the story of the republic
there is a strange fascination about the history of mexico, and no one can thoroughly understand the country or the people without a little insight into those stirring events that preceded the establishment of the present republic. with the increasing friendly regard and the growing commercial intercourse between the two countries, a few pages devoted to this subject will not be amiss; and the prospective traveller, as well as the one who has already travelled in that country, will find an additional interest in mexico and the mexicans.
however we may feel inclined to criticize cortez, the fact remains that he thoroughly subjugated the country, and presented to spain the fairest jewel of her domain. having been made the first governor of new spain, he was too busy with fresh conquests and the task of keeping order to make a successful ruler. in order to reform the various abuses that had grown up,[344] and represent in every way possible the person of the king, king charles v sent the first viceroy in the autumn of 1535. this first of a long line of viceroys, reaching down to the year 1821, was named antonio de mendoza, himself of noble descent, a man of ability, and one who had at heart the best interests of the colonists and the welfare of the indians. the latter had been subjected to many humiliations and hardships all of which were removed by him, and they were encouraged in the cultivation of the lands.
the colonists themselves were a source of great trouble for they were mostly adventurers and were not, like the early american colonists, men who were seeking religious liberty. the arm of the church was stretched just as strongly in new spain as in the land of their birth, and to the religious orders was due in great measure the firm foundation upon which the spanish government was established. during the rule of this man and his successor, velasco, the country prospered, agriculture was stimulated and a number of industries suitable to the climate of the country encouraged.
at the close of the sixteenth century, spain underwent great changes. the line of able rulers had passed away, and the government[345] fell into the hands of profligates who were favourites of the reigning sovereign. the line of viceroys continued in rotation, and most of them were fair men who probably governed the best they knew how, but their knowledge on that subject was not very great. they were poor rulers when compared with the first two above mentioned. the church retained its firm grasp. as one writer has put it, during the first century of spanish rule the church was a blessing to the country, during the second an indifferent quantity and during the third an actual menace. the inquisition—that terrible institution—had been established in mexico as early as 1570. the first auto-da-fé was celebrated in 1574, when “there perished twenty-one pestilent lutherans.” indians were exempt from this institution and it was only aimed at heretics of other nations. large numbers were burned in the capital and other cities. in puebla, the old house of the inquisition was remodelled within the last half-century, and a number of walled-up cells opened in which skeletons were found—no doubt remains of victims who had been buried alive. the inquisition was not formally abolished until the beginning of the last century, just prior to the beginning of the movement for independence. even this concession,[346] and the promise of correcting other abuses, did not stop the growing discontent, for generations had grown up who had few ties linking them to the mother country; who had intermarried with native races; and who would be satisfied with nothing but complete severance of their relations.
the beginning of the nineteenth century opened with a feeling of unrest in all european nations and their colonies. when napoleon overturned monarchies, the idea of the divine right of kings received a shock. among the countries thus affected was spain, which had dropped down from the high pedestal it had formerly occupied. the eyes of the people of mexico were opened by the events in europe, and also by the successful revolution of the american colonies. all the offices of profit in mexico were held by spaniards, and the policy of the mother country toward her dependents was well expressed by one of the viceroys as follows: “let the people of these dominions learn once for all that they were born to be silent and to obey, and not to discuss nor to have opinions in political affairs.” the spirit of revolution and liberty was in the air and restraint became more and more galling. the events leading to the independence of mexico,[347] and the stirring times subsequent thereto, can best be treated by a glance at the men who were in the limelight during the various periods.
when miguel hidalgo, curate of the little village of dolores, sounded the “grito” of independence by ringing the bell of the parish church early on the morning of the 16th of september, 1810, a struggle for independence was started that lasted for eleven years, and during which much of the soil of mexico was crimsoned with the blood of those slain in battle or executed by the authorities as traitors. at the outset no people were less prepared for such a contest. they knew nothing of military tactics; their weapons were primitive and their leaders were without military training. no more righteous cause ever existed for rebellion against tyranny and usurpation. the first two leaders were consecrated representatives of the church that had assisted a despotic government in bringing about such an unfortunate state of affairs. these two martyrs who were excommunicated by the church, and executed by the government as traitors, are now honoured with resting places in sacred ground by a grateful nation.
