Revolutions Podcast by Mike Duncan - S9: The Mexican Revolution - Episode 2
Summary
TLDRThe video script narrates the tumultuous journey of Mexico's struggle for independence from Spain, a saga that spanned over a decade and was marked by significant social and political upheavals. It begins with the discontent among various classes in New Spain, leading to the famous 'Grito de Dolores' by Miguel Hidalgo, a cry for revolution that ignited a mass uprising. Despite initial successes, internal conflicts and lack of military experience led to Hidalgo's capture and execution. However, the fight for independence was carried forward by leaders like Jose Maria Morelos and Vicente Guerrero, who continued the rebellion against the odds. The narrative then shifts to the pivotal 'Plan de Iguala', a political agreement that united royalists and rebels under the leadership of Augustin de Iturbide and Guerrero, leading to a unified push for independence. The video concludes with the triumphant entry of the Patriot army into Mexico City and the Declaration of Independence of the Empire of Mexico in 1821, setting the stage for the next chapter of Mexican history filled with internal power struggles and foreign interventions.
Takeaways
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- 💲 Listeners can get a $20 discount on an Away suitcase by visiting Away travel.com/revolutions and using the promo code 'revolutions' at checkout.
- 🎙️ The script transitions from a commercial for Away travel to the main topic of the episode, which is the history of the Viceroyalty of New Spain and the events leading to the Mexican War of Independence.
- ⚔️ The revolution in New Spain was triggered by widespread discontent among various social classes and a series of economic and political factors, including the impact of the Napoleonic Wars and the influence of Enlightenment ideas.
- 🗣️ Miguel Hidalgo, a key figure in the Mexican War of Independence, was a priest with radical political and religious beliefs who called for a mass popular revolt in his famous 'Grito de Dolores' speech.
Q & A
What was the Away carry-on designed to solve?
-The Away carry-on was designed to solve problems such as sticky wheels, dead cell phones, and to provide luggage with power sources for charging devices.
What is the significance of the 'Cry of Dolores' in Mexican history?
-The 'Cry of Dolores' is a famous speech by Miguel Hidalgo, which marked the beginning of the Mexican War of Independence against Spanish rule.
Why did the economic boom in the Bahia region lead to social unrest?
-The economic boom in the Bahia region led to social unrest due to recurrent droughts, famine, and a decline in the mining economy, which resulted in wage cuts, reduced hours, and mass layoffs.
What was the role of Miguel Hidalgo in the early stages of the Mexican War of Independence?
-Miguel Hidalgo played a pivotal role as a leader of the early stages of the Mexican War of Independence, rallying the people through his impassioned speech, the 'Cry of Dolores,' and leading the initial revolt against Spanish rule.
How did the events in Spain impact the Viceroyalty of New Spain?
-The events in Spain, particularly the abdications of the Bourbon monarchy and the ensuing chaos, led to a movement in New Spain to create provisional ruling juntas composed of local notables, which eventually contributed to the push for independence.
What was the Plan of Iguala and why was it significant?
-The Plan of Iguala was a political agreement that established the three guarantees of the Mexican independence movement: the supremacy of the Catholic Church, absolute independence from Spain, and social equality with the abolition of the caste system. It was significant because it united various factions, including conservatives and liberals, under a common goal of independence.
Who were the main leaders of the Mexican War of Independence?
-The main leaders of the Mexican War of Independence included Miguel Hidalgo, Ignacio Allende, Jose Maria Morelos, Vicente Guerrero, and later, Agustín de Iturbide.
What was the impact of the mutiny of Cadiz on the Mexican War of Independence?
-The mutiny of Cadiz led to a shift in support for the independence movement in Mexico. The event forced King Ferdinand to adopt the liberal constitution of 1812, which in turn led to conservative Criollos and even some Peninsulars in Mexico to support independence to protect their interests against potential liberal reforms from Spain.
Why did the conservative leadership of New Spain initially oppose the independence movement?
-The conservative leadership of New Spain initially opposed the independence movement because they feared that the liberal leadership in Spain would undermine the authority of the church, their traditional systems of power, and disrupt the social hierarchy and private property rights.
What was the significance of the Treaty of Córdoba in the context of the Mexican War of Independence?
-The Treaty of Córdoba was significant as it recognized the framework of the Plan of Iguala and promised no resistance when the Army of the Three Guarantees approached Mexico City, effectively paving the way for the formal declaration of independence of the Empire of Mexico.
How did the death of José María Morelos affect the independence movement?
-The death of José María Morelos was a major blow to the independence movement as he was a key leader and a symbol of resistance against Spanish rule. However, his death also led to the rise of Vicente Guerrero, who took over as commander-in-chief of the rebel forces and continued the fight for independence.
Outlines
🎒 The Birth of Away Luggage and the Cry of Dolores
The video begins with a sponsorship message about Away luggage, highlighting its founders, features, and customer satisfaction guarantees. It transitions into the historical narrative of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, discussing the social unrest and the conditions leading up to the Mexican fight for independence. The episode sets the stage for the revolution against Spanish rule, focusing on the events that unfolded in the early 19th century.
🏺 The Economic Boom and Bust in the Bahia Region
This paragraph delves into the economic history of the Bahia region in New Spain, detailing the silver mining boom and subsequent bust. It discusses the social and economic impact on the region's inhabitants, including the influx of migrants, recurring famines, and the shift from independent operators to wage laborers. The paragraph also touches on the broader economic downturn and its effects on various social strata, from peasants to the wealthy, leading to a growing sentiment of discontent and the desire for independence.
