Cortez burning his Ships.Cortez burning his Ships.
Cortez burning his Ships.
Arrival of Cortez in the Mexican Capital.—As Cortez approached the Mexican capital, a great retinue of persons came to meet him, adorned with plumes and clad in mantles of fine cotton. Each of these saluted Cortez in the most respectful manner. They announced the approach of Montezuma himself; and soon after, the harbingers, two hundred in number, in a uniform dress, appeared in sight. These were followed by a company of higher rank, in splendid apparel, in the midst of whom was Montezuma, carried in a litter richly ornamented with gold and feathers of various colors. The king and Cortez met, and the mostrespectful salutations passed between them. Montezuma conducted Cortez to the quarters that had been prepared for his reception, and took leave of him, saying, "You are now with your brothers in your own house; refresh yourselves after your fatigue, and be happy until I return."
Meeting of Montezuma and Cortez.Meeting of Montezuma and Cortez.
Meeting of Montezuma and Cortez.
The first care of Cortez, however, was to take precautions for his security, by planting the artillery so as to command the different avenues which led to the place allotted for his reception.
In the evening, Montezuma returned to visit his guests, and again made them magnificent presents. Various conferences passed between them; and the next day Cortez and some of his principal attendants were admitted to an audience of the emperor.
While these events were happening, Cortez formed a plan no less extraordinary than daring. This was to seize Montezuma in his palace, and to carry him prisoner to the Spanish quarters. He communicated his plan to his principal officers, and almost instantly put it into execution.
Montezuma on his Throne.Montezuma on his Throne.
Montezuma on his Throne.
The Abdication of Montezuma.—Although Montezuma was permitted to exercise the functions of royalty, yet he was guarded with the utmost vigilance by the Spaniards. The king's brave son, with several of the principal officers, on the slightest pretext, was burned alive by the command of Cortez. The monarch himself was, at length, bound with fetters. Having both the monarch and his subjects under this temporary authority, Cortez availed himself of it to the utmost. He appointed commissioners to survey the empire, and to prepare the minds of the people for submitting to the Spaniards; and, in the end, he persuaded Montezuma to acknowledge himself a vassal to the Spanish crown, and to pay an annual tribute. The fallen prince, at the instance of Cortez, accompanied this profession of fealty and homage, with a magnificent present to the king of Spain, and, after his example, his subjects brought in liberal contributions.
War, and the Death of Montezuma.—About this timeVelasquez, piqued by the success of his subaltern, had sent a force into Mexico to take him and his principal officers prisoners; but the good fortune of Cortez triumphed again; for overcoming his enemies in battle, he induced the greater part of them to join his standard; and when he had least of all expected it, he was placed at the head of a thousand Spaniards, ready to aid him, at any hazard, in his enterprises.
This additional force had but just time to enroll themselves under their new leader, before the Mexicans attacked them in all directions.
Death of Montezuma.Death of Montezuma.
Death of Montezuma.
Cortez now found himself environed with the most imminent dangers. The only resource which remained to him was to try what effect the interposition of Montezuma might have upon his enraged subjects. When, the next morning, they approached to renew the assault, that unfortunate prince was compelled to advance to the battlements, and exhort his people to discontinue hostilities. But the fury of the multitude could not be repressed, and it was now directed momentarily against their prince. Flights ofarrows and volleys of stones poured in so violently upon the ramparts, that before the Spanish soldiers had time to lift their shields for Montezuma's defence, two arrows wounded the unhappy monarch, and a blow of a stone on his temple struck him to the ground.
Most bitterly did these poor men lament the consequences of their displeasure, as they witnessed the fate of their sovereign. As for Montezuma, in a paroxysm of rage he tore the bandage from his wounds, and so obstinately refused to take any nourishment, that he soon ended his days, rejecting with disdain all the urgency of the Spaniards that he should embrace the Christian faith.
Retreat and Return of Cortez.—The death of Montezuma filled the Mexicans with surprise and terror; but added to, rather than diminished, their hostility. They determined to reduce by famine a foe which they could not subdue by force. This coming to the knowledge of Cortez, he perceived, situated as he was, that his safety lay in instant retreat from the city. Preparations were accordingly made to march out of Mexico that very night. Each soldier took such booty as he was able; yet a large quantity of silver was left behind. At midnight, the troops abandoned their quarters, and proceeded in silence along the causeway that led to Tacubaya.