the first revolt was headed by a picture of the patron saint of the country, and shouts of[348] “viva nuestra se?ora de guadalupe” and “viva la independencia” were intermingled. hidalgo and his compatriots were compelled to begin their movement before thoroughly prepared, because their plans had been discovered and betrayed to the government. on the morning of the memorable day above mentioned, hidalgo addressed the people from the pulpit of the church where he had so often celebrated mass, and, leading his followers forth, released the prisoners in the town, and captured the principal spaniards. soon afterwards this priest-warrior patriot, who had been named captain-general, followed by a few hundred of human beings (they can not be called soldiers), marched forth to conquer mexico and give “death to the spaniards.”
it was a motley crowd armed with stones, lances, machetes, arrows, clubs and swords, whose numbers and enthusiasm were ever increasing as they marched across the country without meeting resistance. san miguel and celaya, irapuato and querétero, yielded, and the army which by this time numbered tens of thousands marched towards guanajuato. the governor of that province assembled the terror-stricken populace in the now famous alhondiga de granaditas, built for storing grain but now a[349] prison, as noted in that city as the bastille of paris. upon a refusal to surrender, hidalgo and his followers attacked this fortress with fanatical zeal, and captured it by the mere force of numbers. this supplied him with plenty of food and a million dollars in money which furnished the sinews of war.
terror struck the hearts of the spaniards and every town yielded to this new leader, who now bore the title of generalissimo, as the army approached the city of mexico. one terrible battle occurred at monte las cruces and both forces withdrew. hidalgo—and this was probably his greatest error—retreated, and his fortune immediately turned. the volatile nature of the people asserted itself and his followers deserted by the thousands. he started for the united states, but was betrayed and captured, and was executed at chihuahua on july 31st, 1811. for ten years his head was suspended by a spike from one of the corners of the alhondiga de granaditas, once occupied by him as conqueror, as a warning to revolutionists, but was afterward buried with great ceremony in the cathedral at the capital.
it was around a disciple of hidalgo that the forces of discontent and patriotism rallied upon the death of their first leader, and that man was[350] also a priest, jose maria morelas. of low birth and poor, this man drove mules until thirty years of age before an opportunity presented itself for education to fit himself for the priesthood, which was his ambition. in that time he had acquired the qualities of patience and cool calculation from the animals he drove. a student under hidalgo, he had imbibed a love for independence, and leaving his church upon the sounding of the “grito,” offered his services to the generalissimo. he was an abler leader than hidalgo and showed great military skill, winning a series of victories clear across the country from acapulco, on the pacific coast, to cuautla not far from vera cruz. at cuautla he was besieged for over two months, and then successfully withdrew with all his forces by night. returning to acapulco he summoned the first mexican congress, which met at chilpantzingo, a small town near that city. this congress met on the 14th of september, 1813, and on the following day issued its famous declaration of independence, as follows:—“the congress of anahuac, lawfully installed in the city of chilpantzingo, of north america, solemnly declares, in the presence of god, arbitrator of kingdoms and author of society, who gives and takes away according to the inscrutable[351] designs of his providence, that, through the present circumstances of europe, it has recovered the exercise of its sovereignty, hitherto usurped, its dependence upon the throne of spain being thus forever disrupted and dissolved.”[5]
this congress provided a form of government with a military executive called generalissimo, and morelas was elected to this position for life, or “so long as he was worthy.” shortly after this his forces were defeated at valladolid, now called morelia, and his power began to wane, though resistance was kept up for some time afterwards with varying success. spanish troops had arrived, and stronger leaders were in charge of the government forces and the cause of independence looked dark. the plans of morelas were betrayed to the enemy and he was captured. the ecclesiastical tribunes covered him with ignominy. he was then sentenced to death by the military authorities, and shot in the little village of san cristobal ecatepec, near the capital, on december 22d, 1815, dying the death of a hero. this muleteer-priest-warrior was an able leader, an[352] honest man and a patriotic citizen. he seemed devoid of personal ambition, although accepting title for the sake of the cause he fought for. he was possessed of restless energy and great piety, for he always made confession before entering battle. to-day, he is second only to hidalgo in the affections of the people, and worthily fills that position. over the door of the house once owned by him in morelia appears the following inscription:—
“morelas the illustrious
immortal hero.
