposal by Arthur Zimmermann the German foreign secretary for German help inretaining the land lost in the Mexican American War if Mexico entered into a formal alliance with GermanyCarranza realizing this was a pipe dream turned the offer down but did maintain neutrality in the Great War The Zapatistas were of course angry over the slow pace of land reform and stayed in revolt Carranza sentfederal troops under General Pablo Gonzales into Morelos who took many Zapatista towns but was unable toZapata The campaign there was some of the most violent of the Revolution Zapata was assassinated in April10 1919 by Colonel Guajardo of the federal army who pretended to defect to the Zapatista cause While rid ofone adversary Alvaro Obregon Plutarco Callas and Adolfo de la Huerta rose in revolt in Sonora and beganmarching with an army on Mexico City In May Carranza was forced to flee Mexico City as this armyapproached and he was assassinated by one of his own guards in TlaxcalantongoVillas power in the northwas greatly weakened and he went into retirement in 1920 He was assassinated in 1923 There is debate asto when the revolution ended as far as major military action it ended with the death of Carranza An estimated15 to 2 million people are estimated to have been killed during the Revolution Obregon became president in1920 and set about reconstructing the country

Diaz andthe

Porfiriato

1876-1910

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Obergon Callasand the TheCristero War1920-1934

Obregon and Callas 1920 - 34

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Mexico in the 1920s

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The Obregon Presidency 1920 - 24

Alvaro Obregon lost his right arm in 1915 in the battle of Santa Rosa

Obregon was elected president in 1920 and set to work to implement the 1917Constitution The beginning of his administration coincided with the economic slump thatfollowed WWI Unemployment was high in the vital mining industries and there waswidespread hunger The price of oil remained stable and by 1921 Mexico was theworlds third largest producer of petroleum which was a large source of governmentrevenue

Jose Vasconcelos To implement reforms in education Obregon named Jose Vasconcelos as secretary ofeducation Vasconcelos open many rural school and tried to integrate Indians intomainstream Mexican society Under Vasconcelos Diedo Rivera Jose Orozco and DavidSiqueiros began painting their famous murals to educate the public on the reforms ofthe Revolution Under Article 3 of the new Constitution education was to be secularand free at the primary level This was difficult to do since the state did not have thefunds or educators to educate all Mexican children and even though Vasconcelos andObregon were anti-clerical they allowed some church schools since they were betterthan no education at all

Man Masters the elements Diego Riveria 1927 Fresco at Chapingo

Diegos work depict the past oppression of indians and the lower classes The works ofSiqueiros are also leftist in nature depicting the oppressors in an ugly manner Union membership also grew greatly during the Obregon administration The mainlabor union CROM rose from 50000 members in 1920 to an estimated 12000000 by1924 Obregon started a modest land redistribution of the haciendas in order not to stall thefragile economy and by 1924 had redistributed about 3000000 acres

Americans and especially the American oil interests were upset by Article 27 of the newconstitution that specified that only Mexicans or Foreigners who declared themselvesMexicans could have sub-soil and land rights Because of this President Hardingwithheld recognition to Mexico from 1920 to 1923 In 1923 Obregon and the Mexicansenate were able to make a work-around to relieve American concerns and recognitionwas extended in 1923

Rebellion

Adolfo de la Huerta

The political landscape had not completely calmed down since the Revolution and thequestion of the 1924 presidential election as Obregon chose Plutarco Calles as hissuccessor Callas a known radical caused the conservatives military men and churchgroups to launch a revolt led by Adolfo de la Huerta which only lasted a few monthsCalles won the election of 1924 and was to remain Mexicos president until 1934

President Plutarco Callas

Plutarco Callas

Callas had a radical reputation and landowners feared for their land church leadersfeared a greater lost of power and the industrialists feared higher workers wages Fromthe beginning Callas let it be known that he would not follow the cautious and moderatepolicy of Obregon He was the most strong willed president since Diaz and became moredictatorial over time not afraid to use the army against enemies and to jail them Theworld economy was over the postwar slump and the Mexican economy revived as wellCallas redistributed 8000000 acres between 1924 and 1928 and instituted agrarianreforms and irrigation projects to boost agriculture Wages rose through Callas supportof unions Callas continued Obregons educational policies and stressed teaching Spanishto Indians to bring them into Mexican society A Department of Public Health wasstarted to improve sanitation give out vaccinations and inspect markets andrestaurants

The Cristero Rebellion

Cristeros

Unlike Obregon who decided not to strongly enforce the anti-clerical articles of theConstitution of 1917 Callas decided to do so which had violent consequences In 1926 the archbishop of Mexico Jose Mora y del Rio declared Catholics could not accept theConstitution of 1917 Angered Callas struck back by outlawing religious processions andclosing church schools monasteries and convents On July 31 1926 the archbishopdeclared a religious strike which lasted 3 years Catholic leaders in Jalisco OaxacaZacatecas and Michoacan began to organize the faithful against the government will therallying cry of Viva Cristo Rey government outposts were attacked governmentteachers were killed and government schools were burned down In April a train wasdynamited by the Cristeros killing over a hundred The war became more violent assoldiers declared they would kill one priest for each teacher killed and looted churchesThe rebellion weakened and gradually wound down but there were still some outbreaksas late as 1928 In 1929 a peace was worked out with the church agreeing to stopreligious instruction in schools and to register priests The government agreed that itwould respect the integrity of the Church and not try to outlaw it Between 1926 and1934 at least 40 priests were killed There were 4500 priests before the rebellionby1934 there were only 334 priests licensed by the government

The Assassination of Obregon

The Constitution of 1917 had recently been revised to provide for a six year presidentialterm and legal re-election Under these circumstances Obregon ran again and won theelection of 1928 however he was never to assume office He was assassinated on July17 1928 by Jose de Leon Total a Cristero supporter who considered the assassinationto be divinely inspired There was great public interest in his trial and he was sentencedto death

1928 - 34 Callas the Maximato There were three presidents after the assassination but they were puppets of Callas who named himself the Supreme Boss ( Jefe Maximo ) to keep order Callas created an political party the PNR ( Partido Nacional Revolutionario ) which would control Mexicanpolitics for years to come and today is known as Partido Revolucionario Institucional

(PRI) In the election of 1928 former education secretary Jose Vasconcelos ran againstthe Callas puppet Pascual Ortiz Rubio Vasconcelos ran under the old no re-electionbanner but Rubio won under allegations of fraud Callas gave the military great powerwithing the PNR in order to forestall future coups against the civilian government Callas became more conservative as time wore on by 1928 there was much less landredistribution and rural school openings The government withdrew its support forunions The Red Scare reached Mexico in the late 20s and early 30s After a largedemonstration The Communist Party was outlawed in 1930 and the GoldShirtssupported by Callas a fascist group attacked Jews Communists and ChineseThere were widespread accusations of corruption in the government and many formerradicals were disgusted by the millionaire socialists who lived in luxury

Mexican Revolution

1910-20

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The Presidency of Lazro Cardenas 1934 - 40

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Cardenas Calles decided to throw his support behind Cardenas a Governor of Michoacan think hewould be able to control him as a puppet With Callas support Cardenas was able to carry the 1933 PNR convention and waselected in July 1934 Cardenas cut his own salary in half and did not move into thepresidential palace but kept his own home This became the presidential residence ofLos Pinos and Chapultepec Castle was converted into into the National Museum ofHistoryCardenas decided he would not be a Callas puppet and would proceed with thereforms of the Revolution The major factor that let Calles control the last fewpresidents was his control of the army Cardenas made moves to make himselfsupported by the army as well such as raising army pay and improving army educationBy 1935 Cardenas felt strong enough in his position to start removing Callassupporters from high posts and in the army when Callas realized what Cardenas wasdoing he openly criticised Cardenas

Callas sent into Exile In the Spring of 1936 Cardenas had Callas and his supporters arrested and sent on aplane to exile in the US As he had in Michoacan Cardenas often met with commonpeople to hear their concerns He did not use bodyguards which endeared him to thepeople Cardenas was determined to fulfill the Revolutions pledge to redistribute land which hadceased under Calles rule By his first term he had redistributed 49000000 acres Asbefore the redistributed land did not go to individuals but to the community ejidos Thelands were sometimes worked by an individual or by the community Some cooperativeprojects were started such asLaguna ejido which grew cotton Cardenas established theBanco de Cedeito Ejidal to help fiance projects for ejidos By the 1940s more than halfof Mecicos cultivated land was held by the ejidos and the large haciendas no longerexisted Cardenas also worked to stregthen the labor unions and weed out the corruption of themajor union CROM by forming a new union the CTM Cardenas decreed the end of the use of capital punishment ( usually in the form of afiring squad) Capital punishment has been banned in Mexico since that time

Mexico was better able to weather the Great Depression with its oil income and hadcash resevers of around $15000000 in 1930 As the depression went on the countryburned up its reserves and as exports dived the Peso weakened and the economyworsened

Nationalization of the Oil Companies In 1936 Mexican oil workers went on strike against low pay and better workingconditions against the foreign oil companiesThe matter was sent to an arbitrationboard which ruled that the oil companies should increase wages by one third andimprove working conditions The foreign oil companies refused to comply Cardenas ruledthey were in contempt and on March 18 1938 Caacuterdenas nationalized Mexicos petroleumreserves and expropriated the equipment of the foreign oil companies in Mexico Thismove was extremely popular with the Mexican people and huge celebrations were heldand it was the high water mark of the Revolution The railway Ferrocarriles Nacionalesde Meacutexico was also nationalized in 1938 and put under a workers administration In the US there was outrage and some called for intervention However the newAmerican president Franklin Roosevelt had a policy of nonintervention in politics southof the border and the matter went to a commission which ruled Mexico should pay theUS companies 24 million Cardenas established PeMex to manage the oil industry butstarted in a weak position since many of the technicians and engineers had left The USalso refused to sell the Mexicans spare parts While this move was popular it hurt theeconomy Foreigners were afraid to invest in Mexico as did many wealthy Mexicans Oil income was a major source of income for the government and as productiondeclined the national debt rose Land redistribution slowed down after 1938 In theelection of 1939 deciding Mexico needed to move in a more conservative stabledirection he threw his support behind Avila Comacho who won the 1940 election Cardenas was aware of the devastation the Spanish Civil War was causing Spain anddecided to moderate his course to prevent the same from happening in MexicoCaacuterdenas allowed thousands of Spanish refugees enter Mexico after the defeat ofRepublican Spain by Franco

It is often said that Laacutezaro Caacuterdenas was the only president associated with PRI who didnot use the office to make himself wealthy He retired to a modest home by LakePaacutetzcuaro and worked the rest of his life supervising irrigation projects and promotingfree medical clinics and education for the nations poor He also continued to speak outabout international political issues and in favor of greater democracy and human rightsin Latin America Laacutezaro Caacuterdenas died of cancer in Mexico City in 1970