📜 The Revolutionary Aspirations and the Influence of Enlightenment
The third paragraph introduces the key figures of the Mexican independence movement, including Miguel Hidalgo, a priest with radical ideas influenced by the Enlightenment. It outlines Hidalgo's background, his progressive actions in Dolores, and his involvement in the conspiracy against the Spanish government. The narrative also explores the varying aspirations of the conspirators, from those seeking political and economic independence to others advocating for a complete social overhaul, inspired by the French Revolution.
📢 The Cry of Dolores and the Outbreak of the Independence Movement
This section narrates the famous event known as the Cry of Dolores, where Hidalgo called for a mass revolt against the Spanish colonial government. It describes the rapid growth of the revolutionary army, the capture of key cities, and the adoption of symbols and slogans by the rebels. The narrative also highlights the internal conflicts within the revolutionary leadership due to the massacre at Guanajuato and Hidalgo's issuance of an Emancipation Proclamation.
🛡️ The Struggle for Mexico City and Hidalgo's Retreat
The focus shifts to the military campaign led by Hidalgo and the challenges faced by the Viceroy in organizing a defense. It details the confrontation at Monte de las Cruces, the subsequent retreat of Hidalgo's forces, and the speculation surrounding Hidalgo's decision not to press on to Mexico City. The paragraph also discusses the decline in momentum and numbers within the revolutionary forces and the splintering of the leadership.
⚔️ The Betrayal, Capture, and Execution of the Revolutionaries
This paragraph recounts the betrayal of the revolutionary leaders, their capture, and subsequent execution. It describes the trials in Coahuila, the execution of Ignacio Allende and Juan Aldama, and the separate execution of Hidalgo. The narrative also mentions the display of the leaders' heads as a deterrent to future rebellions and the temporary relief experienced by the Viceroy in Mexico City.
🔥 The Persistence of the Independence War and the Rise of New Leaders
Despite the initial setbacks, the fight for independence continues with the emergence of new leaders like Ignacio Lopez Rayon and Jose Maria Morelos. The paragraph details the continued resistance, the establishment of a Congress in Anahuac, and the drafting of a new constitution. It also introduces Vicente Guerrero and his role in the southern campaigns, emphasizing the ongoing struggle and the resilience of the independence movement.
🏛️ The Congress of Anahuac and the Shifting Tides of War
The narrative moves to the Congress of Anahuac, which aimed to unify the rebellion under a central authority. It discusses the Congress's efforts to declare independence and draft a constitution for the newly named Mexico. However, the tide turns against the rebels with the rise of new Spanish leaders and the execution of Morelos. The Congress eventually disbands, and the independence movement faces significant challenges.
🛤️ The Road to Independence: From Conservative Support to the Plan of Iguala
The final paragraphs describe the changing political landscape in Spain and its impact on New Spain. It outlines the appointment of a new Viceroy, the mutiny of Cadiz, and the shift in loyalties among the conservative Criollo and peninsular leaders. The narrative culminates in the alliance between Iturbide and Guerrero, the formulation of the Plan of Iguala, and the eventual recognition of Mexican independence, setting the stage for the country's future struggles and relations with foreign powers.
🏙️ The Entry into Mexico City and the Declaration of Independence
The video concludes with the triumphant entry of the Patriot army into Mexico City, marking the end of the war for independence. It mentions the issuance of a Declaration of Independence that solidified the Empire of Mexico. The summary hints at the upcoming discussion on the post-independence challenges, including internal conflicts, foreign interventions, and the rise of figures like Porfirio Diaz.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Criollo
💡Viceroyalty of New Spain
💡Independence Movement
💡Father Miguel Hidalgo
💡Grito de Dolores
💡Our Lady of Guadalupe
💡Caste System
💡Jose Maria Morelos
💡Vicente Guerrero
💡Plan de Iguala
💡Treaty of Cordoba
Highlights
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The Cry of Dolores marked the beginning of the Mexican War of Independence led by Miguel Hidalgo.
Hidalgo's speech at Dolores rallied peasants, workers, and villagers against the vice-regal government.
The revolution led by Hidalgo and others was influenced by both the American and French Revolutions.
Hidalgo's army grew rapidly, but lacked military training and proper weapons.
The symbol of the revolution became Our Lady of Guadalupe, representing religious and national identity.
Hidalgo issued the first Emancipation Proclamation in independent Mexico, forbidding slavery.
After a series of victories and defeats, Hidalgo was eventually captured and executed.
José María Morelos and Vicente Guerrero emerged as leaders in the continued fight for Mexican independence.
The Congress of Anahuac produced a new Constitution and a Solemn Declaration of Independence for Mexico.
Despite initial successes, the rebellion faced major setbacks, including the execution of key leaders.
The Plan of Iguala, with its three guarantees, united various factions and led to the final push for independence.
The Treaty of Córdoba and the subsequent entry of the Army of the Three Guarantees into Mexico City marked the end of the war.