in this house honoured by thy presence
salute you the grateful people of morelia.”
the revolution was seemingly crushed at the death of morelas but a few patriots retired to the mountains, and there kept alive for better days the sacred fire of liberty. guerrero was one of those heroes who showed an unwearying activity, and kept up a constant warfare upon the government forces. the next prominent name in succession among those leaders of the movement for freedom was agustin de iturbide, a former active and able officer of the royalist forces, and to whom more than anyone else was due the failure of morelas. deserting the cause of spain, because he thought injustice had been[353] done him, general iturbide issued the “plan of iguala” on the 20th of february, 1820, composed of three articles: preservation of the roman catholic church; independence of mexico under a monarchical form of government with a prince of the royal house of spain as ruler; union and equality of spaniards and mexicans. from this proclamation his army became known as the army of the three guarantees. his act was full of duplicity, for he had obtained the largest force possible from the viceroy apodaca in order to turn them over to the new scheme.
before the viceroy could recover from his surprise, iturbide, who had been joined by most of the insurgent leaders, had started on his victorious campaign. valladolid, querétero and puebla succumbed. the viceroy tried by suppressing liberty, and enforcing enlistments in the royal army, to stem the tide but in vain, and he was deposed. o’donoju, the sixty-fourth and last viceroy, arrived about this time at vera cruz, but was intercepted by iturbide and entered into the treaty of cordoba in which the independence of mexico was recognized with a sovereign to be selected from the royal house of spain, and a provisional junta formed. iturbide was selected as president of this junta, and[354] made a triumphal entry into the city of mexico on the 27th of september, 1821. this ended three hundred years of spanish rule in mexico. iturbide had accomplished in a little more than a year, and with little bloodshed, what ten years of strife had failed to do. he can not be classed with hidalgo and morelas as a pure patriot, but he has been officially designated as the “liberator of mexico.”
the rejection of the treaty of cordoba by the cortes of spain gave new impetus to the smouldering ambitions of iturbide. the second mexican congress having been called, iturbide at a packed session was declared emperor by a majority of four to one of those voting, but not a constitutional majority, and he took the office as agustin i. when he was crowned and anointed in the cathedral with much form and solemnity, on the 21st of july, 1822, the ambition of this self-made emperor had reached its full. the saying that uneasy lies the head that wears a crown never had better application than in this instance. other leaders in the cause of liberty felt that they had been slighted, and every discontented person made common cause against the emperor. a republic was proclaimed at vera cruz in december of the same year by santa anna, who was commander[355] of a regiment stationed there, and he issued a pronunciamento. this plan failed, but it encouraged bravo, guerrero and other revolutionary leaders, and rebellion sprung up in a number of places. iturbide had dissolved congress and this increased the dissatisfaction. a more formidable revolt arose, and on march 19th, 1823, iturbide abdicated without attempting to retain his position by force of arms.
a few weeks later the ex-emperor left mexico and sailed for italy, having been granted an annual sum of $25,000 for his services. he soon went to england and wrote the government from there that the republic was in danger, and he would come back to help fight the battles of his country. he did not know that his death had been decreed by congress, and so he set sail upon his last voyage. when he arrived at vera cruz he was captured, and after some delay was executed at padilla on the 19th of july, 1824, as a traitor, in his forty-first year. his body was buried in a roofless old church and lay there until 1838, when it was removed to the cathedral.