The Mexicans were watching the retreating foe. At length, the latter reached a breach which had been made in the causeway, when in an instant they were astounded by a tremendous roar of martial instruments. Clouds of arrows were showered upon them. Yet they struggled on to a second breach, where they were obliged to wade through the mud and water. All was darkness, confusion, dismay. Many were so heavily laden with spoils, that they sunk to rise no more. The carnage was dreadful. It was a night of blood—or what is known in the Mexican history as theNoche triste, or "doleful night." Cortez lost some five or six hundred Spaniards, and of his allies, the Tlascalans,above two thousand. Only a small portion of the pillaged treasures was saved—horses, ammunition, baggage, nearly all were gone. In the morning, although his troops needed rest and his wounded care, Cortez pursued his march towards Tlascala, where he was received with kindness by his allies.
Noche Triste.Noche Triste.
Noche Triste.
Some interval of tranquillity was now absolutely necessary, not only that the Spaniards might give attention to the cure of their wounds, but in order to recruit their strength, exhausted by a long succession of fatigues and hardships. When these objects had been attained, and his forces were considerably augmented, on the 28th of December, 1520, Cortez commenced his return towards Mexico.
In his progress towards it, he took possession of Tezcuco, the second town in the empire, situated on the lake about twenty miles from the capital. He had already prepared the materials for building several brigantines, so that they might be carried thither in pieces ready to be put together, and launched when they were needed. Here he establishedhis head-quarters, as it was the most suitable place to launch the brigantines. With the launching of these, all was in readiness for the great enterprise.
Cortez building Brigantines on the Lakes.Cortez building Brigantines on the Lakes.
Cortez building Brigantines on the Lakes.
Nor were the Mexicans unprepared. Upon the death of Montezuma, his brother, Quetlavaca, a man distinguished for his courage and capacity, was raised to the throne. But in the midst of his preparations to meet the invaders, he was fatally attacked by the small-pox, a scourge which had been introduced into the country by the Spaniards. Gautimozin, nephew and son-in-law of Montezuma, was next chosen emperor, nor could the choice have fallen on a more deserving man.
Great bravery was displayed by the Mexicans during the siege. Cortez found it necessary to proceed with caution in all his measures. His chief prospect of success lay in cutting off supplies from the city; at length, in that, he succeeded, so that the public stores were exhausted, and the sufferings in the city became extreme.
Fall of the City and Empire.—At this crisis, Gautimozin,in an attempt to escape to the provinces, with a view to arouse his people more effectually for his defence, was captured and conducted to Cortez.
He appeared with singular composure and self-respect, requesting of Cortez, that no insult should be offered to the empress or his children. "I have done," said he to his conqueror, "what became a monarch. I have defended my people to the last extremity. Nothing now remains but to die. Take this dagger," (laying hold of one which Cortez wore,) "plant it in my heart, and put an end to a life which can be no longer useful to my country." Before he left the city, he had been careful to disappoint the expectations of the Spaniards, by throwing all his treasures into the lake.
When the fate of their sovereign was known, the Mexicans laid down their arms, and Cortez took possession of that small part of the capital which yet remained, three-fourths of it having been reduced to ashes during the conflict. In this manner terminated the memorable siege of Mexico.
The fate of the capital decided that, also, of the empire. The provinces submitted, one after another, to the conquerors. Small parties of Spaniards, marching through them without interruption, penetrated in different quarters to the Pacific ocean. Thus a great and rich empire was secured to Spain, through the almost incredible efforts of a single man at the head of a small band of adventurers.
Fate of Cortez.—As a reward for his bold and surprising achievements, Cortez was warmly eulogized by his countrymen at home, and the Emperor Charles V. appointed him captain-general and governor of New Spain, with other tokens of favor. But a bitter cup was at last pressed to his lips. After returning to America, and continuing there for a time in his command, he came back, in 1540, to his native country. But in consequence of his ambition and usurpations, his reception at home was ill-suited to the character of his heroic deeds. "The emperor behaved to him withcold civility, his ministers treated him sometimes with neglect, sometimes with insolence. His grievances received no redress; his claims were urged without effect; and, after several years spent in fruitless application to ministers and judges, he ended his days on the 2d of December, in the sixty-second year of his age."
Extent of New Spain.—This country, under the Spaniards, embraced a more extensive region than the empire of Mexico, or the dominions of Montezuma and his predecessors. It included, in addition to the Mexican empire proper, New Navarre, a vast territory, extending to the north and west; the provinces of California, as also the peninsula of California; and, moreover, the provinces of Yucatan and Honduras, stretching from the Bay of Campeachy to beyond Cape Gracias a Dios. At an early period, most of these countries had been visited and subjugated by Spanish adventurers. The peninsula of California, which had been discovered by Cortez in 1536, began to be explored by the Jesuits towards the close of the seventeenth century. Here they established an important mission, but, after a time, were expelled from the country.