Transcripts
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revolutions
hello and welcome to revolutions episode
9.2 the cry of Dolores last week we did
a broad survey of the Viceroyalty of New
Spain and as we approach the end of the
episode and approach the abdications of
biown we noted that there was a lot of
discontentment resentment and anger
among all classes and casts about the
state of the Viceroyalty of New Spain
well today we are gonna take all that
discontentment resentment and anger and
use it to blow up the Viceroyalty of New
Spain and turned it into independent
Mexico now this is going to be a
necessarily truncated version of events
we are going to do in one single episode
would it took more than 20 episodes for
me to do down in South America but we
have places to go in things to see in
the 20th century so let's just go ahead
and knock this sucker out unfortunately
for us I spent a lot of time in episode
5.6 describing the crucial events back
in Spain that led to the abdications of
biown and the collapse of the Bourbon
monarchy in 1808 and in episode 5.6 I
also talked about the impact of the
forced abdications in the Americas and I
touched actually on what happened in New
Spain I think that was the last time I
spent more than a line or two on events
in what became Mexico knowing full well
that eventually I would be able to come
back to it but just a briefly review as
in other major cities in both Spain and
the Americas the capture of the Bourbon
monarchy led to a movement to create
provisional ruling hunters made up of
local notables until the crisis passed
so the Criollo leaders in New Spain
pressured the viceroy to go along with a
plan to convene an assembly of the best
families in new spain and for the first
time in a century allow Criollo voices
into government now surprisingly the
viceroy was prepared to go along with
this plan which freaked out the
conservative peninsulares letters in the
city who not implausibly saw such a Huna
as the first step towards independence
so in September of 1808 the conservative
leaders staged a coup they arrested the
Viceroy and his prince
we'll Criollo allies and installed an
eighty-year-old general as the new
Viceroy as chaos reign back in europe
and rebellions exploded all over South
America the Conservatives in Mexico City
were mostly successful at holding
revolution at bay in New Spain for the
next two years the 80 year old general
was replaced by the Archbishop of Mexico
City who had been in on the coup the
previous year the archbishop would then
stay in office until he was replaced in
September of 1810 by a career army
officer named Francisco Javier Vargas
who had spent the previous two years
distinguishing himself in the Peninsular
war and he was now being sent across the
Atlantic to make sure Spain held on to
its American possessions Vargas had the
good fortune to arrive in Mexico City
after a very long journey on September
the 14th 1810 literally the day before
the long forestalled revolution exploded
now that revolution exploded in one
particular part of New Spain the bahia
the Bahia is that wider region north of
Mexico City that was rich in silver it
had become the heart of the Bourbon push
to revitalize the economy of New Spain
and as we discussed last week wealthy
peninsulares and Criollo were encouraged
to make major investments to increase
the amount of silver that was being
mined as well as enlarge and diversify
the aussi n des that supported them what
followed in the bahia was a century-long
economic boom that lasted from about
1700 to about 1800 this mining boom
caused a massive influx of migrants into
the region men who were looking for work
either in the mines or on the aussi n
des but unfortunately there was a reason
that this area had never been heavily
settled before this the land wasn't that
great and it was susceptible to repeated
droughts near the end of the 1700s there
were simply too many mouths to feed and
famine became a recurrent problem
especially during major droughts in 1777
1792 and 1799 tenant and small farmers
were hit particularly hard during these
times and they were just squeezed out by
the larger Aussie Enda so by 1800 nearly
every independent operator had been
turned into a mere wage-labour the
region would also find itself in trouble
every time a mine would shut down or
there would be a flood that wrecked
equipment or a vein was tapped dry this
would lead to slash wages reduced hours
and mass layoffs in those times you
would wind up with a lot of young men
just sort of hanging around which as we
know going back to the very first
episodes of the revolutions podcast is
never a good thing
these recurrent problems could be
absorbed as long as the mining boom went
on and workers could eventually find new
jobs but after 1800 the mining economy
went into a decade-long slump that
actually saw silver output not just slow
down but actually decline year-over-year
now the slump was partly the result of
simply running into the limit of
expansion but it was also impacted by
events back in Europe where the French
Revolutionary Wars are now moving on
into the Napoleonic Wars the global
economic uncertainty combined with
natural declines and output to create
cycles of layoffs and famine and
displacement among the population of the
Biagio that now had nowhere else to go
this is the place they called home and
it wasn't just the wage workers who were
being hit hard
manufacturers local suppliers traders
shopkeepers they were all pummeled by
this prolonged recession and all of them
started to rally around the idea that
sinister peninsular a agents and
absentee landlords in Mexico City were
at least partly to blame for this
economic crisis but even the absentee
landlords in Mexico City were getting
pretty furious thanks to the very
provocative act of consolidation that
had been decreed by the Spanish
government in 1804 the idea here was to
more fully control the national wealth
by ordering the Catholic Church to
deposit all of their riches with the
crown who would then pay the church an
annual dividend on their deposit the
problem was that in New Spain the church
had acted as the principal mortgage
lender for all of these huge investments
that the Bourbons had been encouraging
the act of consolidation meant that the
church was now going to call in all
these loans and some of them were on 20
or 30-year terms this would cause
nothing less than financial ruin for
major mine owners
Osen Tatas and large merchants so by the
beginning of 1808 and you had a pyramid
of anger building from the peasant
farmers and wage workers and indigenous
villagers all the way up to the richest
Criollo landlords and all of them were
coming around on the idea that there was
something deeply rotten about the
vice-regal government after news arrived
in the B he loved the abdications of
biown grumbling turned into active
planning to break away from Spain and
declare independence the center of this