opinion is very much divided as to the rank that should be accorded iturbide. he was able, brave, honest so far as is known, and probably fell a victim to his ambition like many a man[356] before him. the relative regard in which he is held is shown in the fact that the town which gave both him and his former vanquished foe, morelas, birth, is now called morelia, and a state is also named morelas. in contrast to this there is neither city nor state named after iturbide, and the famous iturbide hotel in the capital city, once his residence, is the only institution perpetuating his name so far as i could learn. the only things accomplished by him during his brief reign were the settlement of the titles by which he and his family should be addressed, the succession to the throne, order of precedence among the dignitaries, allowances of himself and family, and the creation of the order of guadalupe to bestow honours upon his followers.
at last a so-called republic was established, and guadalupe victoria was inaugurated as the first president on the 10th day of october, 1824, and served until 1828. when the fort of san juan de ulua at vera cruz lowered its flag, in 1825, the last vestige of spanish power was gone, and the red and yellow striped banner of the iberian peninsula was not to be seen on mexican soil. and mexico, as then constituted, was a big country, containing almost twice as much territory as to-day. from the end of the[357] administration of president victoria until after the death of maximilian, there was not a year of peace in mexico. revolutions, pronunciamentos, “plans” and restorations followed each other in quick succession. generals, presidents and dictators sprang up like mushrooms, and their position was as evanescent. the congress unwisely decreed the expulsion of the spaniards, and their departure took much of the wealth of the country. revolutions were an every-day affair. a man in position of authority did not know when his time to be shot might come. a sudden turn of fortune might send him either to the national palace, or before a squad of men with guns aimed at his heart.
a good illustration of this uncertainty of affairs is seen in the treatment and fate of the grim old patriot guerrero. born of very low indian parents he had climbed to the front and borne many of the burdens of the struggle with spain. he cheerfully yielded his command to the renegade iturbide, and fought valiantly under that leader for liberty. by a turn of fortune he became the third president in 1829. a few months later he was compelled to flee, but was soon afterwards betrayed and captured at acapulco. at a farcical trial he was condemned to death as “morally incapable” to[358] act as president, and shot on the 15th of february, 1831, at cuilapa. soon afterwards he was declared a martyr and his body removed to the capital with honours. two monuments to this martyr now adorn that city, and a state has been named after him. under his short rule slavery was abolished by statute.
elections eventually became a farce. the unfortunate habit was acquired of appealing to arms instead of submitting to the result of the ballot. the trouble was that the people had copied the letter, and not the spirit of the american constitution. liberty was interpreted as license, after their exaggerated ideas of the former. the scheming politicians would hesitate at nothing—revolution or civil war—to attain private ends or personal aggrandizement. a general indolence of character, and the hindrances to the acquirement of property among the masses, made the people more willing to yield to disturbing and designing politicians. they are impetuous by nature, impatient of restraint and easily fired up. the rapid changes in government can be seen when you read that there were five different presidents in each of the years 1846 and 1847, and four in 1855—not an evidence of tranquillity at least. the two[359] leading parties constantly at war were the “progresistas” and “retrogrados.”
during this period a few prominent names are constantly recurring, and by far the most prominent one is that of the notorious santa anna, who, for more than fifty years, occupied a prominent, but not always honourable, place in mexican affairs. earlier in life his restless energy was expended in a fairly commendable way, and he fought some battles in defense of the rights of the people. during the war of intervention with france in 1838 he lost his leg in the defense of vera cruz. ever afterwards, when in trouble, he would flourish his severed limb and remind the people how he had been mutilated in the defense of his country, with the effect of restoring himself in public favour. as he grew older his naturally quarrelsome disposition increased, his vanity knew no bounds, and when at the height of his glory, he declared himself dictator and ordered all people to address him as “most serene highness.” never honest except as a matter of policy, his cupidity became more pronounced, until, near the close of the war with the united states, he offered to appoint commissioners and confirm a treaty of peace for the sum of one million dollars. first elected president in 1833, he was[360] again either chosen to, or assumed the office, in 1839, 1846, 1847, 1853 and 1855, but did not serve long at any time. on one occasion his amputated leg was buried with great ceremony, but afterwards fickle sentiment changed, and the martyr part of this hero was brought forth by the rabble, dragged through the streets of the capital, and insulting epithets heaped upon the former idol.