Introduction of the Catholic Religion.—The conquerors of New Spain carried with them the Catholic faith, which became the established religion; and, indeed, was the only religion that was tolerated, until the revolution in the beginning of the present century. The establishment was instituted as an auxiliary branch of the government, on a similar model to that in Spain. In attempts to convert the natives, they made use of the same unjustifiable means that have been resorted to by the Jesuits. But notwithstanding all that was done, their spiritual character and condition were unchanged. Of real Christianity, they remained wholly ignorant, and retained all their veneration for their ancient superstitions. This mixture of Christianity with their own heathenish rites and notions, was transmitted to their posterity,and has never been eradicated. That device of the infernal pit, the Inquisition, was established in America by the bigoted zeal of Philip II., in the year 1570. This measure completed the ecclesiastical apparatus for fastening Catholicism on the new world.
Introduction of Christianity.Introduction of Christianity.
Introduction of Christianity.
Native Spanish Population under the Colonial Government.—For nearly three centuries, down to the year 1810, Mexico was governed by viceroys, appointed by the court of Spain, all of whom, with one exception, were European Spaniards. Every situation in the gift of the crown was bestowed upon a European, nor is there an instance, for many years before the revolution, either in the church, the army, or the law, in which the door of preferment was opened to a Spaniard, Mexican-born. Through this policy, a privilegedcastearose, distinct from the Mexican Spaniards in feelings, habits, and interests—the paid agents of a government whose only aim was to enrich itself, without any regard to the abuses perpetrated under its authority.
Classes of the Inhabitants.—Anterior to the revolution in 1810, the population of Mexico was divided into distinct castes, as follows: 1, The old Spaniards, born in Spain, designatedChapetones. 2,Creolesor Whites, of pure European race, born in America, and regarded by the first class as natives. 3, TheIndians, or indigenous copper-colored race. 4, TheMestizos, or mongrel breeds of Whites and Indians, in the purer descent approaching to the Creoles. 5,Mulattoes, or descendants of Whites and Negroes. 6, TheZambos, descendants of Negroes and Indians. And 7, TheAfrican Negroes, whether manumitted or slaves.
The pure races were the old Spaniards, Creoles, Indians, and Negroes, and gave rise, in their various combinations or divisions, to the others. The remaining three races were impure or mixed, and were sub-divided, without any assigned limits. Upon the breaking out of the revolution, the distinctions of caste were all absorbed in the name of Americans and Europeans.
Causes of the First Mexican Revolution.—For more than a century, Spain had been on the decline, when, in 1808, the Emperor Napoleon gave a finishing stroke to her degradation, by seizing upon the royal family, and placing his brother Jerome upon the throne. To this revolution, the Spanish chiefs, who were assured of their places, were disposed to yield, excepting the viceroy of Mexico. But thepeople, indignant at the foul treatment which their sovereign had received, were determined not to submit to it. A general revolt against the authority of Buonaparte, soon disclosed itself in old Spain, intelligence of which reaching Mexico on the 29th of July, 1808, the feelings of the people were excited to the highest pitch of enthusiasm. At this time, the Cabildo, or municipality of Mexico, presented a petition to Iturrigaray the viceroy, to assemble a junta, or representatives of the province, for self-government. The viceroy, however, hesitated, fearing the Spanish population, whoopposed the measure. Apprised of his inclination to gratify the people, the Spaniards seized the viceroy, and delivered him over to the prison of the Inquisition. The conspirators were principally Spanish merchants in Mexico, and were secretly favored in their designs by the court of the Audiciencia, the highest judicial tribunal of Mexico.
The European Spaniards, both in the capital and in the interior, now formed patriotic associations for the defence of what they termed their rights, and armed themselves against the Creoles, who had favored the project of assembling the junta. The latter, though by far the most numerous, were unused to arms, and submitted for the moment; but their spirit was aroused, and it became an absorbing question whether themselves or the small clique of Europeans should possess the right of administering the government during the captivity of their king. A general impatience to shake off the yoke of foreign domination, began to seize the minds of all. There was wanting only a leader to make the occasion and to strike the blow.
