Vicente Guerrero

This article is about the Mexican president. For other uses, see Vicente Guerrero (disambiguation).
Vicente Guerrero

A half-length, posthumous portrait by Anacleto Escutia (1850)

2nd President of Mexico
In office
April 1, 1829 – December 17, 1829
Vice President Anastasio Bustamante
Preceded by Guadalupe Victoria
Succeeded by José María Bocanegra
Member of the Supreme Executive Power
In office
April 1, 1823 – October 10, 1824
Preceded by Constitutional Monarchy
Agustín I
Succeeded by Federal Republic
Guadalupe Victoria
Personal details
Born Vicente Ramón Guerrero Saldaña
August 10, 1782
Tixtla, Guerrero, New Spain
Died February 14, 1831(1831-02-14) (aged 48)
Cuilapan, Oaxaca, Mexico
Political party Liberal
Spouse(s) María de Guadalupe Hernández
Children María de los Dolores Guerrero Hernández
Profession Military Officer
Politician
Religion Roman Catholic
Signature Cursive signature in ink
Military service
Allegiance Army of the Three Guarantees
Mexico
Service/branch Mexican Army
Years of service 1810–1821
Rank General
Lieutenant colonel
Captain
Commands Mexican War of Independence
Battles/wars Battle of El Veladero
Siege of Cuautla
Battle of Izúcar
Siege of Huajuapan de León
Battle of Zitlala
Capture of Oaxaca
Siege of Acapulco

Vicente Ramón Guerrero Saldaña (Spanish: [biˈsente raˈmoŋ ɡeˈreɾo salˈdaɲa]; August 10, 1782 – February 14, 1831) was one of the leading revolutionary generals of the Mexican War of Independence. He fought against Spain for independence in the early 19th century, and later served as President of Mexico. Of Afro-Mestizo descent, he was the grandfather of the Mexican politician and intellectual Vicente Riva Palacio.

Early life

Guerrero was born in Tixtla, a town 100 kilometers inland from the port of Acapulco, in the Sierra Madre del Sur; his parents were María de Guadalupe Saldaña, of African descent and Pedro Guerrero, a Mestizo.[1][2][3] Guerrero was tall and robust, and dark complected, and he was at times called El Negro.[4] The region where he grew up had a large concentration of indigenous groups, and as a young man he was more conversant in the local language than Spanish.[5] His father's family included landlords, rich farmers and traders with broad business connections in the south, members of the Spanish militia and gun and cannon makers. In his youth he worked for his father’s freight business that used mules for transport. His travels took him to different parts of Mexico where he heard of the ideas of independence.

Vicente’s father, Pedro, supported Spanish rule, whereas his uncle, Diego Guerrero, had an important position in the Spanish militia. As an adult, Vicente was opposed to the Spanish colonial government. When his father asked him for his sword in order to present it to the viceroy of New Spain as a sign of goodwill, Vicente refused, saying, "The will of my father is for me sacred, but my Fatherland is first." "Mi patria es primero" is now the motto of the southern Mexican state of Guerrero, named in honor of the revolutionary. Guerrero enlisted in José María Morelos's insurgent army of the south in December 1810.

Marriage and family

He married María de Guadalupe Hernández; their daughter María de los Dolores Guerrero Hernández married Mariano Riva Palacio, who was the defense lawyer of Maximilian I of Mexico in Querétaro, and was the mother of late nineteenth-century intellectual Vicente Riva Palacio.

