Two Ancient Artefacts Unearthed in Mexico

This has been a great week in Mexican archaeology, as two important artefacts have been uncovered, in different locations in the country.

The first was in the Maya ruins of Tonina, Chiapas. The 5 foot (1.5 meter) figurines depict cross-legged warriors, with their hand tied behind their backs. They are carved from limestone blocks and date from 695 CE. Fortunately, much of the guesswork about their purpose is removed, as the statues include inscriptions. They show prisoners, who are destined to become offerings to deity, alongside fire and incense, on the field of battle.

These findings have provided intriguing evidence that the city of Copan allied with the Maya tribes of Palenque at this time. It is a fact that has been long suspected by historians, as a lot of circumstantial information exists pointing to such a partnership. The aim of these series of battles was control of the powerful Tonina area. It was a prize that was important enough for human sacrifices to be made.

Tonina today exists as ruins. It has a series of pyramids, rising in terraces above a central plaza. The site includes a ballcourt and 100s of carved monuments. The famous stucco sculptures are here. There are also several mysteries; like why a design of statue exists here, dating from the 9th century CE, which hadn't previously been in evidence since the much earlier Olmec people reigned supreme.

Tonina is the central of a huge archaeological project, seeking to shed more light on this vital period in Maya history. This was the Late Classic, when the last widely marked Long Count of their calendar ended. The date is etched into many of the monuments here.

During this time, the Maya people lived in staunchly independent city states; however, the seeds of political and economic unity, across the Maya world as a whole, had been cast. It was also an era of warfare, as each tribe battled for supremacy in the widening social structure; hence the appearance of the statues of the warrior-prisoner sacrificial victims.

However, experts have cautioned against leaping to the conclusion that Copan tribes were involved in the fight for Tonina. The inscriptions, on the newly discovered figurines reference the inauguration of a new ballcourt in the city. They may turn to have nothing to do with these critical wars after all.

The Tonina complex is open to the public. The nearest modern town is Ocosingo, in the state of Chiapas. As well as the impressive structures, there is also a site museum providing a context to its history. A large selection of artefacts, uncovered in Tonina, are on display here.

This week's second artefact discovery is Aztec in origin. It is a sixty tonne monolith, depicting a currently unidentified rain god, which was dug up further west, in the state of Morelos.

Construction workers were preparing land for a shopping center, beside a main highway leading out of Cuautla City, when their diggers uncovered the stone. Work immediately ceased, as the archaeologists moved in to complete the unearthing; and to take steps to preserve the carved artefact for future study. It has been found in the general vicinity of the historical Aztec site of Xochicalco, so may well have been linked to the people there.

Early speculation is that the deity shown, in carved markings on the stone, is a god of corn and water. Amidst the large number of hieroglyphics, there are a lot of symbols relating to agriculture and rain accompanying His image. The known Aztec god, Tlaloc, accompanies the unidentified god on the stone. Tlaloc has been associated with many things. He is the God of rain, fire, fertility, crops, agricultural, storms, thunder and lightning, leprosy and the south.

Raul Gonzalez, an archaeologist called to the monolith, reports, "These signs on the rock are fundamentally associated with agriculture and water. We think it's highly probable that it was used during rituals to ask for rain and it was placed in a position facing Popocatepetl."

Popocatepetl is one of Mexico's active volcanoes. Standing at 17,802 ft (5,426 m) high, it is clearly visible from Mexico City to the north. The popular tourist town of Puebla nestles just below its eastern slopes. This violent volcano has a long history of major eruptions; 15 of them have occurred during the past 500 years, with the latest at the beginning of last month. In 2000, tens of thousands of people were evacuated from residences within its range, as a huge eruption was signalled.

The third and last time it truly blew its top was in 800 CE. This event would have seen a massive Plinian eruption; resulting in an unstoppable pyroclastic lava flow, which would have filled the basins below for miles around.

It is thought that the creation of the monolith, facing Popocatepetl, happened just a century before. The great-grandchildren, of those carving and raising it, would have witnessed that cataclysmic explosion. It seems fitting that their monument as been uncovered, just as the volcano has been building up its greatest displays in 1,200 years. If it transpires that the unknown deity is an Aztec god of volcano appeasement, then the discovery is also lucky. We might just need Him again!

The gigantic Aztec monolith is currently roped off, in situ, though it is clearly visible from the main highway connecting Cuautla and Xochicalco. It's too soon to be certain what the future holds for its care, though the land developers are naturally still hoping for their shopping center on the site.

If the monolith is moved, then it is likely that will be to the the UNESCO listed World Heritage site of Xochicalco. The same people, after all, almost certainty created both it and the structures there, often during the same period of time. This remarkable place of impressive Aztec history is open to the public.