Commencement of the Revolution.—The person was soon found, in Don Miguel Hidalgo Castilla, a clergyman, distinguished for his talents, learning, and liberality of sentiment. Perceiving the general disaffection of the people, and the prevailing animosities against the Spaniards, as also having private motives of discontent, Hidalgo conceived the plan of a general insurrection for the subversion of the colonial government.
Allende, a friend of Hidalgo, was the first to raise the standard of revolt in the little town of Dolores, on the 16th of September, 1810, where he seized and imprisoned seven Europeans, whose property he distributed among his followers. The Indians, under Hidalgo, now flew to arms; and being rëinforced by disaffected troops belonging to the government, Hidalgo marched to Guanaxuato, a wealthy town of eighty thousand inhabitants, of which, after a strenuous contest, he received the submission. This was anacquisition of signal importance, as he found in the treasury an amount of five millions of silver.
From this period, the insurrection spread rapidly, notwithstanding the efforts of Venegas, the new viceroy, to allay it. Many towns declared in favor of Hidalgo, who proceeded from Guanaxuato to Valladolid, where he was joyfully received as a deliverer. His pecuniary resources were increased by the donation of one million two hundred thousand dollars from the public authorities. His next step was to march towards the capital. He had made a great acquisition in having Morelos, a warlike priest, and highly celebrated in the revolution, come to his aid.
Mexico was, at this time, in a highly critical condition—the prevailing disaffection had reached it, and was producing its fruits of weakness and division. The forces collected for its defence were wholly inadequate to the object.
In this juncture of affairs, Hidalgo might doubtless have seized on the capital; indeed, many were anxiously awaiting his approach, as its deliverer. After an anxious night, great was the surprise the next morning, on the part of the people, when they saw the assailants retiring. The cause of Hidalgo's strange retrograde movement has never been satisfactorily ascertained.
From this period, sad reverses awaited him. When he had arrived at Aculco, on his retreat, he was attacked, on the 7th of November, by Calleja, who, with the main part of the Spanish army, had previously reached the capital. Of the royal troops, six thousand were disciplined veterans, and their imposing appearance alone was sufficient to frighten Hidalgo's Indians. These fled at the first fire; the regular troops being thus left unsupported, were unable long to stand the attack. Pursued by the royalists with great fury, the slaughter became immense; ten thousand of the independents, in the official report of Calleja, were said to have been killed, wounded, and taken prisoners. Hidalgo, having retreated to Guanaxuato, was, on the 29th of November, attacked again by Calleja, and driven fromhis position, with the loss of twenty-five pieces of cannon and several valuable officers.
"Hidalgo retreated to Valladolid, where he caused eighty Europeans to be beheaded, and proceeded thence to Guadalaxara; he made another triumphal entrance into that city, on the 24th of November. Here he committed another act of cold-blooded massacre, which has left a foul blot on his name. All the Europeans having been thrown into prison, Hidalgo determined to destroy them. Without trial or previous examination, they were taken out in small parties, and conducted under the veil of night to retired parts of the neighboring mountains, where between seven and eight hundred were butchered in secret. This remorseless act of barbarity, besides being wholly unjustifiable by the rules of war, was impolitic in the extreme. It prevented many respectable Creoles from joining the insurgents; and as it drove the Spaniards to despair, it furnished them at the same time with an excuse for any atrocities which they chose to commit."
Hidalgo continued to retreat towards Saltillo. By this time, his forces were reduced to about four thousand men; and arriving at Saltillo, a distance of nearly five hundred miles from the Mexican capital, he left the army, and with several officers sought the frontiers of the United States, with the intention of purchasing arms and military stores. He was destined, however, to be the victim of treachery. One of his subordinates in office had the baseness to arrest him, for the purpose of securing a pardon for himself. The leader, unsuspicious of danger when attacked, was easily overcome and taken. It was on the 21st of March, 1811, that Hidalgo and his followers were made prisoners. Many of them were executed on the field of action the next day. Hidalgo and a few others were not put to death until the 27th of July following.
Continuation of the War by the Patriot Chiefs.—The revolution had evidently taken deep hold on the minds ofthe people. The fate of Hidalgo did not dispirit the chiefs of the patriot cause. The prominent of these, Rayon, a lawyer, Villagran, and Morelos, a priest, now assumed the responsibility of directing the storm. The principal of these was Morelos, and to an account of his movements we confine ourselves.
