The religious practices
and social structures of the Mexicans were radically changed with
the intervention of Europeans. Following the Mixtón War
in 1541, the small minority of European Spaniards succeeded in
taking control of the Mexican population. With the success of
the Spaniards, three separate social groupings developed in Mexico:
the Spanish, the native peoples, and mestizos, people of European
and native descent.
By 1820, the more
conservative groups in Mexico, the higher clergy and the Creoles,
trying to maintain the status quo, sought independence from Spain.
The royalist general Augustín de Iturbide entered into
negotiations with Guerrero and in February 1821, at the Plan of
Iguala, Spain agreed to Mexican independence.William
Marshall Anderson in 1865 went to Mexico to flee political unrest
in America, and became interested in nature among other things.
Wallace
Gillpatrick in 1905 went to visit mines, but he loved Mexico so
much he stayed for five years. In 1876, Díaz lead a
revolution. Diaz became president and remained president until
1911. During this period, there much was substantial economic
growth. However, the Mexican government's favoritism to land owners
and foreign investors caused many in Mexico people to become dissatisfied.
In 1911, Francisco Madero led an armed revolt against Díaz
after Diaz reneged on his promise not to seek reelection. By November
1911, Madero assumed the Mexican presidency.
In 1913, Madero was
overthrown and murdered by one of his generals, General Huerta.
In 1914, in part, as a result of the U.S. military intervention
ordered by President Woodrow Wilson, Huerta resigned.
By the end of 1915,
Carranza became president of Mexico. Harry
A. Franck in 1916 went around Mexico trying to learn from and
experience the common man's culture. In 1917, Carranza established
a new constitution that required the nationalized mineral resources,
restored communal land to native people and established the separation
of church and state. However, most of these new provisions were
never implemented. In 1920, any prospect of reform ended when
Carranza was disposed my former military chief Obregon.
The political instability
of Mexico continued. After being reelected in 1928, Carranza was
assassinated before he was to take office following the election.
Calles succeeded Obregon, who remained in power until 1934. Cardenas
followed Calles as president. He introduced many reforms to improve
the lives of the poor. Cardenas introduced land reform, redistributing
land to the poor. He supported the Mexican labor movement. Railroads
and foreign holdings of minerals, such as oil, were nationalized.
Reforms continued in the education system
In
1937 Bess Garner went to Mexico. Her main objective was to learn
about Mexican cuture and not the political or economic situation,
even at such a changing point in Mexico's history. In 1940,
Camacho became president. The reform program slowed, but relationship
with United States improved.
The travel accounts
of this period quite interesting as they reflect the major changes
experienced by Mexico and its people. They provide diverse perspectives
on Mexican life at a time when few accounts were being written
in English.
The
Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001