brewing conspiracy in the bahia was the
city of Quetta taro where the mayor
miguel Dominguez and his wife
Josefa Ortiz did amigas were both active
sympathizers meeting under the cover of
liberal society gatherings they brought
together lawyers priests businessmen and
army officers and these disaffected men
and women would share their grievances
and then they would start to share their
plans among this group was Ignacio I end
a captain in the cavalry who came from a
prominent local family currently being
hit hard by the economic recession he
was joined by Juan Aldama who was also
the scion of a prominent local family
suffering economic distress both of them
represented the bitterness of the
Criollo for not having any kind of voice
in government and these guys looked at
the example of the United States for
inspiration they wanted political and
economic independence from Europe and
they wanted the commercial wealth and
power that would surely come with that
independence they supported equality
insofar as they were angry that Criollo
like themselves were barred from serving
in government but they also admired the
fact that the founding fathers of the
United States were able to prosecute a
political revolution while holding the
forces of social revolution at bay but
there were among these conspirators
those who had more expansive and
ambitious plans and who drew their
inspiration not from the American
Revolution but from the French
Revolution they wanted to overturn the
caste system they wanted to dump the
aristocracy they wanted to assure in
social justice they wanted to break up
the assi endows in the church land and
distribute them equitably to the people
they wanted to abolish slavery and any
vestiges of indigenous tribal
tribute which brings us to the man in
the room who wanted all of that and more
father II dog Oh Miguel Hidalgo Y
Costilla was born in 1753 he was the
kre-o yo son of a prominent and
well-respected family though his father
was a hacienda manager rather than a
major landlord so the family wasn't at
the very top of the caste system which
actually influenced heed all gos outlook
on life he grew up on the periphery of
New Spain he interacted with mestizo and
indigenous workers he learned native
languages and customs and knew how these
people lived and worked the family was
rich enough though that Miguel got a
top-flight education and after entering
seminary he graduated in 1773 with a
degree in both philosophy and theology
by this point the dalgo had displayed a
brightness and intelligence that was
both promising and concerning when he
was spoken of in the higher ranks of the
church ordained a priest in 1778 at the
age of 25 Hidalgo stayed in academia he
joined the faculty of the collegio de
San Nicolas Obispo eventually rising to
be appointed dean of the college in 1790
now the Inquisition was still alive and
well and on patrol for seditious and
heretical ideas but as a priest
specializing in theology and philosophy
Hidalgo was one of the select few who
was legally allowed to read the latest
enlightenment tracks tracks everyone
else was forbidden to even possess no
ostensibly this is so the ideas could be
refuted but it's pretty clear Hidalgo
was doing more spreading of these ideas
than he was refuting them this led to
problems with higher-ups in 1792 a dog
lost his position at the college partly
for altering the curriculum and partly
after being accused of financial
improprieties he was shuffled around
from post to post until his brother who
was also a priest died in 1802 Hidalgo
took over his brothers responsibilities
in the city of Dolores Hidalgo was never
much interested in the tending to souls
part of his job so he handed most of
those responsibilities off to a
subordinate
he focused his attention on business
pursuits on intellectual investigations
and philanthropic activities as a
secular priest Hidalgo had never taken
the vow of poverty so he owned three
Aussie and as himself and was quite
adept at turning a profit but as a
member of the clergy he had taken a vow
of chastity though that did not stop him
from maintaining several long-term
relationships and fathering at least
seven children oh by now he had
developed strongly heretical beliefs
both political and religious he dalgo
opposed the absolute monarchy and he
despised ignorant superstition but most
acutely he developed a real sense of
egalitarian goodwill though he had no
interest in tending to his flock by
delivering a weekly Mass or hearing
confession he did tend to his flock by
actively encouraging economic prosperity
and social equality for the people of
Dolores he introduced new crops and
techniques to the area with the ultimate
intention of making the land more
profitable and the villagers earning a
measure of independent self-respect now
this was mostly tolerated by the
authorities until a dalgo started
showing them how to grow grapes and
olives crops that were specifically
prohibited so as not to compete with
Monopoly imports from Spain so on top of
these economic and social reforms a
doggo also became a big advocate for
political reform radical political
reform he was an active participant in
the revolutionary conspiracies of the
bahia attending hosting and guiding many
of their discussions though until the
moment that he kick-started the
revolution he was really just one
conspirator among many he was not yet
the leader that he would be seen as
later so by the fall of 1810 these
revolutionary discussions have created a
political alliance composed of minor
political officials army officers
lawyers factory owners shopkeepers and
like a doggo priests who believed that
they could probably mobilize the
displaced peasants and unemployed mind
workers and villagers angry about land
use sir patient into a force that could
collectively seize control of New Spain
they were far enough along in their
planning that they even set a date for
their revolution a date would be in
December of 1810 and they had sent
agents up to the United States to secure
munitions and financial support for this
coming revolution but this plan was up
ended in September of 1810 when Josefa
Dominguez learned that they had been
discovered government agents came and
alerted her husband that they were onto
a major cabal of revolutionaries not
realizing that she herself Josefa the
wife of the mayor was in particular
deeply involved in this conspiracy
sohe Safa managed to get a messenger up
to dolores to warn Hidalgo and the other
leaders who were with him not bothering
to think things through too much
Hidalgo ordered the church bells rung to
gather his congregation those who did
gather after midnight in the wee hours
of September the 16th 1810 were treated
to an impassioned speech by a doggo
calling for them to join in a mass
popular revolt this is easily the most
famous speech in Mexican history it's
called the goody toda dolores or the cry
of dolores unfortunately however the