From small beginnings Morelos possessed, at length, an efficient army, and was obeyed throughout nearly the entire southern coast of Mexico. On taking the field, town after town was taken, and victory succeeded to victory. His course, moreover, was marked by the humane treatment of his prisoners in every instance. Morelos had now great reason to hope for success in his noble enterprise, while the inhabitants were ready to aid him in every possible way. In this state, it was deemed necessary to oppose to him the greatest captain of the governmental forces, and Calleja was summoned to defend the capital.
Calleja, soon after his arrival at Mexico, attacked the army of Morelos at Quantla; but after a severe action, he was repulsed, and obliged to retreat, leaving five hundred dead on the field of battle. But what he could not effect by storm, he now attempted to accomplish by siege. For seventy-five days he continued to besiege Morelos, who was determined, if possible, to hold out; but all hopes of obtaining provisions being, at length, extinguished, Morelos resolved to evacuate the place, which he effected on the night of the 2d of May, 1811. Most of the inhabitants marched out with the army. When Calleja discovered the movement, he commenced a spirited attack upon them, and four thousand of the patriots were slain. It was during the events attending the siege of Quantla, that Victoria and Bravo, both young men, began to distinguish themselves in the cause of independence. Guerréro likewise, in the successful defence of a neighboring town, began his long and perilous career.
Following the affair at Quantla, Morelos engaged in numerous encounters with divisions of the enemy, and, fora time, was victorious; but he was at length taken, and doomed to execution. Just prior to his death, he uttered the following simple, but affecting prayer: 'Lord, if I have done well, thou knowest it; if ill, to thy infinite mercy I commend my soul.' He then bound a handkerchief over his eyes, gave the signal to the soldiers to fire, and met death with as much composure as he had ever shown when facing it on the field of battle.
Decline of the Revolution.—After the death of Morelos, no leader was found whose influence was sufficient to combine the efforts of the insurgents, and secure harmony among the chiefs. The cause of the revolution, therefore, declined apace. Teran, Guerréro, Rayon, Torrés, Bravo, and Victoria, commanding in different parts of the country, were mostly, in the course of two or three years, overcome, and taken prisoners. The story of Victoria is one of uncommon interest. The province of Vera Cruz was the field of his operations, and it was not until after a struggle of two years, that this formidable insurgent chief was disarmed of his power to harass the viceroy, Apadoca. He lost many of his followers in battle, others deserted him, and he was left, in the end, literally alone. No threats and no promises of preferment could induce him to offer his submission to the government. Unattended by a single friend, he sought the solitude and security of the mountains, and was lost for several years to his country.
Invasion of Mexico by Mina.—In the year 1817, when most of the insurgent forces were dispersed, an enterprise of singular boldness was attempted in Mexico, by a foreigner named Don Xavier Mina. His more specific object was to establish the independence of Mexico on a constitutional basis, without an entire severance of the country from Spain. Mina was a nephew of the celebrated general of that name, who so long resisted the French and Spanish royalists in his native country. In May, 1816,he sailed from Liverpool with a small expedition, having a few thousand stand of arms, and also equipages for a body of infantry and cavalry, and arrived in the United States in June. Here he procured the service of several officers, an addition of muskets, and some pecuniary aid from Baltimore and New Orleans. Sailing for the Gulf of Mexico, he did not reach Galveston until November, where he was joined by Aury, the commander of the privateers in that quarter, and by some of the inhabitants; but as it was too late for operations, he passed the winter in Galveston.
Early in the following spring, Mina entered upon the prosecution of his design. But the time chosen by him was unpropitious. The revolutionary cause had fallen to a low point. Mina failed, was taken, and shot. The power of the insurgents was broken, and most of their eminent men were either killed in battle, or shot as traitors, or imprisoned. But the principles of independence were daily gaining ground in the country at large, and the spirit of the revolutionists, though checked for a time, was not subdued, as was proved by subsequent events in Mexican history.
Revolution under Iturbide.—The unfortunate termination of the expedition under Mina, was by no means a termination of the difficulties in which Mexico had long been involved. The next person who largely figured in her affairs was Augustin Iturbide, who had risen, in 1816, by his valor and capacity, to the command of what was called the northern army. In 1820, the cortes having ordered the sale of the church property, the viceroy, Apadoca, refused to acknowledge the cortes; he employed Iturbide to reduce Guerréro, one of the patriot chiefs; but, instead of this, he formed a junction with that chief, and on February 24th, 1821, he proclaimed the independence of his country. Soon after, he took possession of the capital, and, in 1822, May 18th, he usurped the crown, through the subserviency of his troops. He was proclaimed emperor, under the name of Augustin the First.