Whatever happens to the artefact, it is sure to increase our knowledge of the ancient Aztec people, as those hieroglyphics start to be translated in their entirety.

Is the World's Largest Pyramid in Mexico?

Which is the world's largest pyramid? According to the Guinness Book of Records, the answer is the Great Pyramid of Cholula, in Puebla, Mexico. However, the answer might not be as simple as it sounds. It all depends upon your definition of 'large' and, indeed, your definition of a 'pyramid'. Guatemala and Egypt are both making alternate claims.


What do you mean, you can't see a pyramid? All of it is the pyramid! It got covered over with soil and turf, then the Spanish built a church on the summit.
The issue seems to be with the fact that pyramids were built differently by different people. The Egyptians have a base with steep, sloping sides, which then meet at a point at the top. The Mexicans and Guatemalans both have pyramids built by people from similar cultures. The magnificent structures here, known as Traidic Pyramids, have tiered terraces or else those which rise up into a single platform, with a building on top of that.


(l-r) Egyptian style and Mexican style
Guatemala's El Mirador is the tallest pyramid in the world, but its base isn't as wide as Mexico's Cholula. Then there are those who argue that you cannot include the entire complex in your calculations. In the case of stepped pyramids, then only those slopes fundamental to supporting the top should be counted as the main structure.

If this is so, then the majority of both Cholula and El Mirador's sites have to be discounted. Then the winner, by volume of pyramid, is the Great Pyramid of Khufu, in Egypt.

A strip-away model and an artist's impression of Cholula in its heyday may help illustrate the debate. In order for the Great Pyramid of Khufu to be the largest, then only the part immediately beneath Cholula's church can be calculated. The rest has to be considered merely a platform base.




It is difficult to get a sense of scale from pictures alone. It may be helpful to point out that, even if the base is discounted, then Cholula would still make it as the third largest pyramid in the world. Once the platform is added again, as part of the whole structure, then it positively dwarves those at Giza, in Egypt.

		Cholula with base		Cholula without base		El Mirador with base		El Mirador without base		Great Pyramid of Khufu
Length		450m (1475ft)		295m (968ft)		310m (1017ft)		* See note		230m (755ft)
Depth		450m (1475ft)		270m (886ft)		590m (1936ft)		* See note		230m (755ft)
Height		66m (217ft)		55m (180ft)		105m (345ft)		70m (230ft)		139m (455ft)
Volume		4.45 million m³		1.8 million m³		2.8 million m³		0.9 million m³		2.58 million m³

* El Mirador has a series of 35 small pyramids on top of its massive, terraced platforms. It is therefore difficult to calculate the length and depth of them, as there would be 35 different measurements to add here. None of them would be bigger than Cholula nor Khufu.

The height has been calculated from La Danta Temple, which is the tallest structure there. La Danta is the largest groups of pyramids there and has been calculated with 300m (984ft) in length and the same in depth. But if they are being judged as a collective, then all of the Giza pyramids should be grouped together too. That would elevate Egypt undoubtedly as the largest. (Thank you to Andy Robinson for highlighting this point.)


Entrance to Cholula
So is the largest pyramid in the world in Mexico? Naturally we are going to go with the Guinness Book of Records here, as we are proud Mexicans. The rest of you have to make your own minds up, about whether you are including platforms, as part of the overall structure.

May 10th: Mother's Day in Mexico

Today is Día de las Madres (Day of the Mothers) in Mexico. Visitors to our country may spot small children acting in plays and presenting their thrilled mothers with handmade gifts. Every school and playgroup will have covered this one.

Meanwhile the older children, teenagers and adults will be rushing into shops to buy bouquets of flowers and a card. (Displays of cards with legends like 'Feliz Día de las Madres' or 'Feliz Día Mamá' are everywhere.) Some lucky mothers might even be getting something larger.

This is, after all, a day to honor and show appreciation to the woman who birthed and raised you.


The origins of Mother's Day are steeped in antiquity; though the modern form is something new. It is thought that the seeds of this day weren't with biological mothers, but with the celestial ones. Before the coming of Christianity, many world religions had a Mother Goddess. This was the day to honor Her.

In Mexico, this might have been a day to worship Malinalxochitl, the primal Aztec Mother Goddess, Queen of Men and Beasts, and her sister, Toci, Mother of the Gods; or Mictecaciuatl, Mother Goddess of Mexico; or Tlazolteotl, the Maya goddess, who gave birth to the sun.