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The Presidency of Avila Camacho 1940 - 46 and World War II

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Camacho

Many predicted Cardenas would give his support to Francisco Mugica a well known revolutionary Theconservatives afraid of more socialization promoted Juan Andreu Cardenas however threw his supportbehind secretary of war Avila Comacho who was relatively unknown and called the Unknown Soldier Hewas known to be much more conservative than Cardenas and openly professed his faith The leaders in thePRM felt they needed a more conservative leader with a possible world war luming Camacho won the electionof 1940 and took the reforms of before into new directions Less land was redistributed and emphasis wasplaced on giving land to individual owners not the ejidos and fostering private ownership More emphasis wasplaced on private initiative in education Under the slogan Each one teach one every literate person from thepresident on down was to instruct one or more illiterate s to read and write Industrial expansion wasencouraged by creating a government owned bank to help finance new industries and well as tax exemptions

World War II

members of the 201 squadron

After the Germans attacked the Russiansthe government of Comacho followed a pro-Allied course That dayafter Pearl Harbor Mexico broke diplomatic relations with the Axis powers There was not much support forjoining the War However on May 14 and May 24 Mexican tankers were torpedoed by German submarinesand Comacho declared war Property owned by Axis owners were seized and a secret radio station relayinginformation to u-boats was discovered Squadron 201 of the Mexican airforce was sent to the Japanese theaterwhere the saw action in Taiwan and the Philippines 15000 Mexican soldiers fought in the war on a variety offronts Mexico provided many materials to the allied war effort and Mexican industry developed greatly Mexican workers were allowed to enter America to supliment the depleated workforce By the time the warended there were over 300000 Mexican workers in America

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1947 -2008

Post wareconomic

Boomand Bust

Mexican History 1947 - 2008

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1947 - 2009

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Miguel Aleman 1947 - 52

Miguel Aleman was the first civilan president since Carranza Postwar Mexico wasprosperous and booming Mexico had a healthy surplus after the war and Alemanlaunced a number of large public works projects such as the Morelos and Falcon Damshelped increase agricultural output irragate vast tracts of land and tripled Mexicoselectrical capacity by 1952 The railway was modernized and the Mexican segment ofthe Pan-American Highway was finished in 1951 Women were allowed to vote in 1952Pemex built new refineries and pipeline and doubled its production from 1946 to 1952Aleman used his influence to help bring the 1968 Olympics to Mexico

video of the Pan-American Highway 1940s good shots of 1940s Mexico

MexicoBiography of

PowerAHistory of

ModernMexico 1810-

1996

Drug LordTheLife and Death of

a MexicanKingpin

An expose of theconnections

between crimeand governmentin Mexico this is

the story ofPablo Acostathe notoriousscar-faced

Mexican druglord

>

The main library of the National Autonomous University of Mexico cover with murals by Juan OGormanBecause of corroption there were no books on the bookshelves Money for books had been diverted

A new University City was built to house the National University in 1952 one of themost modern in the world atthe time America was able to count on Mexican support inthe Cold War and loans from the Import-Export Bank flowed into Mexico However allwas not well There was large scale corruption strikes were supressed by the army andthe pay of teachers was so low that there were not enough to staff the new schoolsand fewer than half of school age children went to school

Ruiz Cortines 1952 - 58

Cortines began to confront the problem of corruption of the past administration TheMexican economy continued to do well and a devaluation of the Peso in 1953 helpedstabilize the country and bring in more investment Afraid that Aleman may haveovertaxed the economy with his huge projects he did not undertake and new largeprojects The population of Mexico had doubled in 30 years to 32000000 a peoplepoured into the cities but being a Catholic country the issue of birth control wasskirted around

Adolfo Mateos 1958- 64

Mateos was one of Mexicos most popular postwar presidents Many young Mexicans identified with the young Mateos (47) much as young Americans of this generation didwith JFK He continued land redistribution nationalized foreign utility concessions andmovie industries by buying controlling stock implemented new social welfare and ruraleducation programs While he was more leftist leaning than Cortines Communists werenot tolerated and arrested Strong economic growth continued Large housing projectswere started to deal with house the numerous people flocking to the cities some of thelargest housing 100000 people Industry was given incentives to locate away fromMexico City In 1960 the urban population surpassed the rural population Mateosmaintained diplomatic relations with Cuba after Castro took over much to the chagrin ofthe US The Chamizal border issue with the US was solved where the Rio Grande hadchanged course south by returning the land to question to Mexico and making aconcrete lined channel in the area Criticism of the one party system continued to growduring the Mateos administration as the electorate grew sophisticatedIn responseMateos added an amendment to the Constitution to make it easier for opposition partiesto gain ground Almost as soon as he left office he suffered a stroke and lay in a coma

The MexicanMafia

until his death in 1970

Gustavo Diaz Ordaz 1964 - 70

Ordaz was a conservative with an agenda that favored business and the economy grew6 and the tourist trade greatly increased But he is most remember for his supressionof civil liberties during the turbulent late 60s Diaz had fired the reform mindedpresident of the PRI Carlos Madrazo and annulled elections where oposition parties wonmayoral elections in Tijuana and Mexicalli Students at the National University were thefirst to organize protests and many university campuses exploded in violence andstrikes sometimes with federal troops being called in

Tlatelolco massacre

Mexico won the bid to host the summer games of 1968 In July 26 1968 leftist studentsgathered to celebrate the anniverary of the Cuban Revolution which was met with riotpolice and erupted into a large street riot In the following days there were more riotsHuge demonstrations were held on many universities On August 27 there was a hugedemonstration of half a million people and the government moved tanks and troops in the following clash led to some deathsIn September students occupied many buildingsand threatening to disrupt he Olympics Diaz ordered troops into the buildings and 500demonstratoers were put in jail For two weeks bands of students roamed the streetsbarricading streets and burning buses On October 2 1968 another strike was called forat Tlatelolco After the rally ended and the demonstrators failed to disband the armyused tear gas and clubs The army claimed they were fired upon and opened up withtheir machine guns However it started several hundred people were killed

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Despite this the Olympic Games themselves were free of violence On Oct 1969 on theanniversary of Tlatelolco underground groups set off bombs at government offices andgovernment buildings

Ordaz launched the Border Industrialization Program in which maquiladoras establishednext to the border that assembled goods Raw materials from US factories wereassembled by low wage workers and exported duty free to Mexico

Luis Echeverriacutea 1970 - 76

Echeverriacutea former secretary of the interior became president in 1970 Caught in theinflation of the early 70s he tried to order price controls on basic items He was one ofthe first presidents to give an endorsement of birth control The unemploed went to thebig cities and started squatter towns One of the largest outside Mexico City had apopulation of 2 million in the 1980s The government was forced to recognize it and itwas named Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl Many started to go to America illegally The officialbracero prgoram ended in 1964

Robberies and kidnappings the bane of other Latin American countries started inMexicoby guerrilla groups and there was insurrection in Guerrero that took a year to putdown During his period the countrys external debt soared from $6 billion in 1970 to$20 billion in 1976 This caused the ruling party at least in terms of its economicpolicies to gradually lose prestige at home and abroad In September 1976 the Pesowas devaluated 60 and a month larer it was devlued a further 40 By 1974 about70000 Mexicans worked in 450 maquiladoras By the 1970s the population of thebodertowns such as Ciudad Jarez surged Since 1973 maquiladoras have alsoaccounted for nearly half of Mexicorsquos export assembly Wages were low and workersconditions were bad Despite this and the building of a booming tourist industry in theYucatan Echeverriacutea was unable to remake the state led economic miracle of thepostwar years

Jose Lopez Portillo 1976 - 82

Jose Portillo came to power during the jump in oil prices during the oil embargo and thesudden world oil glut that sent Mexico into recession His opponents internationally anddomestically accused Loacutepez Portillo of rampant corruption excessive overseasborrowing galloping inflation (which continued with his successor) and responsibilityfor devaluations of the pesoIn September 1976 to make exports more competitivethe Peso was devaluated 60 and a month larer it was devlued a further40iexclDefendereacute el peso como un perro ndash I will defend the peso like a dog It earnedhim the nickname El perro (The dog) and having people barking at him

In 1974 huge new oil reserves were found in Chiapas and Tabasco with the rising oilprices after the OPEC embargo suddenly Mexico was a wealthy nation In 1982 oil madeup 78 of imports Plans were made to make Mexico self-sufficient in food productionand billions of dollars were invested in rural development Despite the oil boom by theend of the Lopez administration the trade deficit approached 12 billion dollars and was18 of the GDP by 1982 The total debt climed to 80 billion dollars The oil prices felland the economy was devestated Mexico could not meet its debt repayments The USfederal Reserve and the IMF stepped in to bail Mexico out

Miguel de la Madrid 1982 - 86

During his tenure the economy only made weak progress crushed by the huge debtfrom the oil boom years Madrid was not as free as his predeccors to manage theeconomy with the restrictions placed by the world Bank and the IMF The Peso wasdevalued again and fell from 80 to 155 Pesos to the dollar Price controls were lifted onthousand of commodities and bread for example increased 100 in price Publicspending was cut by one third Mexico renegotiated its debts and had to commit 53 ofthe federal budget to repayments Even thought the economy contracted an estimated6 yearly in the 80s foreign investors and banks were encouraged to invest in Mexicoagain by the government actions

On Sept 19 1985 a 81 earthquake devastated Mexico City and the next day a 73earthquake hit and killed at least 10000 and caused more than $4 billion in damageOver 100000 were left homeless Madrids The goverment was slow to respond andgrassroot movement sprang upMadrids popularity was severly damaged More loanswere necessary to deal with the problem and the national debt soared to 96 billiondollars

There were now violent protests against the PRI for corruption fraud and strong armelection tactics Inflation increased on an average of 100 a year During de la Madridspresidency he introduced liberal economic reforms that encouraged foreign investmentand widespread privatisations of outdated state-run industries and reduction of tariffs aprocess that continued under his successors He joined the removed protective tarrifsfrom mamy products to be able to join the GATT ( General Agreement on Tariffs andTrade ) in 1986

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Hoping to regain the popularity lost after the earthquake Madrid started a policy to dealcorruption and the demands people always faced for mordidas or bribes Some progresswas made with political corruption as well and the conservative opposition party PANwas premitted to win some elections

Carlos Salinas de Gortari 1988 - 1994

In the election of 1988 Cuauhtemoc Cardenas on the new FDN party was believed tohave gotten more votes than the PRI candidate Carlos Salinas But vote counting wasinterrupted by a mysterious computer failure In the end Salinas won with barely over50Salinas tranformed Mexicos state dominated economy into one ofprivate enterprise and free trade the high point of which was the NAFTA agreement

masked ELZN fighters

In 1994 a new Zapatista uprising EZLN started in Chiapas against corruption Indianabuse and its own government Their main spokesperson is Subcomandante MarcosThe group takes its name from Emiliano Zapata the anarchist commander of theLiberation Army of the South during the Mexican Revolution and thus see themselves ashis ideological heirsIt was led by The president responded with military repression butreports of the national and international media forcing a change in government policyand a negotiatin through the church