santa anna led the forces against the texas insurrectionists, and was the man responsible for the alamo slaughter, when one hundred and forty brave texans were trapped and slain. visitors to that place are still shown the stains made by the blood of that brave frontiersman, davy crockett, and the cry of “remember the alamo” still has potency. this insurrection was soon followed by the war between mexico and the united states.
franklin says, there never was a good war nor a bad peace. the united states can not be justified in warring upon mexico, though the results have perhaps been for the best with both nations. bancroft does not mince words in his treatment of the subject for he says: “it (the mexican war) was a premeditated and predetermined affair; it was the result of a deliberately calculated scheme of robbery on the part[361] of the superior force.” the result was a foregone conclusion, for mexico, torn by internal dissensions, impoverished by the expense of revolutions and official robbery, and with a government changing with every change of the seasons, had neither armies, money nor supplies for such a conflict. the people were used to the smell of powder but were not trained soldiers, and the “generals” were simply a few of the twelve thousand recipients of military commissions that had been distributed by various presidents in the preceding three years. “plans” promulgated by one party were bombarded with “pronunciamentos” from another. this was the condition of affairs when general taylor assumed the offensive and fought the battle of palo alto.
mexico might have sued for peace at this time, but no government was in power long enough to negotiate a treaty. a special envoy sent from washington at the request of one president was refused an audience by a new one, who had usurped the office before his arrival. generals taylor and fremont subdued northern mexico, and general scott later began his memorable march toward the ancient aztec capital, from vera cruz, like cortez of old. santa anna, who had been “recuperating” from public unpopularity[362] at havana, returned and state after state immediately “pronounced” in his favour. he issued a manifesto assuming the executive control and took the field against the invaders. he first tried to secure $15,000,000 from the church, but although the priests hated the “northern heretics” they were loth to give up the coin, and little was secured. vera cruz fell after two weeks’ bombardment, and puebla yielded to the americans. patriotism was finally aroused to save the city of mexico, but the victories of chapultepec, chorubusco and molino del rey were followed by the triumphal entry of general scott into the capital. the treaty of guadalupe-hidalgo ceded to the united states more than six hundred thousand square miles of the mexican domain, including some of the richest mineral lands of the republic. disgraced and humiliated as mexico had been, it was, i believe, the beginning of better things for that country.
santa anna went into voluntary exile to jamaica. the first president after the war, herrera, actually served the appointed time of his office, but disorder soon began under his successor. “pronouncing” became popular again, and santa anna returned. he was made dictator for a short time by his favourites. this[363] was the last office held by this selfish politician. he exiled himself to st. thomas again, and afterwards in elizabethport, new jersey. during the second empire he tried to curry favour with both sides, but neither would listen to him. discouraged and disheartened he lived abroad, until, burdened by the weight of eighty years, he sought and obtained permission to return to the capital, and died on the 20th of june, 1876. thus passed a man who had lived in stirring times, was most intensely hated, had been president six times, military dictator four times, had upset fifteen governments, had been marked for the assassin’s bullet many times; and yet he lived to a ripe old age and died a natural death. however, all his glory had faded, and, blind, lame and infirm, he spent his last days in extreme poverty.
here is a picture of this man drawn by rev. william butler,[6] who visited him about a year before his death: “santa anna was living in an obscure street, neglected and forgotten by all parties. on entering the apartment we found the old man sitting on a sofa, behind which hung a picture of his wife ‘her serene highness, dolores tosta de santa anna’ arrayed as a vice-queen. the magnificence of the painting[364] contrasted sadly with the poverty-stricken aspect of the room and furniture. to him, however, this could make but little difference, as we soon saw that he was totally blind as well as feeble and broken in spirit, with a tendency to mental weakness.” he was buried in the cemetery at guadalupe without honours or recognition by the government, and his remains still rest there. as i gazed upon his tomb i could not help thinking what a contrast between his career and that of the patriots hidalgo, morelas, and juarez.