The coming of Christianity removed all of that, though it did bring with it traditions of their own. Until 1660, there had been a day, throughout Christendom, where everyone returned to their 'Mother Church', ie the church where they had been baptized. This was bedecked with flowers and donations were given. In 1660, a decree widened the honor of this day to include earthly mothers. For the first time in history, the woman who carried you in her womb could expect a bunch of flowers for her effort, on a certain day of the year.


None of this actually caught on in Mexico. It wasn't until 1922, when a young journalist, inspired by celebrations in the USA and Europe, initiated the event. Rafael Alducín had founded the Excélsior newspaper just five years before. (This remains the second largest selling newspaper in Mexico today.) He wrote an article for it which suggested a national day to honor mothers.

Alducín was born in Puebla, but moved to Mexico City to further his education and gain employment. He had travelled to the USA, as a dealer in tires, and had been exposed to Mother's Day there.

It had been estabilished for a few decades in the USA, as a way to reunite siblings separated by the Civil War. They had been encouraged to all visit their mother on the same day.

Later, after he was married to Consuelo Thomalen, Alducín travelled on business into Europe. He was in Germany, when he saw Mother's Day celebrations similar to those he had already witnessed in the USA.

Once back in Mexico, he mused upon suggesting such a day for his native country. He also looked around to see if anything like this was already being proposed.

Some cities in the North, influenced by the USA, had started to honor the day in tandem with their neighbours. Meanwhile, El Hogan - a women's magazine - and La Asociation de las Damas Catolicas (The Association of Catholic Women) were encouraging it, as a way to maintain tradition values in the home.

Alducín decided that there was an appetite for a Mexican Mother's Day, so he wrote his editorial naming May 10th as the date. It can only be assumed that his own mamá, Isabel Bedoya Rossainz y Huerta, was very proud of him.


Día de las Madres is always on May 10th, in Mexico, regardless of what day of the week that falls. As well as the flowers, gifts and cards, everyone traditionally visits their mother on this day. Some arrive the night before, in order to be fresh and ready for a huge family reunion.

In many ways, the atmosphere can be akin to the American Thanksgiving, with a substantial meal and everyone making a big effort to be there for it. Though, of course, the thanks is due towards the center of the party - their mother. ¡Feliz Día de las Madres!

Cinco de Mayo: Yesterday's Celebrations in Peñón de los Baños

As we mentioned yesterday, Cinco de Mayo isn't the big fiesta in Mexico that it is in the USA. Nevertheless, there are areas where commemorative events occur and, when they do, they have it large. One of these is Peñón de los Baños.


Peñón de los Baños is just a suburb of Mexico City, but Cinco de Mayo is one of their biggest events of the year. The streets are thronged with people, almost all in costumes. Children as young as two are in replica Mexican or French army outfits. Charros bring their horses, parading in the colors of either side. There is no obvious favoring the home team here. It's recognized that the French were an important presense on the day.


The reenactment, of the 1862 Battle of Puebla, is an annual event. Head down to the area, next May 5th, and you will be able to witness it in all its glory. The local residents spend all year preparing for it. Costumes are stitched; roles assigned and rehearsed; planning permission gained to close off the streets.

On the day, the parades are large and enthusiastic, with a lot of crowd participation. It is a real family day, with people arriving early to gain a good vantage spot. The parade pauses often for another mini reenactment. The French carry baguettes on their backs. The Mexicans carry baskets with chicken legs and green onions. At the end, all the crowd scream, "¡Viva México!"


Though more military in aspect than the all-drinking, all-feasting festivals in the USA, the parades do include local culture too. Women in billowing skirts dance their way along the streets; while charros ride their horses and the marachi bands play.

The day ends with a proper, full-blown battle re-enactment. This takes place in the hills overlooking the neighborhood. It's colorful and dramatic; it's also a lot of fun. This portion especially draws the largest crowds. It's the part that those assigned roles, like the respective generals, have spent months mastering, just so that it runs flawlessly on Cinco de Mayo.


While most of Mexico will have treated Cinco de Mayo as just another day. It is a huge event in Peñón de los Baños as a result of some community spirit.

A generation ago, there was a divide in the neighborhood which perturbed some residents. They scrabbled around for something that would unify the locals; and, more importantly, take their minds off petty feuds.

Cinco de Mayo was chosen and it worked! No-one now can even recall what it was their elders were arguing about. But the fiesta goes on. ¡Viva México! ¡Viva Cinco de Mayo!


(The video is in Spanish, but it does give a good overview of the day.)

Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo is a day of great feasting, drinking, dancing and celebration of all that it is to be Mexican. However, this primarily takes place in the USA. In Mexico itself, it's a holiday in the state of Puebla, but elsewhere it's not really marked. Naturally, the tourist resorts have recently recognized that it's expected to be a thoroughly Mexican event, hence they will cater for it. It's mostly to allow American visitors the chance to celebrate the festival, while in Mexico. So what's it all about then?