Also in 1994 Salinas chosen sucessor Luis Colosio was assassinated in Tijuana Hereformed the Clerical Laws which had forbidden Catholic priests from voting andestablished a new relationship between State and Church which had been severelydamaged after the Cristero War The new laws also allowed the Catholic churches toown their own buildings

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He has been vilified for the economic crisis Mexico plunged into after he left officeSalinas privatized Telmex and 400 other state owned businesses the governmentowned provider of telecommunications service and placed the owner of the newlyformed company into the name of a formerly unknown person by the name of CarlosSlim Heluacute Debts repaments was reduced to 29 of the GDP and the economy grew 5in 1991 During Salinas term drug trafficing grew into a huge business after the UDcrackdown on shipments from Columbia Salinas and his advisors pursued a policy ofallowing the Peso to become highly overvalued and led to a run on the Peso inDecember 1994 Because of large scale corruption and the assassination of Ruiz Massieuwhich led to the arrest of Salinas brother Raul Salinas has become one of the mostreviled figures in Mexican history behind Cortes and Diaz In 1997 he moved to Ireland which does not have an extradition treaty with Mexico Many Mexicans feelcorruption has bankrupted the country Raul Salinas is estimated to have $300 millionabroad Some allege that the huge prices paid during the privatization shows drugmoney was involved

Ernesto Zedillo 1994 - 2000

Within days of taking office the Peso suddenly collapsed known as the DecemberMistake and led to an economic recesssion The crisis ended after a series of reformsand actions led by Zedillo US president Bill Clinton granted a $50 billion loan to Mexicowhich helped in one of Zedillos intiatives to rescue the banking system Foreign adMexican investors withdrew billions from Mexico putting the country in an economictailspin He replaced en masse the notoriosly supreme court Zedillo was able to makesome headway against Mexicos crime lords He reformed politics so that power waspeacefully transferred to a non PRI successor Vicente Fox

Vicente Fox 2000 - 2006

Fox was Mexicos first non=PRI president In 2000 Vicente Fox decided to run forPresident of Mexico In spite of opposition within his party Fox secured his candidacyrepresenting the Alliance for Change a political coalition formed by the National ActionParty and the Ecological Green Party of MexicoVicente Fox was one of the fewPresidents to avoid a major economic upheaval during office however economy grew ata slow pace GDP growth dropped to an average an average of 22 during Foxsadministration Since globalization has contributed to the competition and advent oflow-cost offshore assembly in places like Taiwan China and countries in CentralAmerica maquiladoras in Mexico have been on the decline since 2000 According tofederal sources approximately 529 maquiladoras shut down and investment in assemblyplants decreased by 82 percent in 2002

Felipe Calderon 2006 - present

On July 6 2006 the Federal Electoral Institute announced the official vote count in the2006 presidential election resulting in a narrow margin of 058 for Calderoacuten over hisclosest contender PRD candidate Andreacutes Manuel Loacutepez Obrador However LoacutepezObrador and his coalition alleged irregularities in a number of polling stations anddemanded a national recountOn September 5 2006unanimously declared president-elect by the tribunal Calderoacuten has also stated that the challenge is not between thepolitical left or right but a choice between the past and the future In hisinterpretation moving toward the past would mean nationalization expropriationstate control of the economy and authoritarianism while the future would representthe contrary privatization liberalization market control of the economy and politicalfreedom

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Mexican historytime line

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Timeline of Mexican History

httpmexicanhistoryorgtimelinehtm[5202010 25446 AM]

Mexican History Time lines

Pre-Columbian History TimeLine

Time era name Mexico World 40000 BC Pre-agricultural

eraLast Ice Age Neanderthal man dies out

11500

oldest human remains foundin Mexico 11500 year old

skull

8000 BC Landbridge to Siberia goesunderwater

Agriculture beings inMiddle East

7500 BCMural Art Baja

7000 Large animals vanishless rainfall

Walled city of Jericho

5000

5000 -

2000

1500 BC

Archaic era

evidence of agriculture atTehuacan

Pottery appears

1300 Tlatilco figurines LakeTexcoco

5000 Sea divides Britainfrom Europe

3100 1st Egyptian Dynasty 2700 Great Pyramid built 2500 Indus civilization 2500 Knossos founded 2350 Sumerian empire

founded 2200 Xia Dynasty China 1850 Stonehenge started

1760 Shang Dynasty China

1750 Hammurabi 1304 Rameses the Great

1500

Pre-Classic era

Terracing and chinampas(floating gardens)

1400 earliest ballcourts found inPaso de la Amada

1200 Beginning of Olmec Culture 1300 1300 Rameses the great 1200 1232 Israelites in Canaan 1100 1122 Zhou Dynasty China

1000 1050 Dorians invade lowergreece

900

900 San Lorenzoabanonded by Olmecs La

Venta becomes Olmeccenter Oldest Olmec writing

found

800 814 Carthage Founded

700700

500 Oldest Zapotec writing

Height of OlmecCulture

400

776 1st Olympic Games 750s Height of Assyria

752 Rome founded

600 End of Assyrian Empire

500563 Buddha born

551 Confucus born 559 Cyrus founds Persian

Empire

400 480 Battle of Thermopylae 460 Age of Pericles

300 323 Alexander dies at

200

Decline of Olmecs Babylon

Han Dynasty

100

Classic Era

150 Cholula Pyramid started

Height of Teotihuacancivilization

150 AD Pyramid of the Sunconstructed

450

26 BC

Roman Empire

476 AD

0 100 200 250

Mayan Classic Age

900

300

400

500 rise of Xochicalco El TajinCholula

600 650 Teotihuacan sacked rise of Zapotecs in Oaxaca 632 Death of

Muhammad

700 800

900 900 Toltec Empire dominates

much of central Mexico 1100

981 Vikings inGreenland

1000

Post Classic Era

1066 Hastings 1st Crusade

1100

1200

Inca EmpireMongol Empire

1215 MagnaCarta

1300 1325 Aztecs foundTenochtitlan

14001428

Aztec Empire 1521

1453 Fall ofConstantinople

Columbus1500 1600

After Arrival of Spanish TimeLine

No BP BailoutDemand BP pay back every dime spentcleaning up their mess in the Gulfsalsaelwiredorgo20059pdiaact

Year Mexico Americas Europe Asia

1517 Cordoba expedition Martin Luthernails his 95

Theses

1518 C o l o n i a l

Juan de Grijalva expedition Cortes leaves Cuba for Mexico

1521 1521 the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan was conquered

1522 Cortes was appointed governor and captain general of NewSpain

1524 Council of the Indies created

M e x I c o N u e v a E s p a n a

1527 Audiencia est in New Spain 1531 vision of the Virgin of Guadalupe 1533 Mexico City University founded 1536 first coins minted in New Spain 1537 the New Laws outlaw indian slavery 1540 Coronado searches for Cibola 1541 Mixton War of 1540 -41 1546 Chichimeca War 1547 Mayan War against Spanish for 20 years

1560 ships travel in annual convoys for protection

1563 cathedral in Mexico City started 1564 Trade with China Established 1571 Spanish Inquisition in Mexico till 1820 Battle of Lepanto

1588 defeat ofSpanish Armada

1610 Santa Fe colony founded

1619 JamestownVirgina founded

1624 Virginia becomes acrown colony

1642 English Civil War 1644 Qing dynasty begins1692 Salem witch trials

1695 Sor Juana de la Cruz dies Peter the Greatin Europe

1697 last Msyan kingdom of Canek capitulates

1700 Bourbon Reforms start under Philip V of Spain

Treaty of Utrechtends War of the

SpanishSuccession

Britain grantedasiento to supply

slaves to theSpanish America

1713

1750s paintings of Miguel Cabrera French and IndianWar till 1763

1762 Rousseaupublishes

Social Contract

1764 Jose de Galvez in New Spain Stamp Act 1767 Jesuits expelled Cook in Pacific1769 Missions est in California

1773 Boston Tea Party

1775 AmericanRevolution starts

1785 Castillo de Chapultepec built

1787 US Constitutionsigned

1789 Washington firstpresident

FrenchRevolution

beginsEnglish Convicts sent to

Australia

1803 LouisianaPurchase

1804 Silver production rises to 27 million Pesos Napoleon crownshimself emperor

1808 Napoleoninvades Spain

1810 Miguel Hidalgo y Costillas 1810 Grito de Dolores (call forindependence)

Argentinaindependent

1811 Miguel Hidalgo executed by firing squad on July 31 1811ParaguayVenezuela

independentWar between the

US and Britain

1813 Jose Marcia Morelos issues a Declaration of IndependenceConstitution

1814 Napoleon exiledto Elba

1815 Morelos executed Battle of New

Orleans Waterloo

1820 coup in Spain Colonel Iturbide joins the rebels

1821

e m p I r e

Mexican Independence from Spain September 27 1821 Iturbidemarched into the capital with Vicente Guerrero and Guadalupe

Victoria and the army Iturbide declares himself emperor of Mexico

Peru independent

1823

E a r l y R e p u b l I c

Santa Anna Plan de Casa Mata to oust the emperor

Iturbide goes into exile

Central America leaves Mexico

Monore Doctrineissued

1824Iturbide returns to Mexico and is executed

1st pres of Mexico President Guadalupe Victoria 1824 -29

1829 President Vicente Guerrero Spanish invasion of Mexico

1830 President Bustamante 1830 - 32

1833 Santa Anna pres Carlist Wars inSpain

1835 S a n t a A n n a

M e x i c a n A m

W a r

Revolt of Texas 1836 1838 Pastry War French blockade Opium War

1840

Yucatan Congress approved a declaration of independencerejoins Mexico in 1843

Mexican states of Coahuila Nuevo Leoacuten and Tamaulipas declare

federal republic with Laredo as the capital

1842 Hong Kong given to UK

1845Santa Anna exiled to Cuba Texas joins the Union

Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga overthrows Herrera

1846

Mayan Caste War Santa Anna returns to MexicoMay 13 1846 Congress declared war on Mexico

May 8 1846Battle of Palo AltoSeptember 21ndash23 1846Battle of Monterrey

1847 Feb 23 Battle of Buena Vista Sept 12 Battle of Chapultepec

1848 Feb 2 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

Revolutionsthroughout

Europe Gold discovered

in California CommunistManifesto

1852 Santa Anna returned to power in a coup 1853 Gadsen Purchase Taiping Rebellion Starts1854 Plan of Ayutla to remove Santa Anna Crimean War 1855 Santa Anna defeated and exiled Juan Alvarez president