speech was not recorded word-for-word so
we just know the gist of what a doggo
said but basically he called on them to
overthrow 300 years of oppression to
reclaim the land that had been stolen
from them to destroy the evil
politicians and bad government who ruled
over them God and history we're now
calling on the people to play their part
and they must play their part the cry of
Dolores landed with an electric bang and
the next morning a dalgo gave a repeat
performance near the market with similar
energetic results men and women who had
been holding long simmering resentments
were finally being told it's okay to go
crazy soon
600 to 800 volunteers joined what had
once been a very small conspiracy with
Hidalgo now clearly the face of the
rebellion they all marched together out
of Dolores in the direction of the
regional capital of Guanajuato once
sparked revolutionary fire in the Bahia
spread rapidly
whatever village or town had all goes
army passed through and it was becoming
Hidalgo's
even though II dalgo had no military
experience whatsoever they picked up new
recruits and attacked peninsulares and
their property when they captured the
city of Celaya on September the 21st
they were five thousand strong a week
later as they approached Guanajuato they
were reportedly 30,000 strong but they
were not trained at all and they had no
real weapons we're talking sticks and
rocks and machetes what they had though
was a belief that they were engaged in
some kind of Messianic uprising that
would expel sacrilegious peninsulares a
lot of them believe that they were
fighting for the King against his bad
councilors they had no idea actually
that they were engaged in a movement for
independence so the rebels carried
hastily made banners that spoke to this
message that Hidalgo and the other
leaders were focused on was long live
religion long live America death to bad
government they adopted as their symbol
our most holy mother of Guadalupe then
yes I know I botched it last week I said
waddle loop not Guadalupe blame that on
a three and a half years I lived in
Austin anyway when they all got to
Guanajuato the small circle of
peninsular administrators and the
Criollo allies that they still had
barricaded themselves inside a granary
and they held out for two days but
eventually the crush of the rebels was
simply too great the granary was stormed
and over five hundred people were killed
including women and children
now this Massacre caused problems in the
rebel leadership because this is not
what the more elite Criollo rebels had
signed up for peasants massacring their
social superiors that is not what we are
supposed to be doing but after so bloody
taking Guanajuato the army kept marching
and it kept growing
they were now widely seen as totally out
of control they're feeding themselves by
forced requisitioning or stripping
fields clean for food by now most other
Criollo in new spain were siding with
the vice-regal authorities yes they had
their resentments and yes they wanted
independence but this seemed like just a
mob of barbaric peasants and in the
midst of all this a dog Oh issued his
first Emancipation Proclamation
forbidding slavery and independent
Mexico and though as I said slavery
wasn't
huge thing in New Spain slaves were used
as household staff in prominent families
mostly as status symbols so the threat
to the social order represented by
Hidalgo's army was very real and very
frightening meanwhile in Mexico City the
new Viceroy Javier Vargas who had been
on the job for exactly one day before
the Revolution broke out was now trying
to scramble a defense of the city the
vice-regal forces had not been very well
run these past few hundred years they
were not very well organized and they
were dispersed way away from the capital
anyway so a Vargas could only muster a
couple of thousand men to go out and try
to do anything about this flood of
humanity now sixty maybe eighty thousand
people strong the largest force that
could be mustered on the vice-regal side
was just a couple of thousand men I've
seen numbers as low as 1,200 and as high
as 7,000 but they rode out to meet
Hidalgo's army and at monte de las
cruces on October the 30th 1810 the
rebels and the vice-regal forces met in
battle the rebels took heavy casualties
they were as I said not well trained or
armed but the numbers alone made their
defeat practically impossible so they
were not defeated the vice-regal forces
were treated back to mexico city and the
road to the capital was now wide open so
that brings us to the most consequential
and controversial moment of the whole
struggle for mexican independence father
a doggo appears to have flinched rather
than pushing on to mexico city
Hidalgo ordered the army to halt and
retreat west toward Guadalajara
now there has never to my knowledge been
a definitive explanation for why he
decided to do this I end day for example
was pulling his hair out trying to get a
doll go to listen to reason
he was saying we have to go take the
capital now before the vice-regal forces
can regroup but a doggo stubbornly
refused so the army halted and retreated
and the most common speculation is that
having witnessed the behavior of the
rebel army for the past few weeks that a
doggo believed storming into mexico city
would simply be the beginning of mass
water and destruction but whatever the
reason the Army did retreat Mexico City
was spared and the war for independence
which might have been one right there
and then would go on for another 11
tortuous years the retreat had an
immediate impact on the revolution
peasant rebellions run on momentum and
it all go had just killed the momentum
soon the numbers in the army were down
to 40,000 possibly half of what they had
claimed just maybe a week earlier then
the leadership started to splinter with
different leaders leading different
groups in different directions
Hidalgo himself wound up in Guadalajara
with only about 7,000 men upon arrival
though he attempted to start up a
provisional Revolutionary Government
with himself as the self-proclaimed
autocrat he set up a little ministry
with his personal secretary
a guy named Ignacio Lopez rayon he's
going to be important here in a second
as Secretary of State but as I end a
predicted the pause in the action
allowed the vice-regal forces to her
group certainly it allowed the best and
most vigorous general in the vice-regal
army guy named Felix Maria Chaya to
organize a 6,000 man army and March them
south from where they had been stationed
up in San Luis Potosi but he dalgo
himself was busy trying to recapture the
momentum the area around Guadalajara had
faced many of the same difficulties as
the bahia and so though the initial rush
of volunteers had mostly been killed or
deserted Hidalgo found many new recruits
to the cause and soon he was leading a
force tens of thousands strong again but
this rebellion came to an abrupt end
just after New Year's in 1811 in early