Cinco de Mayo translates as May the 5th. It marks the anniversary of one of the great 'what if?' turning points of modern history. On May 5th, 1862, the people of Puebla took on an invading French force. The French troops were highly organized and experienced; and they carried much superior weaponry. They also vastly outnumbered the defending Mexicans. Nevertheless, in a true David and Goliath type clash, the Pueblans won.


They shouldn't have won. No-one had expected them to win. Yet they sent the French packing (briefly) from Mexican shores. For Mexico, the story wasn't over. The French returned a year later and occupied the country for another three. However, for the USA, that breathing space was enough to alter everything. If the French had controlled Mexico, in 1862, then Napolean would have supplied the Confederency. The South would have almost certainly gone on to win the American Civil War.

The Mexican victory, at the Battle of Puebla, gave the Union forces time to consolidate. The decisive Battle of Gettysburg occurred just 14 months afterwards. Alternatively, if the French had won, then Napolean would have made good on his own policies, which was to use Mexico as a base to invade the weakened American Union. The combined forces of France and Mexico would have entered America through the established and victorious Confederate States of America. Napolean's long-term strategy was a classic divide and conquer. Would the USA have been added to the French Empire?


Though not widely celebrated in Mexico, it is a day which Mexicans can look back upon with pride. After all, while in a weakened and practically bankrupt state (the Mexican-American wars had just ended), we kicked out a vastly superior invading army. It was a huge morale boost for Mexico at the time. It continues to be throughout the intervening years.

If you are in Mexico today and wish to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, then the city of Puebla is the place to be. Here you will find the extravagant parades and street parties. You may sample a variety of traditional Mexican food from the booths set up in and around Boulevard Cinco de Mayo. However, please note that many of the shops will be closed, as this is a state holiday. Enjoy!

A Taste of Mexico: Mole Poblano!

Salsa might be the food most commonly associated with Mexico, so it's only fitting that one of its variants is the national dish. Mole Poblano was literally a meal fit for a king (or, at least, his representative in Mexico) and legends abound as to its origin.


Mole Poblano
Before anyone starts panicking here, mole has nothing to do with a small, sightless mammal, which lives underground. It is pronounced 'mo-lay' and it is actually the sauce that is, traditionally, poured over turkey. However, it does have one strange ingredient - chocolate!

Mole Poblano is a rich and very tasty dish, which utilizes at least twenty components. These include turkey, tomatoes, chocolate and chillies, within a spicy mixture of black pepper, cinnamon, pepper, cloves, anise and garlic. It is known as 'fusion food', because of these ingredients, as they range from home-grown produce to those exported from Europe. How they came to be mixed together is the stuff of legends.


Mole Poblano, with some of its ingredients
The most pervasive story involves those celebrated nuns of the Convent of Santa Monica, in Puebla (aka Santa Rosa). These were the devout ladies who later became famous again, when it was learned that they had continued to exist, in subterranean tunnels, after their existence had become illegal. (The Underground Nuns.) A century before that, the nuns were not only accepted by the State, but there chosen for a visit by the Spanish Viceroy. A good meal was clearly required.

The Convent's kitchen had turkey to use, along with the trimmings, so all that was really needed was the salsa to accompany it. The available foods and spices were laid out, and then someone added chocolate.

There are those that say that it was a divinely inspired nun, who just knew that it would work; others say that it was a mischevious novice, who sneaked into the kitchen and sprinkled in cocoa as a prank; yet another version tells of a window left open and a freak wind blowing across the table, knocking the chocolate into the mix (God did it?); while a fourth story was that a team of nuns worked tirelessly for days, experimenting with all that they had, in order to make an impression with a unique sauce.

There was a fifth telling, but that has been largely discredited by historians. That one said that a folk-memory of an Atzec dish had been carried into the Convent by a nun. They just had to reproduce it. This one is seen as unlikely, as chocolate was sacred to the Aztec. It would have been like a Christian using Communion wafers like nachos. It would have been just short of heresy.


A street vendor serving from a vat of Mole Poblano
Puebla may take the credit for the invention of Mole Poblano, but these days it can be found all over Mexico. The idea of chocolate and turkey together may sound bizarre, however the proof of the sauce is in the tasting. Mole Poblano always passes first time.

A recipe for Mole Poblano may be found here.