1857

W a r o f R

Constitution of 1857 modeled after the one of 1824 presidentcan only serve one term reforms conataining power of church

and military

War of the Reform startsarmy declares Zuloaga the new president

1861Liberals under Juarez win the War of the Reform Juarez first

Indian president American Civil War

e f

Spain England and France agreed to the Convention of London

Starts

1862 Spain England and France land troops blockade demandingrepayments of debt England and Spain depart French troops

stay Napoleon III wants empire French defeated at Puebla

1863 F r e n c h

French install Maximilian as emperor Gettysburg

1867 French withdraw from Mexico Maximilian executed ConstitutionalRepublic restored

Cuban rebellionagainst Spain Meiji era starts in Japan

great industrialization

1871 Juarez Runs for a Fourth Term despite no re election article of the Constitution of 1857 Diaz launches no re-election revolt Franco-Prussian

War

1872 Mexico City - Veracruz railway finished Juarez dies in office Lerdo becomes president

1875 Senate was added to the legislature

1876 P o r f i r i a t o

Lerdo runs for and wins presidency again Diaz revolts againdefeats a federal army in Tlaxcala Diaz rules in an era known as

the Porfiriato 1876 - 1911

1880 Manuel Gonzalez presidentBanco Nacional de Meacutexico was founded

1884Diaz wins pres again has the constitution amended first to allow

two terms in office and then to remove all restrictions on re-election

1900 growing opposition to Diazs rule Boxer rebellion1890 Mexican treasury has a surplus

1898 Spanish-AmericanWar Boer War

1908 Diaz announces he will not seek re-election but does anyway Ford begins

assemble lineproduction

1910

Francisco Madero runs against Diaz who had Madero jailed Diaz becomes pres over with fraud public anger

Madero issuses call for Revolution on November 20 Beginning of the Mexican Revolution

Japan annexes Korea

1911

M e x I c a n R e v o l u t I o n

Ciudad Juarez surrenders to the rebels Orozco and Villa Diaz resigns

Modero wins election Orozco rebels against Modero Felix Diaz rebels in Veracruz

Qing Dynasty overthrown

1913

Coup starts against Modero on Feb 9Decena Tragica in Mexico City

Gen Huerta changes sides Modero arrested and murdered

Huerta becomes presidentCoahuila Governer Carranza does not recognize Huerta

Huerta greatly enlarges army

1914

Americans occupy Veracruz hundreds killed by naval firewidespread anger at the US

Huerta resignsCarranza holds convention at Aguascalientes

Eulalio Gutierrez as provisional president Divid by land reformers Zapatista and Villa and Constitutionalists

Carranza and Obregon

WWI starts

First Battle ofthe Marne

1915

Obregon takes Mexico City as Gutierrez flees Battle of Celaya Obregon defeats Villa

US recognizes Carranza Villa angry at not getting US recognition kills 15 Americans in

Mexico and attacksColumbus New MexicoPershing ordered into Mexico to catch Villa leaves in 1917

emptyhanded

1917

Zimmermann Telegram

Constitution of 1917 church power limited foreigners not allowedto own land

Carranza elected president

Russian

Revolution

1919Zapata assassinated by federal army

Alvaro Obregon Plutarco Callas and Adolfo de la Huerta rise inrevolt

Carranza assassinated by own guard while fleeing

1920 Obregon becomes president

1921 Mexico is the worlds 3rd largest oil producer

1923 Villa assassinated America recognizes Mexico Facism Starts in

Italy

1924 Obregon supports the CRON union

Adolfo de la Huerta leads short lived revolt Radical reformer Plutarco Callas becomes president

1926 C r I s t e r o s

W a r

Cristeros War begins gov fights church ends 1934 Lindbergh fliesacross Atlantic

1928Obregon assassinated Callas rules till 1934 through puppetsCallas creates national party PNR later known as PRI which

holds power till the 2000

1934Cardenas president

Cardenas starts major land redistribution Callas forced into exile

Hitler becomesFuher Maos Long March

1936 Cardenas nationalizes foreign oil companies PeMex founded Spanish CivilWar

1939 WWII starts 1940 Comacho becomes president

1942 Mexico declares war on Axis after tankers sunk by u-boatsMexican Air force fights in Pacific

Revolution inArgentina

1946-50 Aleman president major dams built University City Korean War

1954 Women allowed to vote Dien Bien Phu falls

1959 Castro takes overCuba

1968 Tlatelolco massacre Mexico City Olympics China Cultural Revolution

1970-76 Echeverriacutea president nationalization of banks population control urged Coup in Chile

1976-82 Oil boom years

Oil prices sink economic crisis foreign debt crisis

1985 Mexico City earthquake

1988-94

Salinas president free market and private enterprise policies

Zapatista uprising Drug trafficing grows

Peso overvalued NAFTA signed

1994 - 2000 Zedillo president

the Peso suddenly collapsed known as the December Mistakeand led to an economic recesssion

2000-2006 Vicente Fox first non PRI president

Mexican-American War Timeline Mexican Revolution Timeline

Mexican American War Timeline

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War of 1812 RecordsLargest Online US Military RecordsCollection Discover Family Heroeswwwancestrycom

1821 The New Republic of Mexico grants lands in the sparely populatedTexas state on the condition settlers convert to Catholicism and assumeMexican citizenship The Mexicans hoped this to help control raids byCommanches and stop possible expansion into the area by the UnitedStates by integrating these new settlers into Mexican society

Mexican land grant

1835 Many Americans come to settle in Texas By 1835 there were 30000Americans and only around 8000 Mexicans Mexico orders halt toAmerican immigration but Americans continue to cross the border tosettle President Santa Anna abolishes the federal constitution of Mexicoreplaces it with a new centralist constitution The militias of Mexicanstates ordered to be disbanded Many states including Texas revoltfearing they would live under a tyrant with no representation Oct 2 Texians revolt against Mexico

1836

March 6 Fall of the Alamo April 26 Battle of San Jacinto Santa Anna captured and forced tosign the Treaties of Velasco which he agreed to withdraw his troopsfrom Texan soil and recognizes Texas independence Mexicangovernment deposed him in absentia and disavows his treaty Mexico

still regards Texas as part of Mexicobut is too weak by internaldisturbances to try to regain it

1838

Pastry War

Santa Anna becomes a hero fighting the French ( 1838 Pastry War) andlosing part of his leg to shellfire and re-elected president

1844 Dec 6 in Mexico City troops rise against Santa Anna who isoverthrown The mutineers select Gen Jose de Joaquin de Herrera aspresident June 3 Santa Anna exiled to Cuba where he plots his return as hishero Napoleon did from Elba island

1845

US President John Tyler who has become president after the deathof president Harrison (who died on April 4 1841 from a cold a monthafter delivering a two hour inaugural speech on a cold and rainy day)wishes to annex Texas to gain prestige for a new political party hewished to found The Senate rejects an annexation treaty due to anti-slavery forcessuch as former President Martin Van Buren who wereafraid Texas would become a slave holding state

Republic of Texan $10

Feb 28 Congress annexes Texas in a joint resolution The Texan claimto the Rio Grande boundary had been omitted from the annexationresolution to help secure passage after the annexation treaty failed inthe Senate March 1 United States Congress votes to annex the Republic of Texas

Pres Polk

March 4 Expansionist James K Polk (49) becomes president of theUS One of the goals of his administration is acquire California and NewMexico from Mexico The main interest was San Francisco Bay as anaccess point for trade with AsiaPolk claims the Rio Grande as the

1845

boundary between the US and Mexico Americans base claims on the Treaties of Velasco Mexico however had never ratified these treatieswhich were signed by Santa Anna while he was a prisoner in Texas Thedisputed area had never been a part of the viceroy of Texas underMexican rule but had been parts of Tamaulipas Coahuila Chihuahuaand Nuevo Mexico

Pres Herrera

March 28 Mexican Senate breaks off negotiations gives interimPresident Herrera authority to raise troops and prepare for war Herrerapreferred peaceful negotiations March 6 Mexican ambassador in Washing requests passport-Mexicoregards Texas as a breakaway province July 4 Anglo-Americans in Texas accept US terms for annexation

Gen Taylor

July 22-23 Polk orders Gen Zachary Taylor to depart Fort JessupLouisiana into Texas with 1500 troops on the transport Alabama July 31 Taylor camps with army at Corpus Christi near the mouth ofthe Nueces River regarded by Mexico as the Mexican-Texas border Bylate Oct 3500 regulars have gathered Nov 29 Former US Congressmen John Slidell arrives at Veracruz totry to negotiate with the Mexican government He is authorized to offer$25 million for the disputed Rio Grande border area in Texas andMexicos provinces of Alta California and Santa Fe de Nuevo MexicoMexicans considered this an insult to national honor When MexicanPresident JoseJoaquin de Herrera considers receiving Slidell in order topeacefully negotiate the problem of Texas annexationhe was accused oftreason and deposed by followers of Santa Anna but regains power Sept 15 Interim president Herrera wins election and becomespresident Dec2 - Polk reinstates the Monroe Doctrine and calls for westernexpansion

GenParedes

Dec 14 Herrera assembles a force of 6000 men This was put underthe command of General Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga and ordered northto fight the Americans Paredes got as far as San Luis Potosiacutei butinstead of marching north against the invaders in December he turnedback to the capital and overthrew President Herrera Dec 29 Texas becomes the 28th state of the United States Mexicobreaks diplomatic relations with the United States

1846

Flag of the Yucatan Republic ( 1841-1848)

Jan 1 Yucatan declareds its independence from Mexico and itsneutrality in the war with the United States Jan 2 General Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga enters Mexico City declaredPresident of Mexico Feb 10 ndashMormons begin their migration west from to the Great SaltLake March 5 Federally commissioned explorer John C Fremontapproaches Monterey with a 60 man survey team is ordered to leaveCalifornia by Mexican authorities after stir up patriotic enthusiasm amongthe American settlers there Fremont entrenches on Gavilan (MountFremont) and is surrounded by a 350 man force under GenJose MariaCastro Fremont retreats after four days under cover of darkness March 8 Gen Taylor is authorized to move south into disputed territory March 28 Gen Taylor reaches the Rio Grande The Mexicancommander in MatamorosCol Francisco Mejia considers this aninvasion of Mexican territory but is not authorized to attack Taylorerects a camp named Fort Texas with 2200 men Mejia has 3000 menunder his command April 2 Gen Mariano Arista appointed in command of the Army of theNorth to confront the Americans April 11 Gen Arista reaches Matamoros Taylor ordered to return toCorpus Christi within 24 hours Taylor refuses April 25 a 1600-strong Mexican cavalry detachment underGenTorrejon attacked a 70-man US patrol that had been sent into thecontested territory north of the Rio Grande at Carricitos The Mexicancavalry routed the patrol killing 16 US soldiers in what later becameknown as the Thornton Affair after Captain Thornton who was in

