HISP 226 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Antonio López De Santa Anna, Soconusco, Intendant
19 Mar 2016
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Lecture 10 - New nations, new identities (part 1)
Pillars of identity during the Spanish Empire: Church and King
Catholic church was powerful, united all the inhabitants of the new world. They would self-identify as
Catholic
Indigenous polities had their own relationship with the King, to avoid going through the colonies.
These two pillars are challenged by the independence movements.
Will Fowler in his Santa Ana of Mexico (2007) identified 4 3 stages in Mexican attitudes to the early post-
independence period:
Hope (1821-1828)
o Different ideologies begin to emerge
Disillusion (1835-1847)
o As they fight each other, they're unable to reach any form of consensus.
Disenchantment (1847-1853)
Despair (1847-1853)
o Lose their territory
The conservatives tend to believe that these countries have nothing to unite the social groups.
Adapt the two pillars to a new environment.
Caudillos - Military/Political strong-men
Person who doesn’t have patience with the babblings of politicians in parliamentary assemblies
and believe in decisive action to impose their vision of the future.
Need a strong person to take control in a period of chaos
Militarization of the society
Their power is based on their position in the army and their use of force
Conservative vs Liberals
Jose-Antonio Paez of Venezuela
Bernardo O'Higgins the Liberal Supreme Director
New Spain to 1st Mexican Empire
Vast territory that constitutes this first empire (California, Nevada, Texas all the way down to
Nicaragua)
Union, independence and religion (flag)
Iturbide crowned emperor of Mexico - reluctant to accept the crown
o Replacement of the King - figure of authority
Initial optimism of the empire doesn’t last very long
Indigenous Undercurrents
Indigenous cultures still very much alive - language still spoken
Mexico is an indigenous name of the inhabitants of Tenochtitlan
Founded a colony in the north - New Mexico
Iturbide, behind the 1st empire, believed in a more unified and ancestral idea of a nation
emerging from indigenous roots
Common cultural links apart from the Spanish layer on top. There were real reasons
Document Summary
Lecture 10 - new nations, new identities (part 1) Pillars of identity during the spanish empire: church and king. Catholic church was powerful, united all the inhabitants of the new world. Indigenous polities had their own relationship with the king, to avoid going through the colonies. These two pillars are challenged by the independence movements. Will fowler in his santa ana of mexico (2007) identified 4 3 stages in mexican attitudes to the early post- independence period: Hope (1821-1828: different ideologies begin to emerge. Disillusion (1835-1847: as they fight each other, they"re unable to reach any form of consensus. The conservatives tend to believe that these countries have nothing to unite the social groups. Adapt the two pillars to a new environment. Perso(cid:374) (cid:449)ho does(cid:374)(cid:859)t ha(cid:448)e patie(cid:374)(cid:272)e (cid:449)ith the (cid:271)a(cid:271)(cid:271)li(cid:374)gs of politi(cid:272)ia(cid:374)s i(cid:374) parliamentary assemblies and believe in decisive action to impose their vision of the future. Need a strong person to take control in a period of chaos.