UFOs Over Mexico

We could not discuss the solar system, in this blog, without touching upon the subject of UFOs. Mexico, as with every other country, has its sightings. Some are easily dismissed, as natural phenomena, aircraft or weather balloons. The first picture ever taken of a UFO, over Mexico, was in 1885. Upon analysis, it turned out to be high flying geese. However, some sightings have been harder to explain away or have received a lot of coverage over the years.

On July 11th, 1991, the world witnessed a solar eclipse. The view of this was particularly spectacular in Mexico. Thousands of people were filming the sky, waiting for a shadow to pass over the sun. Millions more were simply looking upwards. They were ready to see something awesome, but what many also saw took their breath away.



Did so many people, from Mexico City to Puebla, really see a spacecraft that day? The UFO was described as metallic and undulating. It had a haze behind it, like an energy haze, as it moved in the sky. A bright reflection came from it, as if shining in the sun, while a darker strip underneath seemed suggestive of a shadow. Moreover, it didn't just turn up once. It was seen annually, from 1991-1993, at the Mexico City Airshow, every September 16th.



Sceptics have supplied an explanation. The object certainly did originate from outer space, but it wasn't from an alien world. It was an alien world. The most prevalent explanation is that this particular UFO was the planet Venus.


Venus, as viewed from the Earth
Venus or UFO. You decide.

Our next story is one that was acknowledged by the Mexican Department of Defense. On March 5th, 2004, an air force Air Force Merlín C26A Bimotor 'plane, belonging to the 501 Aerial Squadron, was flying over Ciudad del Carmen, Campeche. They were searching for the unauthorized aircraft of smugglers. As a result, the crew were recording in both normal and infrared mode, while operating powerful sensors. It was a routine manoeuvre, but what happened next was anything but routine.


Crew of the Merlín C26A
The 'plane was under the command of navigation officer, Mayor Magdaleno Jasso Núñez. When, at 3.400 meters (10,500 feet), an unknown aircraft was picked up on their sensors, Núñez gave the order to investigate it. As they took off in pursuit, their information was being reported to ground control. It was also being recorded, in real time, by FLIR operator, Lt. Mario Adrián Vázquez, and RADAR operator, Lt. German Ramirez.

As they approached the position, their sensors showed that their target had conducted a 'surprising' feat of aerodynamics and then sped off extraordinarily fast. They had reached an altitude of 3,500 meters (11,480 feet). They should also have had visual contact by now, but the skies remained clear to the naked eye. The FLIR and RADAR screens were telling a different story. The readings all confirmed that there was now not just one, but 11 ojects in the sky. Yet outside the window, there was nothing but clouds.



Núñez radioed back to base, requesting instructions, as this was something far beyond the experience of anyone on board. As he did so, the sensors showed that the unseen, unknown objects had encircled their 'plane. The trained military crew on board kept calm, recording every detail and remaining in radio contact with the ground. Meanwhile, fighter jets were scrambled to intercept the objects and, possibly, rescue their colleagues in the Merlin C26A.

However, before they could arrive, the objects simply disappeared off RADAR and FLIR. The crew returned to base, where they shakily admitted to having been a little perturbed up there. Regardless of personal feelings, their meticulous professional had provided a wealth of data about the incident. General Clemente Vega Garcia, the Secretary of Defense, ordered a thorough investigation.

In an unprecedented move, the footage was also made public. Capt. Alejandro Franz pointed out that the Cantarell Oil Refinery was in the vicinity. The lights could well have been flares reflecting off the clouds. Another explanation was that they were car headlights, driving along the Yucatan headland.

Oil flares, headlights or UFO. You decide.

Our Lady of Guadalupe: Festivities

At the weekend, celebrations were held all over Mexico, in honour of the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Here is a selection of the highlights from those events.


The biggest gathering, by far, was in Mexico City. Six million Catholic pilgrims descended upon the city, which houses Her basicila. It is also here that the initial encounters with the Lady occurred, upon Tepeyac Hill. This was once on the outskirts of the city, but now is right in its historic heart. Pilgrims arrive annally at the spot, on December 12th, creating the largest Catholic event in the Americas.


View Larger Map

The procession and mass, in Mexico City, is so large that many arrive the night before. They camp out, in the vicinity of the basicila, in order to have a good view the next day.



On December 12th, the number of Catholic pilgrims swells into the millions, as a parade is held through the city streets.



The basicila itself has a capacity for 80,000 people to hear mass. It is usually full to bursting, but the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe requires many to wait patiently outside.



Meanwhile, there was plenty more to be seen and experienced elsewhere:


Pilgrims carry the Lady's image on their truck, near to Puebla, Mexico.



These pilgrims waited in the pouring rain, in Connecticut, USA, to receive a torch lit at the basicila, in Mexico City. The torch had been carefully carried back, across land, to light up the churchs in New Haven.