1846

command May 3 Mexican artillery opens heavy fire against Fort Texas Maj JacobBrown killed by shellfire Fort Texas renames Fort Brown in his honorwhich later becomes Brownsville

May 7 Battle of Palo Alto GenArista with 3300 confronts Taylors2300 American flying artillery wreak havok on Mexican lines Mexicancavalry charge under Torrejon who are disperesed by accurate fireMexicans withdrawl by evening with 400 casualities Americans have 9killed May 8 Resaca de la Palma GenArista deploys his forces in anempty lake bed with his army in a narrow line Taylor attacks his centeroverrunning the Mexican artillery Mexicans retreat across the RioGrande Mexican losses 200 killed 39 Americans killed May 13 US Congress declares war on Mexico 173-14 in theHouse 40-2 in the Senate after learning of the Carricitos incident May 17 Taylor crosses Rio Grande and takes Matamoros which hasbeen abandoned by the Mexican army Arista retreats toward LinaresNuevo Leonlosing many men in the desert Arista resigns commandto GenJose Maria Ortega May 19 blockade of Tampico starts May 20 Blockade of Veracruz starts Revolts against Parede inGuadalajara June 12 America reaches compromise with Britain over PacificNorthwest with the Canadian-US border set at the 49th parallel 6000man Mexican government army arrives to besiege Guadalajara

July 4 American settlers in California declare themselves independentof Mexico and establish Bear Flag Republic July 7 Mexican Congress declares war on the US Aug 5 GenJose Mariano Salas deposes Paredes as president

Aug 16 Santa Anna returns to Veracruz after exile in Cuba on aBritish shipWashington believes he will help conclude a peace Aug18 GenKearny occupies Santa Fe without a fight Aug 19 Taylor marches toward Mier and Camargo with 3200 regularsand 3000 volunteers leaving 4700 for garrison duty Sept 15 Santa Anna enters Mexico City to great reception Sept 19 Taylor arrives at Monterrey with 6645 troopswhich isdefended by a formidable citadelcalled the Black Fort by the Americansthe Mexican commander Ampudia has 7000 Mexican regulars and 2-3000 militia

Sept 24 Most of Monterrey in American hands after fierce house tohouse fighting Ampudia asks for terms Mexican army allowed to marchout with arms Americans suffer 120 killed Mexicans 700 casualties Sept 23 Californio guerrillas under Servulo Verda attack a 48 manAmerican garrison in Loa Angles forcing them to surrender Sept 28 Santa Anna departs Mexico City to San Luis Potosi gatheringa 21500 man army in four months Nov 13 Taylor occupies undefended Saltillo Nov 30 The US decides to transport another army to Veracruz toattack Mexico City to be led by Gen Winfield Scott Dec 2 Santa Anna inaugurated as president Dec 25 El Paso taken by Doniphan Mexican lose 100 in cavalrycharge no Americans killed Dec 26 Taylor arrives at Brazos de Santiago (near BrownsvilleTexas) Dec 28 Stockton and Kearny with 600 men attack Flores with 450 menand retake Los Angles the last Mexican stronghold in California

1847

Jan 13 LtRichey who is carrying Scotts campaign plans toGenTaylor is killed trying to buy provisions in Villagran the plans areforwarded to Santa Anna at San Luis PotosiThe Treaty of Cahuengaends the fighting in the Mexican-American War in California

1847

Jan 28 Santa Anna decides to attack Taylor after learning of hisdeminished strength from the captured plans The vanguard is the SanPatrico Company of Irish-American deserters of a 20000 man Mexicanarmy Only 14000 survive the grueling desert march to EncarnacionSanta Anna prepares to attack Taylors positron at Coahuila Jan 30 ndash Yerba Buena California is renamed San Francisco Feb 20 a 400 American recon unit spots 4000 Mexican cavalry inadvance of Santa Annas army at Hediona Ranch and ride back to warnTaylor Taylor decides to fall back with his 4800 troops to Buena VistaHacienda an easier to defend narrow pass

Feb 22 Battle of Buena Vista Shortly after sunrise Santa Annas18000 appear and sends a surrender order to Taylor who rejects it (Tell Santa Anna to go to hell ) Indecisive firefights for high groundensuesThe flying artillery breaks up Mexican attacks Mexicans lose1800 Americans lose 267 killed with 1500 desertionsSanta Annaorders a retreat at night toward Agua Nueva Taylor retires towardMonterrey Feb 28 Battle of Sacramento American force entering Mexico from ElPaso of 924 under Doniphan attacks 2400 Mexican force of theSacramento River north of Chihuahua City Mexicans lose 300 killedmost in a 800 man cavalry charge America lose one killed and occupyChihuahua City March 9 American landing at Veracruz8600 soldiers land by nightfallSiege of Veracruz begins March 21 10500 return with Santa Anna to San Luis Potosi March 28 Veracruz surrenders April 14 Battle of Cerro Gordo Santa Anna deploys 12000 rawtroops and 43 field pieces on the National Highway to Mexico City toblock the American advance A flanking maneuver and frontal assaultbreaks the Mexican lineSpecial Cavalry Division Army Corps ofEngineers Capt Robert E Lee discovered a mountain trail around SantaAnnas position Mexican troops retreat in panic 3000 Mexican prisonerstakenAmericans lose 63 killedGeneral Santa Anna caught off guard bythe Fourth Regiment of the Illinois Volunteer Infantry was compelled toride off without his artificial leg which was captured and is still displayedin Illinois April 20 American army enters deserted Jalapa

1847

April 21 Santa Anna arrives at Orizaba and begins to reassemble4000 of his defeated troops May 15 Scotts army enters Puebla with no opposition May 28 Scott has lost 3000 volunteer militia as the terms of theirenlistment has expiredand is left with 5820 - to few to attack MexicoCity and wait for reinforcements June 14 Perry in a squadron of steamers takes Villahermosa inTobasco Mexican guerillas surround American garrison there forcingthe American garrison to leave by July 19 July 8 Scott is reinforced at Puebla by 4500 troops Aug 7 Scott begins offensive against Mexico City Scott now has 14000troops 2500 of which are sick Aug 10 Mexican fortify El Penon Hill with 7000 troops and 30 cannons Aug 19 Americans have breakthrough at San Geronimo a surpriseattack kills 700 Mexicans Mexicans flee across river at Churubusco andCoyoacan The San Mateo Convent is taken with some of the SanPatrico Battalion 30 out of 69 are executed Aug 20 Santa Anna flees back to Mexico City Mexican loses are 4000dead and 3000 captured Americans have lost 139 killed Aug 22 Scott grants Santa Anna a trucehoping he will ask for terms Sept 7 Americans learn Mexicans have fortified a strong position atMolino del Rey Scott sends 3500 under Worth to take it which fallsafter a fierce battle Americans lose 116 killed Sept 12 Scott orders to bombardment of the hilltop castle ofChapultepec the last major defense before Mexico City defended by260 defenders under GenBravo 50 of which are cadets The next daythe lower defenses are overcome in a fierce hand to handstruggleScaling ladders are brought up and by 930 AM Col Joseph EJohnsons troops have unfurled American flag atop the castle Six cadetsfight to the death one jumping to his death holding the Mexican flag andare known as los Ninos Heros today(Boy Heros) Santa Ana fleesMexico City

Sept 14 Scotts army enters Mexico City main square by noon Acouple of days of severe rioting follows Santa Anna regroups atGuadalupe Sept 15 Santa Anna resigns in favor of Chief Justice Manuel de lePena y Pena Oct 8 Santa Anna ordered to turn over military command to Rincon andprepare to stand trial for his conduct of the war Nov 10 Mazatlan is taken after Mexican garrison withdraws Nov 11 elections held in unoccupied parts of Mexico Anaya becomeinterim president

1848 Jan 24 gold discovered at Sutters Mill in Coloma California Feb 2 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo signed America takesCaliforniaNevadaUtahColoradoArizona and New Mexico Mexico loses55 of its pre war territory (23 if Texas is included) America pays $15million in compensation and assumes responsibility for $35 million inclaims by US citizens against MexicoMexicans living in lands ceded (about 80000) were to be treated as US citizens July 31 last of 18300 American troops depart Mexico

1876

Santa Anna dies in obscurity in Mexico City Buried at TepeyacCemetery near Guadalupe Hidalgo

1929 Last veteran of Mexican-American Warsailor Owen Edgar dies Home

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Mexican Revolution Timeline

httpmexicanhistoryorgMexicanRevolutiontimelinehtm[5202010 25554 AM]

Mexican Revolution Time line Revolucioacuten Mexicana 1910 - 1920

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April 20 Haileys Comet appears many Mexicans believe is aharbinger of warpestilence and death

Sept 27 Porfirio Diaz proclaimed president for his eighth term Diazhad quickly modernized Mexico at great cost Diaz was a general whobecame a hero fighting the French Intervention of 1864-7 He was thetop military commander under reformist President Juarez and becamepresident after his death in 1876 To stop the cycle of military revolts heoffered pan o palo (bread or the stick) Ambitious political and militaryleaders were put on the gov payroll with high salaries or facedimprisonment or execution A dog with a bone neither bites or barks Following the advice of his cientifico (scientist) advisers who believedthe Indian and mestizos (who made up 90 of the population) wereonly good for manual labor and their belief in social Darwinism thishuge class of people was not educated Believing the Hacienda (largeestates) were more efficient than traditional methods many Indians andcampesinos (farmers) lost their farms and became virtual slaves on thelarge haciendas Poverty increased and workers wages remained low

1910

Most large companies were foreign ownedpaid little or no taxes andpaid low wages Foreign companies exploited Mexico vast oil andmineral wealth that benefited only the Mexican wealthy elite Decadesof injustice only needed a spark to explode

Francisco Madero a reformer from a wealthy hacienda family ranagainst Diaz and was thrown in jail after becoming too popular Maderowas unusual for his period He didnt drink or smoke was a vegetarianand practiced a spiritual form of religion

Oct 11 Madero head of antireelection party escapes fromimprisonment in San Luis Potosi and flees to Texas He issues his Planof San Luis Potosideclared the election to be illegal and urged arebellion against Diaz Nov 19 Madero enters border into Mexico after Villa capturesChihuahua Madero and Villa meet for the first time

Nov 20 Madero calls for an uprising Pascual Orozoco launchesuprising in Chihuahua

1911

Jan 30 Orozoco attacks federal garrison in Ciudad Juarez Garrisonrelieved by federal troops 3 days later Feb 13 Revolutionary Jose Luis Moya occupies Durango Feb 26 Moyas band captures town of Zacatecas

March 6 Madero forces attacks federal garrison at Casa Grandes anddriven off with 100 out of 800 followers killed Madero joined by otherlocal leaders including a 32 year old local bandit Doroteo Arango betterknown as Pancho Villa Villas men are mostly miners from the northHis men are known as dorados golden ones because of their goldenhued uniforms and rode into battle crying Viva Villa Viva la Revolucion Famous for their cavalry chargesoften led by Villa himself