the early constitution had declared that the roman catholic religion should perpetually be the religion of mexico. nevertheless a struggle had been growing up between the clericals and liberals for many years with increasing intensity. it finally centred in a struggle over the sequestration of the church property, and became wider and wider until the whole country was involved and divided into two great parties. the liberals were probably just as good christians as the others but thought the church had too much wealth.
a village church
at this juncture there arose a pure indian, of lowly parentage, who never saw a school until he was twelve years of age. his name was benito juarez. although ever professing devout[365] faith, he early espoused the cause of the anti-clerical party. he was banished by santa anna and fled to new orleans, but opinion changed and his sentiments became the popular views. the new constitution of 1857 declared the separation of church and state. juarez had been elected president of the supreme court under comonfort. the latter was compelled to flee the country and juarez became president under the constitution, in 1857. congress passed a law confiscating church property and civil war was begun. juarez took the field in person and did not reach the capital until three years later. these three years have been called the years of horrors. the liberals were excommunicated by the church, and the papal delegate and several bishops were ordered out of the country in turn by juarez. ministerial crises and resignations became chronic. guerillas and robbers were bold and attacked many aliens, and foreign obligations were unpaid because of the impoverished condition of the country.
juarez alone remained cool in the midst of all these disturbances. the convention entered into between france, england and spain for a joint intervention in mexican affairs on the 31st day of october, 1861, brought new embarrassment to the indian reformer. underneath these[366] acts of the convention the crafty hand of napoleon can be seen. the man who had accomplished one coup d’etat was a sworn enemy to all republican institutions. the pretext for this intervention was the collection of some money claims and reparation for alleged offences. spain no doubt looked forward to a little revenge. the spanish fleet occupied vera cruz on the 14th of december, 1861, followed by the other armies. a conference took place at orizaba with juarez who acknowledged the money claims, and spain and england withdrew their forces. the french remained, secretly supported and encouraged by the extreme church party, and advanced to and captured puebla. distracted and disheartened by the state of affairs, the prospect of a stable government made the way easy to place maximilian upon the throne as emperor of mexico, and this was done. he and the empress arrived on the 28th of may, 1864. maximilian was a liberal ruler and the empress carlotta won the people by her charming personality and benevolences.
as long as the french forces remained his throne was secure. the prompt and decisive action of secretary seward sounded the death knell of maximilian’s ambitions. napoleon[367] withdrew his troops, and maximilian might have easily escaped had he not wavered between ambition and discretion,—the former eventually winning. he met death with dignity and said “may my blood be the last spilt for the welfare of the country.”
during all of these years juarez maintained a semblance of authority and kept a cabinet under appointment although he was finally driven to the american border. yet he could wait, for he had inherited from his dusky ancestors the qualities of patience, endurance and imperturbability. he also had executive ability and an abundance of good sense. after the execution of maximilian he made a triumphal entry into mexico. the country was impoverished. the short empire had added a national debt of $187,000,000. more than one thousand battles and skirmishes had occurred between 1863 and 1867, and a hundred thousand mexicans had been killed or disabled. the people were still restless and an increasing element began to say that he had been president long enough. he was unmoved, but kept steadily on his way trying to better the condition of the people, improve the finances and bring prosperity to his country. the iron constitution finally gave way and he died on the 19th of july, 1872, beloved[368] and honoured by his country. he deserves to be called the washington of mexico, for the real liberty of a republican form of government began with him. he had prepared the way for his successors to bring peace, prosperity and liberty to a country that for centuries had been groping and striving after such a condition. juarez lies buried beneath a magnificent monument in the panteon de san fernando, in the city of mexico.
upon the death of juarez the constitutional succession to the chief magistracy fell upon lerdo de tejada, who occupied that office for four years. the subsequent history of mexico, however, centres around the personality of porfirio diaz, and the events of his long administration and final downfall are treated in the two following chapters.