The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe will be celebrated all week in Mexico.

Los Insurgentes: The Guerilla Fighters Pt 1

Sometimes, the road to independence can feel like a relay race. As one leader is captured and executed, another picks up the fallen baton and runs with it. They do not operate in a vacuum, but build upon the momentum of those who went before. But they do so in full knowledge of what awaits them, should they fail. They have to inspire and incite people, who have watched their compatriots killed or sold into slavery. They have to plan their strategies, aware of the torture meted out to Morelos; in the certainty of the firing squad beyond it all. Yet they did it anyway.

As Morelos fell in a hail of bullets, not one but several people rushed to take his place in the rebellion. It was a period which saw the rise, not of vast armies of the dispossessed, but smaller bands of guerilla fighters. This is the story of four of them.

Victor Rosales

Before Hidalgo's shout had even gone up in Dolores, Victor Rosales was in trouble as an insurgent. He'd moved to Mexico City, with the intention that he would become a lawyer. To this end, he'd enrolled at the Real y Pontificia Universidad de México (the Royal and Pontifical University) to study law. This particular establishment had also educated Hidalgo, Morelos and Quintana Roo. Ironically, none of them had managed to be expelled for speaking up against the Spanish government in Mexico. Rosales did just that.

Without the qualifications, Rosales couldn't work as a lawyer. He'd had to return to his home city of Zacatecas, in Zacatecas state. He set up in commerce instead, but with a certain sense of dissatisfaction. This was not what he wanted to do with his life. He was 34 years old, when Hidalgo roused the Army of the Americas. Now Rosales knew what he wanted to do. It didn't take him long to close shop and rush to join the insurrection.


Victor Rosales
Rosales became attached to the regiment of Ignacio López Rayón. They marched north and participated in all of the battles that marked Hidalgo's campaign. Rosales was reasonably close to the center of action, because of his regiment. López Rayón was Hidalgo's private secretary. When the padre announced that he was forming a government and López Rayón was named as the Secretary of State. However, shortly afterwards, both López Rayón and Rosales escaped the capture and execution that befell the leaders of their cause.

López Rayón led his regiment back to the south and into Rosales's home city. Zacatecas was an important target. The population were mostly sympathetic to the insurgency; plus there were munitions manufacturers working there. López Rayón decided to take it for the rebels. There was resistance from the Realistas (Spanish army in Mexico) stationed there, resulting in a series of pitched battles. But, on April 15th, 1811, the rebels emerged victorious.

With Zacatecas under his control, López Rayón was able to regroup, recruit and arm his troops. It was a decidedly larger force that left, to join Morelos's campaign in the south, than had arrived. It was also inevitable that the Realistas would try to regain Zacatecas. López Rayón needed to leave behind someone he could trust to defend the city. He left Rosales.


Zacatecas
Rosales ensured that a steady stream of weapons made their way out of Zacatecas, down to Morelos's army in the south. When the stakes were high enough, he was also called upon to join them personally, bringing his own small army with him. He was present at the Battle of Uruapan. The city was then temporarily used as Morelos's insurgent capital.

In January 1813, Rosales returned again for the attack on Valladolid and, a couple of weeks later, the Battle of Puruarán. They both ended in defeat for the insurgents, with the latter also costing the life of Mariano Matamoros, the movement's second in command. It was demoralizing for all of the Army of the Americas, but, for Rosales, there was an added sting. His prolonged absense from Zacatecas had given the Realista General José María Navarrete an opportunity to enter it.

Navarrete's Realistas stationed themselves in the corn exchange building, in the Plaza de St Augustine. On September 25, 1813, Rosales led his troops into the city, in a bid to overwhelm the mainshift barracks. The Realistas fought back fiercely enough that Rosales sounded the retreat. It wasn't a defeat, but neither was it victory. While they'd not regained control of the city, nor even the corn exchange, they had managed to steal several cases of munitions from the Realistas.


Portal de Rosales, Zacatecas (on the site of the barracks)
However, in the confusion of the rebel flight to safety, Rosales had lost sight of his eleven year old son. Most of the Rosales family were now involved in the struggle; and they lived in this city. Young Timoteo Rosales Gordoa had been there, at the barracks, but now he was in the hands of Realista soldiers. Timotheo was dragged in front of Navarrete, who recognised him immediately. He had no hesitation in giving his order. Shoot the boy, as a message to the people that insurrection would be given no quarter. His father viewed it as an act of revenge. Navarrette could not catch Rosales himself, so he'd killed his child.