The next morning congress was convened in extraordinary session. His election to the imperial dignity was proposed and discussed in his presence, and was voted for by a few more than one-half the whole body of delegates. Meanwhile, the friends of liberal institutions, overawed by the power of the usurper, fled to their wonted retreats, until a fitting season should arrive for acting with union and efficiency. The acts of oppression of Iturbide, from this time, continued to increase. He ordered the dissolution of congress, had recourse to forced loans, with other usurpations.
While affairs were in this posture, Santa Anna, who at this time was commanding at Vera Cruz, was suddenly dismissed. Surprised at treatment thus harsh, and as he deemed unjust, Santa Anna excited the garrison to revolt, for the purpose of dethroning Iturbide, and establishing a republican government. While these matters were in progress, Victoria, who for some years had lived in obscurity, made his appearance, and was appointed commander-in-chief of the insurgents. In February, 1823, Echavarri, the commander of the imperialists, joined forces with Victoria and Santa Anna.
Defection now became general among the officers of the army; in consequence of which, Iturbide was obliged to surrender his power. Hastily assembling at Mexico the dispersed members of congress, on the 19th of March, 1823, he tendered them his abdication of the crown. Congress allowed him a yearly pension of twenty-five thousand dollars, on condition of his leaving the Mexican territory for ever. On the 11th of May, he embarked for Leghorn.
Adoption of the Federal Constitution.—A provisionary government was immediately established, and a triplicate executive appointed, consisting of Generals Victoria, Bravo, and Negrete. Measures were at once adopted for the convocation of a new congress, which, upon assembling, entered on the arduous plan of framing a constitution of government. This they did on the federative plan, and on the 2d of February,it was sworn to in the capital, amidst the rejoicings and acclamations of the people. The government soon went into operation, and Victoria was chosen president of the republic, and Bravo vice-president.
Contrary to the decree of perpetual banishment against him, Iturbide returned to Mexico in disguise; but, being discovered, he was shot. This took place on the 10th of July, 1824. Several disturbances had occurred, partly on his account, during his absence; but the republic was now relieved from one great source of disquietude.
The general provisions of the new constitution, as to the distribution of the powers of government into their parts, were the same as those of the constitution of the United States; but they differed as to the right of trial by jury, which was omitted, and the Roman Catholic religion was alone to be tolerated in Mexico.
Prosperity of the years 1825 and 1826.—The new government was now acceptable to the Mexican people. The administration of Victoria was popular, and measures were maturing for cementing the union of states, and for consolidating the public liberty. Much was done, also, to stimulate the industry of the people. The prospect of public peace, order, and liberty in Mexico, was such as to attract thousands of emigrants from the United States and from Europe. Wealth, and comfort, and honors, were held out as a reward of virtue and enterprise. But the pleasant vision soon vanished, and this ill-fated country was again the theatre of turmoil and contention.
Election of a President in 1828.—Victoria's term now expiring, a new president was to be chosen; among the prominent candidates for which office were General Guerréro, and Gomez Pedraza, then secretary of war. The canvass resulted in the choice of Pedraza; but the friends of Guerréro soon set up a claim in his favor, alleging that, in taking the votes, he was defeated solely by fraud.
At the session of the new congress in January, 1829, the house of representatives proclaimed Vincent Guerréro to be duly elected president, on the constitutional ground that he had the majority of thelegalvotes. General Bustamente, who had been supported by the partisans of Pedraza, was declared to be duly elected vice-president; and in organizing the new administration, Zavala, then governor of the state of Mexico, was appointed secretary of state, and General Santa Anna, secretary of war.
Usurpation of Bustamente.—Soon after the declaration of congress in favor of the election of Guerréro, that body passed a resolution investing him with dictatorial powers, in anticipation of an invasion by Spain, to recover possession of Mexico. The Spanish army of four thousand five hundred men, sent for that purpose, were defeated, and compelled to retire. The continuance of his extraordinary power was now no longer necessary; yet Guerréro continued to exercise it, and in a manner and for purposes not contemplated. This brought upon him the censure of Bustamente and others, who saw in his measures a desire to perpetuate his dictatorship. Yet, on the 11th of December, Guerréro resigned his dictatorship into the hands of congress, and retired to his estate. Bustamente immediately assumed or usurped the presidency, pretending that he was actuated solely by a desire to restore the constitution, which had been violated in the elevation of Guerréro to the presidency. The latter now fled to the mountains, but circumstances, in the spring of 1830, seeming to favor an attempt to regain his lost authority, he embarked in the enterprise, and the whole country was again in arms. He was, however, unsuccessful, and falling into the hands of his opponents, he was condemned as a traitor, and executed in February, 1831.