1911

March 24 Emiliano Zapata takes command of 800 man revolutionaryband after leader Pablo Torres is killed by federales Many Indians lostland to large haciendas during the Diaz years Zapata and his followersbegan a revolt against this with the banner Tierra y Libertad ( Landand Liberty) March 26 Moya captures Ciudad Lerdo April 3500 under Madero Orzoco and Villa lay siege to CiudadJuarez May 7 Revolutionary outbreaks throughout Mexico Diaz offers toresign Moya killed in heavy fighting at Zacatecas May 10 federales in Ciudad Juarez surrenders Madero and Villa cannow supply their forces with modern weapons May 13 Orzoco and Villa demand some federal officers beexecuted Madero refuses soon Orzoco and Villa leaveMadero May 14 Torreon is taken by revolutionaries 303 unarmed Chinesemassacred May 21 Cuernavaca is taken by Zapata Madero signs Treaty ofCiudad Juaacuterez with DiazDiacuteaz agrees to abdicate his rule and bereplaced by Madero May 25 Rioting in Mexico City Diaz resigns and boards German linerYpiranga Foreign Minister Francisco Leon de la Barra becomes interimpresident Diaz Madero has unleashed a tiger letrsquos see if he can rideit Diaz dies in Paris four years later June Earthquake kills 207 in Mexico City Madero enters city June 22 Orozocs army enters Chihuahua City and makes it theirheadquarters

Aug 8 GenVictoriano Huerta sent to Cuernavaca with 1000 federaltroops and forces Zapata to demobilize part of his peasant army Aug 31 Huerta orders Zapatas arrest Zapata flees into thecountryside

Nov 6 Madero wins presidential election and takes oath of office Slowto take action on land reform insisting the hacienda owners be paid forthe land lost and loses liberal support Also criticised by conservativesas being anti-business Madero levies tax on oil companies to pay foreducation angering American ambassador Henry Lane Wilson PascualOrozocoonce an ally of Villa raises a well equipped army of 6000 inthe north supported by powerful hacienda landowners He plans tomarch on Mexico City Madero turns to GenVictoriano Huerta to dealwith Orozoco Nov 9 In Texas revolutionary leader Emilio Vazquez Gomes calls forrevolt against Madero Nov 25 Zapata proclaims Plan of Ayala land reform to takehacienda lands Hacienda owners pressure Madero to subdue Zapata Nov 27 Zapata disavows support for Madero for not giving land topeasantsFeb 15 Gen Juvencio Robles begins terror campaign againstZapatistas burning several Zapatista towns March 3 Orozoco rises against Madero Orozoco rebels load train withexplosives and rams it into a train full of federal soldiers at Rellanostation April 12 Huerta orders execution of Pancho Villa for Villa then resends

1912

order Huerta defeats Orozoco forcing him to flee to the US April 26 Col Pedro Leon mutinies in Mexico City Revolt fails andLeon is executed

Oct 16 Nephew of Porfiro Diaz Brig Gen Felix Diaz raisesconservative revolt against Madero in Veracruz is arrested

1913

General MondragonFeb 9 Decena Tragica Ten Tragic Days (Feb 9-18) Felix Diazand GensMondragon and Ruiz mutiny against Madero with 2400 men300 killed around presidential palace Diaz freedMadero reappointsHuerta as military commander Huerta order Ruiz and all rebel cadetsexecuted by firing squad5000 civilians killed

1913

Feb 11 Artillery duel breaks out with mutineers 500 civilians killedGenHuerta sees this as a chance to become president He despisesMadero and has long planned to overthrow himHuerta seizes Madero Vice Pres Jose Suarez and cabinet With support of US Ambassador Henry Lane Huerta and Diaz come toan agreement Huerta would become temporary president In the nextelection Huerta would see to it that Diaz was electedwhile Huertawould remain as the military strong manNew president WoodrowWilson refused to recognize Huertas government Lane recalled Feb 22 Madero is murdered Huerta government claims thatbodyguards were forced to shoot Madero and Vice President JoseacuteMariacutea Pino Suaacuterez during a failed rescue attempt by Maderossupporters In reality Huerta ordered the murders Huerta turnsMaderos brother Gustavo over to Diazs menwho murder him Huertas regime harsher and more brutal than Diazs Huerta jails110 members of Congress 100 Madero supporters are executedThepresswhich had been free under Madero is again gagged as it was inDiazs time Felix Diaz is shipped off to Japan on a diplomatic mission Huerta is supported by conservatives the Catholic Church (which lostland and power in the last century) and the American businesscommunity All males between 15 and 40 were obliged to serve in the army in areasunder Huertas control and many were gathered at barbull fights andwalking on the streets Using these tactics he created a 200000 none toloyal army

Feb 24 The Gov of Coahuila Venustiano Carranza rebelsagainst Huerta Soon others launch rebellion Announces the Plan ofGuadalupe calling for the overthrow of Huerta and the restoration ofthe Constitution of 1857 limiting church power

March 9 Villa escapes from prison in El Paso returns to Mexico andraises army against Huerta

March 13 Alvaro Obregon from Sonora rises against Huerta andcaptures Nogales The army of Obregon was filled with displaced YaquiIndians The northern armies of Villa Obregon and Carranza operatedindependently and did not trust one another March 17 Orozoco becomes brigadier in Huertas army March 26 Venustiano Carranza a politician and rancher fromCoahuila was forefront in the opposition against Huerta calling hisforces the Constitutionalists with the secret support of the UnitedStates On March 26 1913 Carranza issued the Plan deGuadalupe which was a refusal to recognize Huerta as president andcalled for a declaration of war between the two factions April 15 Obregon defeats Huerta forces along US border April 21 Zapata besieges Huerta garrison at Cuautla Federal trainblown upkilling 100 federal troops federals round up civilians May 13 Obregon stops federal advance at Santa Rosa May 30 Zapata declares war on Huerta Villa defeats federal force atSan Andres Sept 29 Villa captures Torreon all federal officersexecutedshooting prisoners routine on all sides Oct 14 Villa fails to defeat federal garrison in Chihuahua City Nov 15 Villa takes Ciudad Juarez by commandeering a coal trainand sneaking into town Several hundred executed Nov 23 Federal force defeated at Tierra Blanca by Villa close toCiudad Juarez Villa becomes provisional governor of the state ofChihuahua Dec 8 Villa occupies Chihuahua City

1914

Jan 10 Huerta forces defeated at Ojinaga end of Huerta resistance inChihuahua March 12 Zapata besieges Cuautla with 5000 men City taken allfederal officers executed March 22 Second Battle of Torreon 12000 under Villa attacks

1914

10000 strong federal garrison and drives them off with heavy loses April 5 Villa defeats 12000 strong Huerta force at San Pedro de lasColomias April 8 Zapata forces now in control of most of Morelos April 9 Tampico Affair Carranzas forces were ten miles from theprosperous oil town of Tampico There was a considerableconcentration of US citizens in the area due to the immenseinvestment of American firms in the local oil industry Several Americanwarships commanded by Rear Admiral Harry T Mayo settled in thearea with the expectation of protecting American citizens and propertyAmericans sailors detained by Huerta soldiers and released AmericanRear Adm demands formal apology and the American flag raisedashore with a 21 gun salute The Mexican commander refuses April 14 Wilson orders Atlantic Fleet to Mexico

April 21 800 American seamen and marines land at VeracruzSnipersopen fire on Americans 4 Americans killed 400 more Americans aresent ashoreEventually 3300 sailors and 2000 marines land Sniperfire continues126 Mexicans and 17 Americans killedResentmentagainst Americans grows in MexicoArms and supplies from Germany toHuerta cut off April 26 Fortress San Juan de Ulua surrenders to AmericansAmerican forces remain most of the year May 4 Obregon besieges Mazatlan May 14 The movie The Life of General Vila starring Villa himself (now believed to be lost) opens in New York Villa became a folk hero inthe US through such writers as John Reedsent to Mexico byMetropolitan Magazine June 10 Battle of Zacatecas Toma de Zacatecas (Taking ofZacatecas) One of the bloodiest battles in the Revolution PanchoVillas Divisioacuten del Norte(Division of the North) decisively defeated thetroops of General Luiacutes Medina Barroacuten defending the town of ZacatecasThe great victory demoralized Huertas supporters leading to hisresignation on July 15 Huerta goes into exile in Europe Enters US totry to reenter Mexico Kept under house arrest in El Paso till his death in1916

1914

June 25 Battle of Orendain Obregons Army of the Northwestdefeats Huerta forces who lose 2000 and many suppliesRevolutionaries enter Guadalajara August 15 Aacutelvaro Obregoacuten signed a number of treaties inTeoloyucan in which the last of Huertas forces surrendered to him andrecognized the Constitutional government August 20 Army of Obregon enters Mexico City Carranza makes atriumphal entry into Mexico City and becomes president Sept 14 Zapata breaks with Carranza for not implementing strongersocial reforms begins to distribute land to peasants Sept 22 Villa refuses to acknowledge Carranza as president Obregonagrees to go to the field to destroy the army of Villa Nov 6 The constitutional Convention of Aguascalientesrecognizes Eulalio Guiterrez as interim president Carranza refuses toaccept and is declared a rebelGuiterrez appoints Villa as militarycommander to drive Carranza from power Nov 12 Zapata declares war on Carranza Nov 18 Villa and Zapata advance on Carranza who departs forVeracruz Nov 23 last American troops leave Veracruz

Dec 1 Villa and Zapata meet at Xochimilico in Mexico City Theircombined armies of 50000 march through city Some Villiaistas robchurches and rape Villa himself rapes a Frenchwoman manager at theluxury Hotel Palicio and was reported worldwide The Zapaista army ismostly orderly

1915

1915 War of the Generals Jan5 Obregon takes Puebla City with 12000 troops Jan 15 Carranista army defeats Villiaista army and takes Guadaljara Jan 28 Obregon reenters Mexico City abandoned by Villa and Zapata March 10 Obregon departs Mexico City

1915

April 6 Battle of Celya Obregon army of 6000 cavalry5000infantry has decisive victory over Villas 20000 man armyVilla loses4000 killed in frontal cavalry attacks on Obregons trenches barbedwire and machine guns 6000 taken prisoner Villias 19th centurytactics do not fare well against Obregons 20th century trench warfaremethods of currently used in WWI April 16 Obregon occupies Salamanca June 1 Battle of Trinidad Villas masses 19500 horsemen and6000 cavalry against Obregons 9400 cavalry and 14500 infantryObregon loses right arm to shellfireHill succeeds him Villas forcesexhaust forces in repeated assaultsVilla has 8000 causalities andretreats northhis days as a leader of a large northern army are over Carranza now shifts his attention to the south to deal with Zapata inMorelos and dispatches General Pablo Gonzalzez known as thegeneral who never won a battle Despite using terror tacticsis unableto defeat Zapata