In 1814, Morelos promoted Rosales to Field Marshal. He put him in charge of the insurgent activities in Guanajuato, Zacatecas and Michoacan region. For the next four years, Rosales harried the Realistas in those states, even after Morelos's execution left the insurrection in a dire situation. However, lack of resources meant that Rosales was never able to successfully take back his city.

On May 20, 1817, Realista Generals Miguel Muñoz and Miguel Barragan combined their forces against Rosales's men. They met at El rancho de la Campana, in Ario, Michoacán. But it was one fight too many for Rosales. He was killed in action, under the onslaught of the Realista artillery.

Until this year, the location of Rosales's grave was unknown. Then, in May 2010, the remains of the heroes of the independence were removed from their crypt, beneath the Angel of Independence, in Mexico City. Forensic examination revealed that Rosales had been amongst his compatriots all along.

Guadalupe Victoria

For some, it's not enough to merely be prepared to die for your cause. They want something - a tattoo; an endless retelling of events; a medal; a badge of honor; a symbol; a secret language - anything that would mark them out as having been there. Enpassioned with a righteous belief that the cause is all that matters and, even should they die, they want their participation in it to be paramount. They want the world to remember them and it in the same breath. It's that important.

It was after the Battle of Oaxaca that the Fernández brothers decided to change their name. Miguel and Francisco had heard the call of Padre Morelos and left their white collar jobs to take up arms. Thus it was that they were here, on November 25th, 1812, walking in triumph though the gates of one of the richest cities in Mexico. Inside, Morelos would find a reserve of silver bars. It promised to fund the rest of the insurgency. Independence had to be just around the corner.

Miguel, the elder of the two brothers, was particularly enflamed by events. He had played a prominent role in the Battle of Oaxaca and that had been noticed. Life had been slightly disappointing for the 26 year old, until now. Miguel was epileptic (a seizure would eventually kill him). He had trained as a lawyer, at Colegio de San Ildefonso, in Mexico City, but had only been able to find work as a teacher. Then Mexico had erupted to the call of Hidalgo's independence movement. Miguel had already been named Congressman for his native Durango, in Morelos's rebel government. It was heedy stuff and Miguel Fernández was riding the crest of this wave all of the way.


Hidalgo's Banner
His birth certificate said that he was José Miguel Ramón Adaucto Fernández y Félix, son of Manuel Fernández and Alejandra Félix, of Tamazula, Durango. From now on, he would answer only to a name that encompassed all the hopes, dreams and passions of the insurgency. Guadalupe Victoria. Guadalupe, after the Virgin of Guadalupe, that incarnation of Mary, Mother of Christ, favored by the lower classes. She was the symbol of their insurrection. Ever since Hidalgo had raised them in Her name and stuck Her picture on his lance as their flag, they had marched under the divine protection of the Virgin of Guadalupe. Victoria, as in the Spanish for victorious. ¡Guadalupe Victoria! ¡Mexicanos, viva México!

His younger brother could hardly change his first name to the same thing. That would be too confusing. Francisco Fernández settled for just matching his surname with that of his brother. Francisco Victoria.

By 1814, Guadalupe Victoria had been assigned the leadership of all insurgency movements around the Veracruz area. With an army of 2,000 men, he harried the Realistas (Spanish army in Mexico) throughout the area.


Guadalupe Victoria
For a year, his headquarters were in the rebel stronghold of Puente del Rey, close to the main highway between the Veracruz capital, Xalapa, and its main port, Veracruz. This was a road that Realistas were often forced to travel along. The port was the gateway to Spain. The fort, at Puente del Rey, acted as a great watchtower, with commanding views across the entire terrain. Many Realista convoy were intercepted, after being spotted from it. Prisoners and supplies were taken for the rebels.

After the capture and execution of Morelos, the Spanish viceroy thought that he'd won. He wrote home to Spain that the insurgency was under control; and he was confident enough to offer pardons to those who just went home. Many did, but Guadalupe Victoria was not one of them. He had a job to do and that was to maintain the pressure on the Realistas in Veracruz. He stayed to do his job. Even more remarkably, all 2,000 of his men stayed with him.

Nevertheless, the going was tough and there weren't supplies of artillery and practical things, like food, getting through. Victoria's men survived on what they took from the Realistas or were given, as donations, from local supporters. In late 1815, they lost Puente del Rey.


Puente del Rey
For two years, the troop were constantly on the move, throughout the Veracruz and Puebla regions. Harrassing the Realistas where they could; or, occasionally, actually meeting them in pitched battle. They knew that they weren't as alone as the Spanish would have them believe. Victoria was in sporadic contact with other isolated leaders. He had to keep the faith that it was only a matter of time before the insurgency gathered momentum again. Then the country would be free.

