Independence

The Mexican War of Independence lasted for 11 years, and the fight for freedom was not an easy one. After being enslaved and tortured for hundreds of years, the Mexicans had had enough, and were ready to fight for their independence (A). One very important person that helped with the independence of Mexico was Don Miguel Hidalgo, a Creole (a Spaniard born in New Spain), and a Catholic priest in the village Dolores, Guanajuato (E). The Creoles hated the Spanish control, and didn't like the way the natives and the mestizos (indigenous and Spanish mix) were treated (G). They all got together, and started plotting against the Spanish control (G). In the early morning of September 16, 1810, Hidalgo did his famous "Grito de Dolores." In this "cry", Hidalgo demanded the arrest of any Spaniards that lived in Dolores (G). He then rang the church bell, which called all the people in the village to the church. After everyone arrived, he declared war against Spain.


The time of this rebellion, was also the time when Spain was being abducted by France. Napoleon III, had stripped the ruler of Spain from his throne, and placed his brother, Bonaparte as king instead (E). The new ruler was the reason the Creoles resented the Spanish government (E).


The war of independence started with the natives, mestizos, and creoles getting together and attacking any white men or Criollos (upper class Spanish). Before entering the capitol of New Spain, they returned home to create a stronger army. After getting an army of 80,000 men together, they decided to enter the capitol (G). Francisco Venegas, a Spanish military officer, was appalled by their daring act. Hidalgo and his followers suffered a great defeat right outside the capitol before they could even enter it (G). In order to regain their strength, they moved up North, where there were some revolutionary events, but none that impacted their fight for freedom as much as they would have liked  (F). 


On March 21, 1811, a former follower of Hidalgo, Ignacio Elizondo, turned his back on them. He helped on the capture and execution of Hidalgo and his followers in Chihuahua (F). After Hidalgo's death, Jose Morelos, a follower of Hidalgo, took his place in leading the fight for independence (F). With his help, the cities of Oaxaca and Acapulco were conquered by the mestizos, creoles, and the indigenous (F). Even though Morelos was successful, in 1815 he was executed by the Spanish (F) .

After Morelos's death, most of the fighting in the war of Mexican Independence were fought by groups called guerilla groups (I). Vicente Guerrero took leadership in Oaxaca (I). In December, 1820 the viceroy of New Spain, Juan Ruiz de Apodaca, sent an army out to Oaxaca to fight against Guerrero (I). 

A year later, on September 27, 1821, the Spanish and the Mexicans signed the treaty of Cordoba (J). Three years later, in 1824, they designed a constitution. Even though Mexico won their independence, they were not quite ready for it. For the next 40 years, Mexico's government was unstable, and went through a total of 56 new governments (J).