Career

Profile portrait of Vicente Guerrero on an early 19th century snuffbox (enamelled brass on lacquered wood)

In 1810 Guerrero joined in the early revolt against Spain, first fighting in the forces of secular priest José María Morelos. Morelos described him as "A young man with bronzed (N.B. "broncínea", lit. bronze-colored, swarthy), tall and strong (N.B. "fornido", strapping, muscular), aquiline nose, bright and light-colored eyes and big sideburns."[6] When the War of Independence began, Guerrero was working as a gunsmith in Tixtla. He joined the rebellion in November 1810 and enlisted in a division that independence leader Morelos had organized to fight in southern Mexico. Guerrero distinguished himself in the battle of Izúcar, in February 1812, and had achieved the rank of lieutenant colonel when Oaxaca was claimed by rebels in November 1812.[7] Initial victories by Morelos's forces faltered and Morelos himself was captured and executed in December 1815. Guerrero joined forces with Guadalupe Victoria and Isidoro Montes de Oca, taking the position of "Commander in Chief of the rebel troops. In 1816, the royal government under Viceroy Apodaca sought to end the insurgency, offering amnesty. Guerrero's father carried one appeal for his son to surrender, but Guerrero refused. He remained the only major rebel leader still at large, keeping the rebellion going through an extensive campaign of guerrilla warfare. He won victories at Ajuchitán, Santa Fe, Tetela del Río, Huetamo, Tlalchapa and Cuautlotitlán, regions of southern Mexico that were very familiar to him.

Oil painting of Vicente Guerrero, by Ramón Sagredo (1865)

Hoping to extinguish the rebellion, the royal government sent Agustín de Iturbide against Guerrero's forces. Guerrero was victorious against Iturbide, who realized there was a military stalemate. Guerrero appealed to Iturbide to abandon his royalist loyalty and join the fight for independence.[8] Events in Spain had changed in 1820, with Spanish liberals ousting Ferdinand VII and imposing the liberal constitution of 1812 that the king had repudiated. Conservatives in Mexico, including the Catholic hierarchy began to conclude that continued allegiance to Spain would undermine their position, and opted for independence in order to maintain their control. Guerrero's appeal to join the forces for independence was successful. Guerrero and Iturbide allied under the Plan de Iguala and their forces merged as the Army of the Three Guarantees.

The Plan of Iguala proclaimed independence, called for a constitutional monarchy and the continued place of the Roman Catholic Church, and abolished the formal casta system of racial classification. Clause 12 was incorporated into the plan. It read: All inhabitants . . . without distinction of their European, African or Indian origins are citizens . . . with full freedom to pursue their livelihoods according to their merits and virtues.[9][10] The Army of the Three Guarantees marched triumphantly into Mexico City in September 27, 1821. [11]

Mexican Empire, 1822-23

Agustin de Iturbide was proclaimed Emperor of Mexico by Congress. However, when Iturbide's policies supported the interests of Mexico's wealthy landowners through continued economic exploitation of the poor and working classes, Guerrero turned against him. He favored a Republic with the Plan of Casa Mata.

Mexican Republic

When the general Manuel Gómez Pedraza won the election to succeed Guadalupe Victoria as president, Guerrero, with the aid of general Antonio López de Santa Anna and politician Lorenzo de Zavala,[12] staged a coup d'état; he took the presidency on 1 April 1829.[13]

Guerrero, as head of the People’s Party and a liberal by conviction, called for public schools, land title reforms, industry and trade development, and other programs of a liberal nature:

"A free state protects the arts, industry, science and trade; and the only prizes virtue and merit: if we want to acquire the latter, let's do it cultivating the fields, the sciences, and all that can facilitate the sustenance and entertainment of men: let's do this in such a way that we will not be a burden for the nation, just the opposite, in a way that we will satisfy her needs, helping her to support her charge and giving relief to the distraught of humanity: with this we will also achieve abundant wealth for the nation, making her prosper in all aspects."
— Vicente Ramón Guerrero Saldaña, Speech to his compatriots
"....A man who is held up as ostensible head of the party, and who will be their candidate for the next presidency, is General Guerrero, one of the most distinguished chiefs of the revolution. Guerrero is uneducated, but possesses excellent natural talents, combined with great decision of character and undaunted courage. His violent temper renders him difficult to control, and therefore I consider Zavala's presence here indispensably necessary, as he possesses great influence over the general."
— Joel R. Poinsett, US minister for Mexico (i.e. Ambassador), about the character of Vicente Guerrero

Guerrero was elected the second president of Mexico in 1829. As president, Guerrero championed the causes of the racially oppressed and economically oppressed. He ordered an immediate abolition of slavery on September 16 of 1829.[14] and emancipation of all slaves. During Guerrero's presidency, the Spanish tried to reconquer Mexico, but they failed, being defeated at the Battle of Tampico.