In 1817, Victoria's forces suffered a crushing defeat, at the hands of the Realistas, near to the small town of Palmillas, in Veracruz. Demoralized, Victoria went into hiding. He spent some time in a cave, near to the city of Puebla. Later, he transferred to a hacienda, in Paso de Ovejas, Veracruz. He was under the very noses of the Realistas there, as the hacienda bordered Puente del Rey, the fort that he had lost to them. He was not discovered.

Victoria was to remain concealed from the Realistas for four years. He emerged, in 1821, at the request of another rebel leader, Vicente Guerrero, to read over a proposition. Victoria helped negotiate the terms of independence, on behalf of the insurgents. A few months later, he was one of three men at the helm of the vast army that swept into Mexico City, to claim their country's independence.

In 1824, Guadalupe Victoria became Mexico's first president.


President Guadalupe Victoria

Where to Visit:


* Villa de Tamazula, Durango. This village was the birthplace of Guadalupe and Francisco Victoria. There is a monument to Guadalupe in the main plaza. The house in which he was born is also still standing and may be viewed by the public.

* Calera de Víctor Rosales, Zacatecas.

* Zacatecas, Zacatecas. The birthplace and home city of Victor Rosales. The Portal de Rosales, a local meeting place and monument to him, was built on the site of the old corn exchange, in 1827. This had been the spot where the Realistas had their barracks and where Rosales's 11 year old son was executed.

* Puente Nacional, Veracruz. After independence was achieved, many placenames lost their reference to the Spanish crown. Puente del Rey was no exception. The fort held by Guadalupe Victoria is here. There's a pleasant walk up to it and replicas of soldiers to show how it was defended.

The Underground Nuns

When the Convent of Santa Monica was searched, in 1934, it revealed an amazing secret. It was full of nuns. That might not sound so startling, insofar as convents are generally the first place that you would look for nuns. But this particular convent had been supposedly empty for 70 years; and it was in a land where all monasteries and convents had been seized by the government, their very existence rendered illegal.

An intricate system of tunnels, secret chambers and hidden passageways allowed the nuns to stay out of view. Their exterior doors were bricked up. A secret door, affording access from a private residence next door, allowed supplies to pass in and out. They lived and worshipped in utter seclusion; even their dead were buried in a small interior graveyard, away from prying eyes. Their tiny cells contained planks, stretched across blocks, as beds. Amongst their meagre possessions were self-flagellation instruments, which were used to bring themselves closer to Christ. Thus the small order of Augustine nuns went on for seven decades, before they were discovered.

Mexico is a Catholic country; however, it also has a Constitution that separates church from state. The Reform Era, commonly viewed as the period 1857-1876, laid the foundations of this. To do this, the government of the time needed first to reduce the traditional power of the Catholic church. A whole series of laws were passed, restricting clerical privilege, disabling church courts and many other measures designed to place church power into the hands of civil authorities.

Then came the Law for the Nationalization of Ecclesiastical Properties. It ordered all religious orders to hand over their monastries and convents, which were then distributed to local farmers. If the church refused, then these lands would be seized and sold by public auction to the highest bidder. Nearly all of the country's religious houses became secular in this way. But not the Convent of Santa Monica, in Puebla.



It had been a convent since the seventeenth century. Before that, several other female institutions had been operating on the site. In 1609, a home for wayward Spanish women had been built on that spot. It was under the patronage of St Mary Magdelene. Donations for its upkeep had diminished over time, so the home closed down. In 1682, it had briefly been a refuge for Spanish widows and orphaned girls. Then they too moved on and, in 1688, the Augustinian Recollect Convent of Santa Monica was founded.

The day to day lives of these nuns would have been silent. They did not sing, even during High Mass, nor speak aloud. Theirs was a contemplative life, assisted by a small religious library. They undertook rigid fasts or else ate only water, bread, fruits, olive oil, and wine. They practiced severe penance, for which the self-flagellation tools found afterwards would have been used. They walked barefoot, or in sandals, with any other mode of footwear forbidden. Their daily routine was one of intense worship and meditation, but there were moments of relaxation too. The Chocolate Room was set aside for recreation.



It is thought that the local authorities knew all along that they were there, but that a blind eye had been turned. Or maybe just the first officials knew and, disagreeing with the national edict against them, had helped them prepare the convent for concealment. There were certainly city folk who sneaked in food and the other necessities for survival.

However it worked, it all came to an end in 1934, when a local official ordered a search of the premises. The Augustine nuns were evicted from their convent and the building passed into state hands. It is now open to the general public and houses the Museum of Religious Art. There are some fine architectual features, some dating back to the very beginning of the 17th century; alongside exhibits from the time of the nuns.