Zapatista coin

June 2 Wilson threatens intervention if unrest in Mexico continues June 5 Oaxaca declares itself a sovereign state June 24 Huerta and Orozco are arrested in El Paso trying to enterMexico July 6 Obregon resumes command of the army August Orozco murdered in El Paso Oct 19 USArgentina and other Latin American countries recognizeCarranza as president US cuts off arms supplies to Villa angering him

Nov 1 Villa with 6000 remaining troops attack Agua Priesta and arebeaten off 400 desert Villa Nov 18 inconclusive Battle of Hermosillo Villa losses many of hisremaining 5000 followers Retreats with only 1400

1916

Jan 16 Villas forces attack train killing 16 Americans

March 9 Villa enters US and raids town of Columbus NewMexico with 500 riders 100 Villistas killed and 18Americans March 15 Pershing enters Mexico 3000 men to pursue Villa has9000 in late April Villa wounded trying to overrun Carrancista garrisonat Guerrero July Carranza informs Pershing that further penetration westsouth oreast will be contested June 20 Carrizal Skirmish between Americans and Carrancistagarrison 74 Mexicans and 10 Americans killed May 2 Carrancista Gen Gonzales attacks Zapatists forces in Moreloswith air support30000 man army occupies every major town in thestate May 15 Felix Diaz joins Oaxacas separatist movement and isdefeated June Gen Gonzales overrun main Zapatista headquarters atTlaltizapanmany civilians executed July 6 Villa rejoins his followers at San Juan BautistaAug 1 Carranza calls out troops to break up strike in Mexico City

Sept 16 Villa infiltrates Chihuahua City at 3 AM Takes much bootyand gives speechgaining more recruits

Sept Zapata threatens Mexico City seizes water pumping station anddestroys rail linesthen retreats

Nov Zapatistas blow up trainkilling 400

Nov 23 Villa defeated outside Chihuahua City and retreats Dec Carranza holds constitutional convention at Queretaro Approvedon Feb 17 1917 It allows freedom of religion workers allowed to formlabor unionschild labor prohibitedequal pay for men and women Thegovernment had the right to redistribute land

Dec Zapatistas regain control of most of Morelos

Dec Villa surprises garrison at Torreon killing 2 generals and causing athird to commit suicide departs

1917

Jan 7 Villa raids Santa Rosalia executing 300 prisoners and ChineseZapata retakes Cuernavaca Jan 16 Zimmermann Telegram German offers Mexico material aid inthe reclamation of territory lost during the Mexican-American War andthe Gadsden PurchaseCarranza formally declined Zimmermannsproposals on April 14 by which time the US had declared war onGermany May 1 Carranza officially becomes president after election

1918

Oct many town in Morelos fall to Carrancistas Zapatista armyweakened by outbreak of Spanish influenza Zapata flees intomountains with a few followers

April 6 Zapata killed by troops of Carrancista officer whopretended to mutinyFollowing Zapatas death the LiberationArmy of the South slowly fell apart

1919 June Villa captures Juarez driven off by US troops June 1 Obregon announces he will run for president

1920

Carranzas term of office almost over and cannot run again because ofdeclaration of no reelection He throws his support behind IgnacioBonillas the ambassador to Mexicobelieving he would become hispuppet March many Obregon supporters arrested Obregon harassed fleesMexico City April 13 Obregon calls for uprising against Carranza Supportersincluding Villa rally to his side May 7 Carranza flees to Veracruz taking national treasury( 5 million in gold and silver) and 10000 followersAdynamite laded train smashes into the lead trainkilling200 Carranza retreats with 100 followers Meets guerrillaleader Rodolfo Herrero who professes loyalty butmurders him while he is sleeping May 24 Adolfo de la Huerta Gov of Sonora is made interim president July 22 Villa telegraphs Huerta requesting amnesty Huerta gives a25000 acre estate July 20 Villa and six bodyguards are ambushed whiledriving Villa killed Nov 30 Obregon elected president Nov 30 De la Huerta Uprising Huerta accuses Obregon ofcorruption and calls for overthrow of Obregon A large part of the federalarmy follows Huerta

Jan 24 Battle of Eseranza Huerta forces defeated Huerta fleesMexico Minor revolts and mutinies in following years but large scalefighting is overAn estimated 2 million are thought to have died as a result of theRevolution

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Page 2: Colonial Mexico 1519 - 1821 MexicanHistorydocshare01.docshare.tips/files/6117/61170977.pdf · 2016. 12. 12. · By 1524, almost all of the Aztec empire, along with such regions as

The Spaniards renamed Tenochititlan Mexico City and rebuilt it as the capital of NuevaEspana ( New Spain ) Cortes granted his soldiers encomiendas ( land grants )whichgranted an entire town and its Indian population to an encomendero as the treasurehoped for after the conquest of the Aztecs did not amount to much as much of it hadbeen lost in the retreat of Noche Triste The Indians owed them tribute as well as forcedlabor and was a thinly disguised form of slavery The encomenderos were supposed toconvert the Indians and look after their welfare Spanish encomenderos were usuallyabsentee landlords who lived in faraway cities Charles V wanting to protect his newvassals outlawed encomiendas but the grants had already been distributed by Cortes

The encomienda system attracted settlers and brought misery and death to many nativepeople as it had in Cuba The system interfered with Spains control of the new colonyand led to rebellions when Spain tried to reform the system in the 16th century whenfriar Bartolome de Las Casa convinced the crown to introduce the New Laws grantingfreedom to Indians unjustly enslaved and easing labor requirements There was muchopposition to this by the Spaniards in Mexico When similar laws were enacted in Peru aninsurrection resulted which took the life of the viceroy In 1564 the Crown decreed thatall encomiendas would cease upon the death of the holder This incensed thedescendants of the conquistadors Some such as Alonso de Avila argued forindependence from Spain with the son of Cortes Don Martin to made king Alonso andothers were soon arrested and beheaded and Don Martin was forced to go into exileThis ended independence talk at the time and also ended the new law on theencomienda Over time as the Indians gained more rights the encomiendas faded away

Despite the stories of fabulous wealth the number of Spanish colonists was low By1560 there were barely 20000 Spaniards in Mexico The Indian population wasdevastated in the early colonial period with an estimated 70 to 90 percent dying off dueto disease famine and overwork there were an estimated 25 million before the conquestand a little over a million by 1605 The Indian population did not revive until 1650African slaves were imported to make up for the decrease in the Indian labor pool20000 had arrived by 1553 Many Filipinos and Chinese entered on the Manila galleonspossibly as many as 6000 by the 17th century

Government in New Spain

Imperial Spain coat of Arms

Cortes was appointed governor and captain general of New Spain in 1522 and he movedenergetically to explore new lands and develop the economy Cortes brought the firststocks of cattle to Mexico as well as sheep and goats and introduced European plants He paid for the conquistadors wives to come to Mexico from Spain and encouraged hismen to marry native women beginning the first mestizos children of Spanish and nativeMexican blood

Cortes who had left Mexico to control his former commander Olid in Honduras in 1524-26 was believed to be dead by the people of Mexico Enemies of Cortes spread rumorsthat he cheated the crown When he returned he had the enemies hanged but theCrown remained suspicious and Cortes hoping to clear his name went to Spain CharlesV while impressed with the gallant nature of Cortes desired to appoint his own viceroy

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mexicanhistoryorg
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Page 3: Colonial Mexico 1519 - 1821 MexicanHistorydocshare01.docshare.tips/files/6117/61170977.pdf · 2016. 12. 12. · By 1524, almost all of the Aztec empire, along with such regions as

Guzman

Zumarraga

Mendoza

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Search For Posters

Corregidores

Exploration

Utah and Colorado

Tenamaxtli

Cuilapan

Virgin of Guadalupe

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Florentine Codex

slavery

Religious Disputes

Jesuits expelled

The Social Classes

>

gremios

Vaqueros

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Treaty of Velasco

The Pastry War

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So Far from

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War is Declared

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thecontroversial

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War of the Generals

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Mexico in the 1920s

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Theses

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1836

1838

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1845

Pres Polk

1845

Pres Herrera

Gen Taylor

GenParedes

1846

1847

1876

1910

1911

1912

1913

1914

1915

Zapatista coin

1916

1917

1918

1920

mexicanhistoryorg
- - utexasedu

Page 4: Colonial Mexico 1519 - 1821 MexicanHistorydocshare01.docshare.tips/files/6117/61170977.pdf · 2016. 12. 12. · By 1524, almost all of the Aztec empire, along with such regions as