Defence of the Federal Constitution.—The measures of Bustamente directly tended towards the establishment of a strong central government, as those of Guerréro had been infavor of a perpetual dictatorship. On the ground of Bustamente's procedure in his government, Santa Anna, in 1832, placed himself at the head of the garrison of Vera Cruz, and, as a pretext for revolt, demanded a rëorganization of the ministry. His declarations were in favor of the constitution and the laws, and consequently rallied the friends of the federal system to his support. War soon began to rage, and it was not until nearly a year, that an accommodation was made, when it was agreed that Pedraza should be restored to the government. He was accordingly restored, and by means of his favorable notice of Santa Anna, now his friend, but formerly his enemy, he exerted such an influence, that the latter was elected his successor in 1833. Gomez Farias was chosen vice-president. The federal system was now apparently rëestablished under the new administration.
Proceedings of Santa Anna—a Central Republic Established.—From the first moment of Santa Anna's accession to the presidency, he was inflamed with a desire for dictatorial power. He seized an opportunity to desert the federal republican party, and joined the centralist faction. By a military order, he dissolved the constitutional congress in May, 1834, and in January, 1835, he assembled a revolutionary and aristocratic congress, which deposed the vice-president Farias, and elected General Barragan, a leading centralist, in his place. About the same time, through the influence of Santa Anna, the constitution of 1824 was abolished by congress, as were also all the state constitutions and state authorities, and a central republic was established in its place. So violent a measure proved unacceptable to several of the states. Zacatecas submitted, and declared for centralism. "The torch of liberty was now extinguished in the republic, and military despotism fully established." No! it was not quite extinguished. One Mexican territory, Texas, with her by fifty thousand bold inhabitants, chiefly emigrants from the United States, was ready to resist thedictates of a usurper and a despot. Santa Anna felt at once the importance of reducing Texas, and of defeating the Americans or driving them from the country. He made the attempt with an army of eight thousand men, but when he supposed that his object had been attained, he was suddenly attacked at San Jacinto, by General Houston, who routed his troops, and took him prisoner. This occurred on the 21st of April, 1836. After being a prisoner several months, he was permitted to return to Mexico, where, in the mean time, his authority as president had been superseded, and where he passed several years in obscurity, on his own hacienda (farm).
Texans Flying to Arms.Texans Flying to Arms.
Texans Flying to Arms.
Attempts against the Central Government.—Two successive attempts were made against the central government during the years 1837 and 1838, under Bustamente, who had been chosen president after his return from France. The first consisted of declarations in favor of federation, and of Gomez Farias for the presidency; but the disturbancewas easily quelled. The other attempt was made by Mexia in 1838, who had once before raised the standard of rebellion against the central government. He was opposed by Santa Anna, who had issued from his retirement, and who hoped, by rendering some service to the government, to wipe off the disgrace which attached to his name. Mexia was unfortunate, and, being taken prisoner, was almost instantly shot. Santa Anna appeared again on the stage, in resisting an attack from an invading French expedition against the town of Vera Cruz.
An insurrection commenced with the federalist party, in the month of July, 1840, headed by General Urrea and Gomez Farias, and, for a time, the prospect was favorable for another reform of the constitution.
Revolution of 1841.—But revolutions were not at an end in Mexico. An insurrection broke out in the month of August, 1841, the result of which was, the bombardment of the capital, the downfall of Bustamente, and the convention of Tacubaya. Santa Anna took a part in this revolution against the president, and being at the head of the army, he selected the junta, which, according to the "plan of Tacubaya," was to choose the president of the republic. The junta repaid the distinction conferred upon them by selecting him for that high office. The congress, however, which assembled in June, 1842, proving to be disagreeable to Santa Anna, he dissolved it by an authoritative act, and, convening an assembly of notables, they fixed on a new constitution.
A New Constitution.—This was proclaimed on the 13th of June, 1843, and conferred almost all the power on the national executive. Santa Anna himself having been chosen that executive, the new government was organized by the assembling of congress in January, 1844. There was little agreement between that body and the dictator, as he might now be called, and hostility to his administration began to be expressed throughout the country. Measures wereaccordingly taken for his overthrow, in which Paredes, who had commenced the revolution of 1841, bore a conspicuous part. At the head of a body of troops, he openly declared against the dictator, and soon carried with him several of the northern provinces.