"This is the most liberal and munificent Government on earth to emigrants – after being here one year you will oppose a change even to Uncle Sam"
— Stephen Fuller Austin, 1829, letter to his sister describing Guerrero's Government of Mexico (and Texas)

Guerrero was deposed in a rebellion under Vice-President Anastasio Bustamante that began on 4 December 1829. He left the capital to fight the rebels, but was deposed by the Mexico City garrison in his absence on 17 December 1829. Guerrero hoped to come back to power, but General Bustamante captured him from his home through bribery, and a group of reactionaries had him executed.

After his death, Mexicans loyal to Guerrero revolted, driving Bustamante from his presidency and forcing him to flee for his life. Picaluga, a former friend of Guerrero who had conspired with Bustamante to have the president captured, was executed.

Honors were conferred on surviving members of Guerrero's family, and a pension was paid to his widow. In 1842, Vicente Guerrero's remains were exhumed and returned to Mexico City for reinterment. He is known for his political discourse promoting equal civil rights for all Mexican citizens. He has been described as the "greatest man of color" to ever live.[15]

Legacy

Statue in honor of Vicente Guerrero in Nuevo Laredo
Monument to Vicente Guerrero in Mexico City.

Guerrero is a Mexican national hero. The state of Guerrero is named in his honour.

Several towns in Mexico are named in honor of this famous general, including Vicente Guerrero in Baja California.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Vincent, Theodore G. (2001). The Legacy of Vicente Guerrero, Mexico's First Black Indian President. University of Florida Press. pp. 8–12.
  2. ↑ Sprague, William Forrest (1939). Vicente Guerrero, Mexican Liberator: A Study in Patriotism. R. R. Donnelley - Mexico. p. 42.
  3. ↑ "Research Reveals the African-Indigenous Heritage of Mexican President Vicente Guerrero | Pathways to Freedom in the Americas". Mlktaskforcemi.org. 2012-10-10. Retrieved 2013-09-02.
  4. ↑ Douglas W. Richmond, "Vicente Guerrero" in Encyclopedia of Mexico. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn 1997, p. 616.
  5. ↑ Douglas, "Vicente Guerrero", p. 616.
  6. ↑ Physical description of Vicente Guerrero Saldaña by José María Morelos y Pavón, 1811.
  7. ↑ Richmond, "Vicente Guerrero" p. 616.
  8. ↑ Richmond, "Vicente Guerrero", pp. 616-17.
  9. ↑ Vincent, Theodore G. (2001). The Legacy of Vicente Guerrero, Mexico's First Black Indian President. University of Florida Press. pp. 94–96.
  10. ↑ Richmond, "Vicente Guerrero" p. 617.
  11. ↑ Henderson, Timothy J (2009). The Mexican Wars for Independence. Hill and Wang. p. 178. ISBN 978-0-8090-6923-1.
  12. ↑ Henderson, Timothy J (2008). A Glorious Defeat: Mexico and Its War with the United States. Hill and Wang. p. 62. ISBN 978-0-8090-4967-7.
  13. ↑ Katz, William Loren. "The Majestic Life of President Vicente Ramon Guerrero". William Loren Katz. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
  14. ↑ Sprague, William Forrest. "Coahuila y Texas Under President Vicente Guerrero". TAMU. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
  15. ↑ Vincent, Theodore G. (2001). The Legacy of Vicente Guerrero, Mexico's First Black Indian President. University of Florida Press. p. 81.

Further reading

External links

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Political offices
Preceded by
Guadalupe Victoria		 President of Mexico
1 April – 17 December 1829 		Succeeded by
José María Bocanegra
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