Corregidores

Exploration

Utah and Colorado

Tenamaxtli

Cuilapan

Virgin of Guadalupe

>

Florentine Codex

slavery

Religious Disputes

Jesuits expelled

The Social Classes

>

gremios

Vaqueros

>

repartimiento

Capilla Real

>

Mexico City

>

Colonial ceramics

Talavera ceramics

pulque production

Bourbon Reforms

Mexican coins

Antonio de Bucareli

Home

independence

Buy for $1999

Search For Posters

>

King Ferdinand VII

Colonel Iturbide

Colonial

Mexico 1519 -1713

Home

July 21 1821 - March 19 1823

>

Santa Anna

War forIndependence

1810 -1821

Home

>

Guadalupe Victoria

-

>

Home

Grande

1833 Election

Library Journal

up to it

The Alamo 2004

Stephen Austin

Mexican Land Grant

Outlaws

Mexican Reaction

Fighting Begins

Gonzales

Battle of the Alamo

Goliad

Joseacute Urrea

Houston retreats

Treaty of Velasco

The Pastry War

President Again

Exile and Death

1822-33

Home

So Far from

God The USWar With

military

The Border Question

Hidalgo

The Thornton Affair

War is Declared

Santa

Home Mexican

Anna 1833 -

47 MayanCasteWar

Republicof RioGrand

military

both countries

Battle of Palo Alto

at a pool

Battle of Monterey

Siege of Monterey

Siege of Vera Cruz

The Gadsen Purchase

Preludeto the

MexicanAmerican

War1846-4

1857-61

>

Juan Alvarez

Ignacio Comonfort

Felix Zuloaga

Benito Juarez

MexicanAmerican

War 1846-47

Home

Carlota JoanHaslip

Vera Cruz

Mexico

>

Captain Jean Danjou

French Legionnaires

Revolutionof Ayutla

1857Constitution

Home

Juarezs Third Term

Educational Reforms

Sebastian Lerdo

FrenchIntervention

SecondMexican

Empire1864-7

HomeDiaz and

thePorfiriato

1876-1910

>

A newbiography of

thecontroversial

Mexicandictator who

Revolution

>

Hunger

The 1910 Election

Madero

Home

Mexican Revolution

1910-20

MexicanRevolution

revolutionaries

>

federal soldiers

More rebellions

Felix Diaz

Coup against Modero

Decena Tragica

>

War of the Generals

Diaz andthe

Porfiriato

1876-1910

Home

Mexico in the 1920s

Rebellion

Adolfo de la Huerta

Plutarco Callas

Cristeros

Mexican Revolution

1910-20

Home

Cardenas andOil

ObergonCallas

and theThe

CristeroWar

1920-1934

Home

Camacho

WorldWar II

>

Camacho

World War II

Cardenas andOil

Home

1947 -2008

Post wareconomic

Boomand Bust

1947 - 2009

MexicoBiography of

PowerAHistory of

ModernMexico 1810-

1996

a MexicanKingpin

Mexican druglord

>

The MexicanMafia

Tlatelolco massacre

>

Camacho

WorldWar II

Home

>

11500

skull

5000

5000 -

2000

1500 BC

Archaic era

Pottery appears

1500

Pre-Classic era

900

found

700700

400

752 Rome founded

500563 Buddha born

Empire

200

Han Dynasty

100

Classic Era

450

26 BC

Roman Empire

476 AD

0 100 200 250

Mayan Classic Age

900

300

400

Muhammad

700 800

1000

Post Classic Era

1100

1200

1215 MagnaCarta

14001428

Aztec Empire 1521

Columbus1500 1600

Theses

SpanishSuccession

1713

Social Contract

FrenchRevolution

Australia

US and Britain

Orleans Waterloo

1821

e m p I r e

Peru independent

1823

M e x i c a n A m

W a r

1840

1846

1857

W a r o f R

and military

e f

Starts

1863 F r e n c h

War

1910

Japan annexes Korea

1911

1913

1914

WWI starts

1915

emptyhanded

1917

Zimmermann Telegram

Russian

Revolution

Italy

W a r

1988-94

Mexican land grant

1836

1838

Pastry War

1845

Pres Polk

1845

Pres Herrera

Gen Taylor

GenParedes

1846

1847

1876

1910

1911

1912

1913

1914

1915

Zapatista coin

1916

1917

1918

1920

mexicanhistoryorg
- - utexasedu

Page 5: Colonial Mexico 1519 - 1821 MexicanHistorydocshare01.docshare.tips/files/6117/61170977.pdf · 2016. 12. 12. · By 1524, almost all of the Aztec empire, along with such regions as

Tenamaxtli

Cuilapan

Virgin of Guadalupe

>

Florentine Codex

slavery

Religious Disputes

Jesuits expelled

The Social Classes

>

gremios

Vaqueros

>

repartimiento

Capilla Real

>

Mexico City

>

Colonial ceramics

Talavera ceramics

pulque production

Bourbon Reforms

Mexican coins

Antonio de Bucareli

Home

independence

Buy for $1999

Search For Posters

>

King Ferdinand VII

Colonel Iturbide

Colonial

Mexico 1519 -1713

Home

July 21 1821 - March 19 1823

>

Santa Anna

War forIndependence

1810 -1821

Home

>

Guadalupe Victoria

-

>

Home

Grande

1833 Election

Library Journal

up to it

The Alamo 2004

Stephen Austin

Mexican Land Grant

Outlaws

Mexican Reaction

Fighting Begins

Gonzales

Battle of the Alamo

Goliad

Joseacute Urrea

Houston retreats

Treaty of Velasco

The Pastry War

President Again

Exile and Death

1822-33

Home

So Far from

God The USWar With

military

The Border Question

Hidalgo

The Thornton Affair

War is Declared

Santa

Home Mexican

Anna 1833 -

47 MayanCasteWar

Republicof RioGrand

military

both countries

Battle of Palo Alto

at a pool

Battle of Monterey

Siege of Monterey

Siege of Vera Cruz

The Gadsen Purchase

Preludeto the

MexicanAmerican

War1846-4

1857-61

>

Juan Alvarez

Ignacio Comonfort

Felix Zuloaga

Benito Juarez

MexicanAmerican

War 1846-47

Home

Carlota JoanHaslip

Vera Cruz

Mexico

>

Captain Jean Danjou

French Legionnaires

Revolutionof Ayutla

1857Constitution

Home

Juarezs Third Term

Educational Reforms

Sebastian Lerdo

FrenchIntervention

SecondMexican

Empire1864-7

HomeDiaz and

thePorfiriato

1876-1910

>

A newbiography of

thecontroversial

Mexicandictator who

Revolution

>

Hunger

The 1910 Election

Madero

Home

Mexican Revolution

1910-20

MexicanRevolution

revolutionaries

>

federal soldiers

More rebellions

Felix Diaz

Coup against Modero

Decena Tragica

>

War of the Generals

Diaz andthe

Porfiriato

1876-1910

Home

Mexico in the 1920s

Rebellion

Adolfo de la Huerta

Plutarco Callas

Cristeros

Mexican Revolution

1910-20

Home

Cardenas andOil

ObergonCallas

and theThe

CristeroWar

1920-1934

Home

Camacho

WorldWar II

>

Camacho

World War II

Cardenas andOil

Home

1947 -2008

Post wareconomic

Boomand Bust

1947 - 2009

MexicoBiography of

PowerAHistory of

ModernMexico 1810-

1996

a MexicanKingpin

Mexican druglord

>

The MexicanMafia

Tlatelolco massacre

>

Camacho

WorldWar II

Home

>

11500

skull

5000

5000 -

2000

1500 BC

Archaic era

Pottery appears

1500

Pre-Classic era

900

found

700700

400

752 Rome founded

500563 Buddha born

Empire

200

Han Dynasty

100

Classic Era

450

26 BC

Roman Empire

476 AD

0 100 200 250

Mayan Classic Age

900

300

400

Muhammad

700 800

1000

Post Classic Era

1100

1200

1215 MagnaCarta

14001428

Aztec Empire 1521

Columbus1500 1600

Theses

SpanishSuccession

1713

Social Contract

FrenchRevolution

Australia

US and Britain

Orleans Waterloo

1821

e m p I r e

Peru independent

1823

M e x i c a n A m

W a r

1840

1846

1857

W a r o f R

and military

e f

Starts

1863 F r e n c h

War

1910

Japan annexes Korea

1911

1913

1914

WWI starts

1915

emptyhanded

1917

Zimmermann Telegram

Russian

Revolution

Italy

W a r

1988-94

Mexican land grant

1836

1838

Pastry War

1845

Pres Polk

1845

Pres Herrera

Gen Taylor

GenParedes

1846

1847

1876

1910

1911

1912

1913

1914

1915

Zapatista coin

1916

1917

1918

1920

mexicanhistoryorg
- - utexasedu

Page 6: Colonial Mexico 1519 - 1821 MexicanHistorydocshare01.docshare.tips/files/6117/61170977.pdf · 2016. 12. 12. · By 1524, almost all of the Aztec empire, along with such regions as

Cuilapan

Virgin of Guadalupe

>

Florentine Codex

slavery

Religious Disputes

Jesuits expelled

The Social Classes

>

gremios

Vaqueros

>

repartimiento

Capilla Real

>

Mexico City

>

Colonial ceramics

Talavera ceramics

pulque production

Bourbon Reforms

Mexican coins

Antonio de Bucareli

Home

independence

Buy for $1999

Search For Posters

>

King Ferdinand VII

Colonel Iturbide

Colonial

Mexico 1519 -1713

Home

July 21 1821 - March 19 1823

>

Santa Anna

War forIndependence

1810 -1821

Home

>

Guadalupe Victoria

-

>

Home

Grande

1833 Election

Library Journal

up to it

The Alamo 2004

Stephen Austin

Mexican Land Grant

Outlaws

Mexican Reaction

Fighting Begins

Gonzales

Battle of the Alamo

Goliad

Joseacute Urrea

Houston retreats

Treaty of Velasco

The Pastry War

President Again

Exile and Death

1822-33

Home

So Far from

God The USWar With

military

The Border Question

Hidalgo

The Thornton Affair

War is Declared

Santa

Home Mexican

Anna 1833 -

47 MayanCasteWar

Republicof RioGrand

military

both countries

Battle of Palo Alto

at a pool

Battle of Monterey

Siege of Monterey

Siege of Vera Cruz

The Gadsen Purchase

Preludeto the

MexicanAmerican

War1846-4

1857-61

>

Juan Alvarez

Ignacio Comonfort

Felix Zuloaga

Benito Juarez

MexicanAmerican

War 1846-47

Home

Carlota JoanHaslip

Vera Cruz

Mexico

>

Captain Jean Danjou

French Legionnaires

Revolutionof Ayutla

1857Constitution

Home

Juarezs Third Term

Educational Reforms

Sebastian Lerdo

FrenchIntervention

SecondMexican

Empire1864-7

HomeDiaz and

thePorfiriato

1876-1910

>

A newbiography of

thecontroversial

Mexicandictator who

Revolution

>

Hunger

The 1910 Election

Madero

Home

Mexican Revolution

1910-20

MexicanRevolution

revolutionaries

>

federal soldiers

More rebellions

Felix Diaz

Coup against Modero

Decena Tragica

>

War of the Generals

Diaz andthe

Porfiriato

1876-1910

Home

Mexico in the 1920s

Rebellion

Adolfo de la Huerta

Plutarco Callas

Cristeros

Mexican Revolution

1910-20

Home

Cardenas andOil

ObergonCallas

and theThe

CristeroWar

1920-1934

Home

Camacho

WorldWar II

>

Camacho

World War II

Cardenas andOil

Home

1947 -2008

Post wareconomic

Boomand Bust

1947 - 2009

MexicoBiography of

PowerAHistory of

ModernMexico 1810-

1996

a MexicanKingpin

Mexican druglord

>

The MexicanMafia

Tlatelolco massacre

>

Camacho

WorldWar II

Home

>

11500

skull

5000

5000 -

2000

1500 BC

Archaic era

Pottery appears

1500

Pre-Classic era

900

found

700700

400

752 Rome founded

500563 Buddha born

Empire

200

Han Dynasty

100

Classic Era

450

26 BC

Roman Empire

476 AD

0 100 200 250

Mayan Classic Age

900

300

400

Muhammad

700 800

1000

Post Classic Era

1100

1200

1215 MagnaCarta

14001428

Aztec Empire 1521

Columbus1500 1600

Theses

SpanishSuccession

1713

Social Contract

FrenchRevolution

Australia

US and Britain

Orleans Waterloo

1821

e m p I r e

Peru independent

1823

M e x i c a n A m

W a r

1840

1846

1857

W a r o f R

and military

e f

Starts

1863 F r e n c h

War

1910

Japan annexes Korea

1911

1913

1914

WWI starts

1915

emptyhanded

1917

Zimmermann Telegram

Russian

Revolution

Italy

W a r

1988-94

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1847

1876

1910

1911

1912

1913

1914

1915

Zapatista coin

1916

1917

1918

1920

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