January Kyah came with his 6,000 men and
he approached it all goes position at
the bridge on the Khalid Rhone River On
January the 17th 1811 the two sides met
in battle and though the rebels still
had a massive numerical advantage this
time they were broken to pieces
kaya's men were way better armed and way
more disciplined and an explosion of a
grenade inside the ranks
a dog goes army cause so much fear and
confusion the battle quickly turned into
a rout in the wake of this debacle the
leadership of the rebellion gathered and
decided to strip a dog O of his military
responsibilities he would be kept on as
a figurehead and a political leader but
he would have nothing more to do with
the tactics and strategy involved in
actually running a war which were all
transferred over to IND now had he had
the time I end day had a plan to pursue
a campaign built around a more compact
but better trained army rather than
these huge mobs of reckless peasants
that hey dog Oh had gathered but I on
day never really got the chance to do
anything the core group of original
leaders among them father Hidalgo IND
and Aldama
decided to abandon their position in
central Mexico and make their way to the
far north if they could make it to the
United States they might find allies and
guns and money I mean that's what they
had been after before the cry of Dolores
had prematurely set the revolution in
motion so they headed north but they
never got to the United States a
disgruntled rebel I believe annoyed that
he had been passed over for a promotion
decided to betray his former comrades
when the party reached the wells of
bahan in the state of Kokila the trader
alerted the vice-regal authorities and
all the rebel leaders were arrested they
were not even transported back to Mexico
City for their trial instead right there
in Coahuila they were tried and found
guilty of treason I end day and Aldama
and most of the rest of the party were
executed on June the 26th 1811 and they
were shot in the back to purposefully
dishonor them father Hidalgo meanwhile
was defrocked found guilty and executed
separately on July the 30th 1811 the
heads of the rebel leaders were then cut
off and posted on the walls of
Guanajuato as a warning to anybody
contemplating anything like this ever
again
down in Mexico City everyone could
breathe a little bit easier the war for
Mexican Independence was now over except
haha no it's not
that Secretary of State Ignacio Lopez
rayon had not been with the party
heading north
he had instead stayed behind in the
South with a force of about 3,500 men
when he heard that a doggo and the
others had been captured he pointed this
small army south and between March and
July 18 11 he fought a series of
skirmishes and battles and defeated the
vice-regal forces almost every time he
faced them and then down in south
central Mexico reown opened a whole new
front in the war the original rebellion
had erupted from the Bahia
the war would now be carried on in the
south in what is today the Mexican
states of Morelos and Guerrera which of
course weren't called that yet because
the men who gave them those names are
only just now emerging onto the scene
like like right now so let's meet Jose
Maria Morelos and Vicente Guerrero Jose
Maria Morelos was born in 1765 in the
Bahia specifically in a city that was
then called via do lead but which is
today called Morelia because well Jose
Maria Morelos was born there in 1765
though he was classified as Criollo on
his birth record
Moreno's was probably a mestizo and his
family was of pretty modest means his
father was a carpenter and Morales
himself started working as a mule tear
before transitioning into being a tenant
farmer but he was pretty smart and
apparently wanted to better himself so
in 1789 he went off to the local college
which just so happened to be the Colegio
de San Nicolas Obispo where father a
doggo taught and was about to become
dean Morelos graduated and was ordained
as a priest though like Hidalgo he was a
secular priests and not bound by any law
of poverty but also like a dog oh he was
bound by a vow of chastity which he
ignored engaging in several long-term
relationships that produced a couple of
children for a loss then spent the next
decade and a half in mostly prosperous
obscurity but when he learned in October
of 1810 that his old schoolmaster had
launched a rebellion morales was
inspired to join now it's clear he was
steeped in the same Enlightenment ideas
as a doggo Morelos was a straight-up
he hated the racial caste system he was
an abolitionist he advocated justice for
the peasants and for the redistribution
of land from rich to poor especially
believing in breaking up and parceling
out church lands after joining the
rebellion in October of 1810 Barrios
displayed an intuitive knack for
soldiering and he was a natural and
charismatic leader when all the original
leaders of the revolution were executed
in the summer of 89
Morales moved south and gathered up a
small army of loyal rebels this small
army never more than five or six
thousand men at any given time would
spend the next four years driving the
vice-regal forces out of south central
Mexico joining Morel OSes force is the
other guy we need to bring into this and
that's 31 year old Vicente Guerrero born
in 1782 about a hundred miles inland
from Acapulco Guerrero was the son of a
mestizo father any mulatto mother
so Guerrero was a dark-skinned mix of
all the ethnic groups of New Spain his
father was a mule tear and Guerrero
spent his youth working his father's
mule trains traveling all over the
Viceroyalty and picking up new ideas and
contacts wherever he went
for obvious reasons he too wound up
hating the caste system and believed
that the entire vice-regal apparatus was
simply one giant exercise in tyranny now
Guerrero did not join a dog OHS army but
when Morelos moved south and started
recruiting Guerrero was one of the first
to join up and he would soon prove to be
one of the most reliable officers in
Morelos his army and as we will see in a
moment it will ultimately be Guerrero
not Morales who will be the one marching
triumphantly into Mexico City at the end
of the war with scattered armies of
rebels now operating successfully in the
south Ignacio Lopez Rhian did his best
to bring some kind of central
coordination to the very uncoordinated
campaigns being waged so in August of
1811 Brown invited Morales and a few
other prominent leaders to join what
would be called the Hunta de Sita croire
named after the city where they first
met in which I almost certainly just
mispronounced motor I lost agreed that a
Central
while committee was a good idea but he
never actually met with the hunting
himself he only ever sent a subordinate
to represent him this hunter was pretty
ineffective anyway and during the
duration of their existence most
commanders in the field most of the time
just sort of did whatever they wanted