Overthrow of Santa Anna's Government.—The people in the capital soon arose in arms; the military declared against the dictator, and on the rëassembling of congress, General Herrera, the leader of the constitutional party, was appointed provisional president of the republic, and a new ministry was formed. This was an occasion of unbounded rejoicing throughout the country. Santa Anna, however, with the troops still under his command, attempted to rëgain his lost authority; but meeting with defeat and disappointment, he endeavored to escape, having first proposed to his opponents terms that were not accepted. This occurred in January, 1845. He was taken prisoner, and confined several months in the castle of Perote; after which, congress passed against him a decree of perpetual banishment from Mexico.
In the mean time, the province of Texas having maintained its independence during nine years, and having been acknowledged therein by the United States and several European powers, was, upon its own application, received into the confederacy of the former, and became a constituent part of the great American Union. This annexation became the occasion of the war between Mexico and the United States, of which an account is given in the history of the latter country.
Volcanoes. Ruins of Old Guatemala, destroyed by an Earthquake and Volcanic Eruption, and abandoned by the Inhabitants.Volcanoes. Ruins of Old Guatemala, destroyed by an Earthquake and Volcanic Eruption, and abandoned by the Inhabitants.
Volcanoes. Ruins of Old Guatemala, destroyed by an Earthquake and Volcanic Eruption, and abandoned by the Inhabitants.
Locality—Extent—Physical Character—Discovery and Conquest—Independence of the Country.
Locality—Extent—Physical Character—Discovery and Conquest—Independence of the Country.
Guatemala, or the "Republic of Central America," is the most southern point or portion of the North American continent, exclusive of the isthmus. It has an area of one hundred and eighty-five thousand square miles. It is composed of five states, which are sub-divided into districts, and of the federal district, which contains the seat of government.
The soil of the country is in general good, and exhibits the same variety as in Mexico, with similar productions. In portions of it, Guatemala is subject to tremendous convulsionsof nature. This is the case mostly in the mountainous regions, of which there is a lofty chain, traversing the country, and presenting a series of twenty-one volcanic summits in constant activity. Old Guatemala, the capital of the state of Guatemala, has been several times destroyed by earthquakes, as it lies between the volcanoes of Agua and Fuego.
Discovery and Conquest.—Guatemala, like the other portions of the American continent in this quarter, was discovered by the Spaniards. It appears never to have formed a part of the empire of Mexico. At the arrival of the Spaniards, it contained many distinct kingdoms or principalities. The natives, calledQuiches, lived in cities, and some ruins of their works are yet visible. The subjugation of Mexico by Cortez, struck terror into the inhabitants of Guatemala, and some of the chiefs sent embassies to the conqueror, offering to submit to him, and acknowledging themselves vassals of the Spanish king. Cortez dispatched Pedro de Alvarado, one of his officers who had been most active in the conquest of Mexico, to take possession of the country.
Alvarado marched from Mexico in November, 1523, with three hundred Spaniards, and a large auxiliary force of Mexicans. He met, however, with strenuous opposition in his progress. The Indians were defeated in several engagements, and the Spaniards remained masters of the provinces in which these engagements took place. On entering the kingdom of Quiche, they met with a more serious resistance than they had received elsewhere. The invaders, nevertheless, on the 14th of May, 1524, gained the victory in a great battle. Alvarado continued his march to the capital of the king of Kachiquel, who had sent his submission to Cortez. This prince received the stranger with courtesy, and on the 29th of July, 1524, they laid the foundation of the ancient city of Guatemala. The conquest of the remaining provinces followed soon after,although many savage wilds have remained to the present day very little explored or known by the conquerors.
Alvarado marching on Guatemala.Alvarado marching on Guatemala.
Alvarado marching on Guatemala.
Independence of the Country.—The people of Guatemala declared Guatemala independent on the 15th of September, 1821, and subsequently it was incorporated with Mexico; but on the fall of Iturbide, it disconnected itself from Mexico, and formed a separate independent republic on the 4th of July, 1843, under the title of the "Federation of Central America."
The constitution of the republic is modeled on that of the United States. The president and vice-president are elected for four years. The senate is composed of two members from each of the states, and the house of representatives consists of deputies (one deputy for thirty thousand inhabitants) elected by the people. They have abolished slavery in this country, as well as in Mexico. No other religion than the Catholic is tolerated in Guatemala, that being the established faith.