Morello certainly did but it was hard to
argue with his success because over the
next few years he was uniformly
successful Morelos fought an endless
series of skirmishes and battles and
sieges and counter sieges that allowed
the rebels to claim to facto political
control over much of south-central
Mexico in November of 1812 Marlowe's
captured Oaxaca City which is a very big
deal and then in April of 1813 he
delivered the even more dramatic blow he
captured the port of Acapulco by the
summer of 1813 there was a justifiable
belief among the rebels that they were
on their way - slowly but surely
squeezing the Viceroyalty of New Spain
right off the map motor losses success
led to the second big attempt to unify
the rebellion under Morelos as auspices
delegates from various revolutionary
factions gathered in Japan single in
September of 1813 for a congress that
was called you guessed it the Congress
of Japan Zingo this Congress was tasked
with the dual mandate to declare
independence and to draft a new
constitution to help guide their
deliberations more English presented
them with what he dubbed the sentiments
of the nation a document that listed the
sentiments of the nation at least
according to Marlowe's it called for
full and complete American independence
the supremacy of the Catholic Church and
all things religious popular sovereignty
rather than the Divine Right of Kings
the division of political power regular
democratic elections the rule of law and
the N - all distinctions privileges and
burdens wrapped up in the caste system
having delivered these sentiments
Morelos went back to warm and the
Congress deliberated finally producing
in November of 1813 both the solemn
declaration of independence of northern
America and a new constitution for that
independent Northam
erricka that was now not necessarily for
the first time but certainly for the
first official time being called Mexico
but the solemn declaration and the new
constitution were dead on arrival
because almost as soon as they were
promulgated at the end of 1813 the tide
started to turn against the rebellion
and against Vardalos general Chaya was
promoted to vice room and the point man
for the counterinsurgency in the South
became a Criollo career army officer
named Augustine enter pide now at this
point it rabii day was already known as
the Iron Dragon and he had a reputation
for being totally committed to the
ruthless extermination of this rebellion
and also having the skill to exterminate
it morales meanwhile was trying to wage
his own offensive campaigns defend
territories that he had already
liberated and protect this new civilian
congress mo de los started to lose
ground on all fronts through 1814 and
1815 and the congress was bounced from
city to city never able to stay in one
place for long then in november of 1814
Morelos was leading his men in a minor
skirmish to buy the civilian congress
time to get away once again when he was
captured the now imprisoned Morales was
convicted of every civil and religious
crime known to man and he was executed
on December the 22nd 1815 up in Mexico
City Viceroy kiyah could breathe a deep
sigh of relief with this great and
stubborn thorn Morelos now dead
surely the war for Mexican Independence
was finally over but haha of course it's
not murder a loss his most capable
subordinate Vicente Guerrero took over
as commander-in-chief of the rebel
forces but these forces dwindled by the
day the victories of the vice-regal
armies and the death of Morelos were
major blows to rebel morale the civilian
Congress attempted to exert its central
authority but they were simply ignored
by the remaining commanders in the field
and the Congress wound up simply
disbanding taking their solemn
declaration of independence and their
enlightened Constitution with them
into the dustbin of history the line
between rebel army and bandit gang was
now getting blurred into irrelevance and
the difference between a guerrilla
campaign and just robbing and pillaging
ceased to have any real functional
meaning meanwhile events back in Europe
had taken what you might call a major
turn in 1815 remember Napoleon has
finally been defeated and the Bourbon
King Ferdinand the seventh the desired
one was finally returned to the Spanish
throne this watershed of peace and
restoration in old Spain coupled with
the death of Morelos and the near
disbanding of the rebellion in New Spain
really made it feel like the Spanish
Empire was going to continue intact in
perpetuity to change with these new
times the restored monarchy appointed a
new Viceroy this time a career naval
officer named Juan Ruiz de Apodaca he
arrived in Mexico City in September of
1816 and he represented a real change in
strategy plenty of complaints had
filtered back across the Atlantic that
the harsh tactics the scorched earth
campaigning the summary execution of
prisoners had prolonged a rebellion
rather than hastened its demise
so apodaca came in with a lighter touch
he offered amnesty to all rebels who
laid down their arms those who remained
under arms but were captured were not to
just be summarily executed something
resembling the rule of law was going to
be restored and after more than five
years of fighting and the monarchy and
vice-regal structure now seemingly
stronger than ever
almost everyone took the Viceroy up on
his clemency by the end of 1817 only
Vicente Guerrero and a small army of
hardcore Patriots refused to come in
from the cold maintaining a small force
of loyal rebels up in the mountains of
what is called today for reasons you
could probably guess the Mexican state
of Guerrero for three years Guerrero and
his men looked like the deadest part of
a dead end they were hopelessly isolated
and fighting for a lost cause that had
been lost years ago I imagine them
invoking more pity than fear
I mean just like it's over you guys go
home but they refused and they kept
refusing right through 1820 when news
came over from Spain that changed
everything
overnight news that turn Guerrero from
pathetic dead enter into a prophetic
legend the last man brave enough and
committed enough to have maintained the
flame of Liberty through a long and dark
night and what was this magically
transformative event why the mutiny of
Cadiz of course a you will recall the
mutiny of Cadiz from episode 5 point 17
this is when the restored Bourbon
monarchy was going to make a fresh play
to restore complete control over the
American part of the Spanish Empire and
they mustered tens of thousands of
soldiers in the port of Cadiz for a
major expedition across the Atlantic but
instead of sailing for America this
expedition mutinied under the direction
of liberal officers who then ran a
rebellion all the way back to Madrid
that forced King Ferdinand to adopt the
liberal constitution of 1812 as you'll
recall from our episodes on South
America this mutiny meant no more
reinforcements for the Royalists forces
in the Americas and from that point on
Bolivar and his gang were able to run
the table well up in New Spain there's
an additional twist namely that
conservative Criollo and even a lot of
peninsular who had been steadfastly
opposed to independence
now abruptly changed their minds they
were afraid that the new Liberal
leadership in Spain would undermine the
authority of the church undermine their
traditional systems of power and break
up the largest state so almost overnight
the conservative leadership of New Spain
army officers high church officials and
major landowners switched sides now the
man who embodied this switch more than
anyone else is of course Augustine de
Iturbide de Iturbide de had spent 10
years of his life relentlessly fighting
the rebellion he had joined the army as
a teenager and had actually fought in
the very first battle at monte de las
cruces that how long he has been
fighting rebels and it Irby day was also
the kind of conservative
cRIO yo that high vice-regal officials
loved he was devoutly religious he
believed in the caste system and the
role of social hierarchy and he was
dedicated in his defense of private
property rights he had risen steadily
through the ranks and as I said was the
principal opponent of Morelos from about
eighteen thirteen to eighteen fifteen
but though the vice-regal officials
tended to love him he was still barred
from rising too high in the ranks
because Hitler b-day was a Criollo and
resentment over this blocked ambition
combined with resentment over getting
temporarily booted from the army amidst
charges of embezzlement and extortion
after 1815 led Iturbi de to develop a
more independent spirit but he still had
plenty of friends in high places who got
him his old job back in the army and in
1820 with the very last remnants of the
Santa code arrows guerrillas on the
verge of a long-overdue extinction
Viceroy Apodaca put it Irby de in charge
of what was meant to be the very last
campaign of this now decade-long war an
inter BJ's campaign in 1820 would in
fact be the final campaign just not the
way the Viceroy thought so as I just
said after news that the king had been
forced to accept the liberal
constitution of 1812
murmurs raced through conservative
household and through the officers
quarters of New Spain and Iturbi day
realized he had a chance to have it all
he believed in nearly every part of the
vice-regal social and economic apparatus
and now that apparatus was threatened
because a bunch of damn liberals had
gotten a hold of the King back in Spain
but the only bit Iturbi day did not
agree with was the unjust treatment of
Criollo like himself so if he became the
leader of a new independence movement he
could possibly maintain most of the
existing social order by actually
breaking with Spain he found plenty of
support inside the officer corps and
when he went out on campaign to
quote-unquote confront Guerrero Iturbi
debt was almost certainly already in
contact with the rebel leader about
forming an alliance with the simple
shared goal of independence from Spain
now what followed is one of those war
and politics makes extremely strange
bedfellows you've got the dark-skinned
lower-class
diehard rebel Guerrero accepting an
alliance with the white royalist who had
ordered the execution of many of
Guerrero's friends and comrades but
Iturbi day offered Guerrero the army and
political support necessary to carry out
the project of Independence and Guerrero
gave Iturbi day the credibility he
needed to tap the power of the people
not just a narrow slice of Criollo elite
so after secret correspondence that
basically acted as feeling each other
out in Derby day and Guerrero met at the
town of Iguala where they fashioned the
very simple basis of their alliance
first the Catholic Church would be
supreme and inviolable second the
country would accept nothing less than
absolute independence and third there
would be social equality the formal
caste system would be abolished these
became known as the three guarantees of
the plan de Iguala which would then
promulgated on February the 24th 1821
the three guarantees offered something
for everyone and it was broad enough and
light enough on details that everyone
could see in it what they wanted then on
a more concrete level the two leaders
merged their armies and Guerrero agreed
to recognize intervie day as supreme
commander in chief there was now for the
first time a real cross class cross
caste revolutionary alliance with the so
called army of the three guarantees now
united against the Viceroyalty the end
game of Mexican Independence had arrived
now coincidentally enough in July of
1821 a new supreme political
representative from Spain arrived to
replace Viceroy apodaca now I'm not
gonna bother telling you this guy's name
but just know that because he was sent
by a Liberal government they were
dropping the rank of Viceroy and instead
he was simply dubbed the jefe politico
of New Spain he was there to make sure
that New Spain stay
to old Spain but as soon as he showed up
it was obvious to him that the whole
nation every peasant and landlord black
white indigenous mestizo all of them
supported the army of the three
guarantees and all of them seem to think
that independence would be coming any
day now so this half a politico
concluded that whatever his orders were
that it would be fruitless possibly even
personally suicidal to try to hold the
country for old Spain so he immediately
opened up negotiations with inter b-day
to secure a peaceful settlement and on
August the 24th 1821 not six weeks after
this guy's arrival the two leaders
signed the Treaty of Cordoba that
recognized the basic framework of the
plan
awawa and promised no resistance when
the army of the three guarantees
approached Mexico City and so it was
that on September the 27th 1821 11 years
and 11 days since the cry of Dolores a
victorious Patriot army entered Mexico
City and the next day the leaders of
that army issued a new and this time
really enforceable Declaration of
Independence of the Empire of Mexico
next week we will pick up with the
legacy of Independence it should come as
no surprise that the revolutionary
alliance was very quickly broken and
Vicente Guerrero went in to revolt
against inter be de who was by then
styling himself Emperor Agustin the
first then we're gonna barrel through
the next 50 years of Mexican history
which was defined by a running struggle
between conservative and liberal leaders
with constant rebellions and civil wars
and secession movements cropping up
everywhere like the one for example in
Texas we will also deal with Mexico's
increasingly subordinate dealings with
major foreign powers who were looking to
dominate and divide the country and
throughout the 19th century that meant
France of course but also principally
the United States and we will end next
week with the domestic triumphs of a
patriotic liberal general named Porfirio
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