French intervention in Mexico
Encyclopedia
The French intervention in Mexico , also known as The Maximilian Affair, War of the French Intervention, and The Franco-Mexican War, was an invasion of Mexico by an expeditionary force sent by the Second French Empire
, supported in the beginning by the United Kingdom
and the Kingdom of Spain. It followed President
Benito Juárez
's suspension of interest payments to foreign countries on 17 July 1861, which angered Mexico's major creditors: Spain, France and Britain.
Napoleon III of France
was the instigator, justifying military intervention by claiming a broad foreign policy of commitment to free trade. For him, a friendly government in Mexico would provide an opportunity to expand free trade by ensuring European access to important markets, and prevent monopoly by the United States. Napoleon also needed the silver that could be mined in Mexico to finance his empire. Napoleon built a coalition with Spain and Britain at a time the U.S. was engaged in a full-scale civil war
. The U.S. protested but could not intervene directly until its civil war was over in 1865.
The three powers signed the Treaty of London
on October 31, to unite their efforts to receive payments from Mexico. On 8 December the Spanish fleet and troops from Spanish-controlled Cuba
arrived at Mexico's main Gulf
port, Veracruz
. When the British and Spanish discovered that the French planned to invade Mexico, they withdrew.
The subsequent French invasion resulted in the Second Mexican Empire
, which was supported by the Roman Catholic clergy, many conservative elements of the upper class, and some indigenous communities; when the presidential terms of Benito Juárez
(1858–71) were interrupted by the rule of the Habsburg monarchy in Mexico (1864–67). Conservatives, and many in the Mexican nobility
, tried to revive the monarchical form of government (see: First Mexican Empire
) when they helped to bring to Mexico an archduke from the Royal House of Austria, Maximilian Ferdinand, or Maximilian I of Mexico
(who married Charlotte of Belgium, also known as Carlota of Mexico), with the military support of France. France had various interests in this Mexican affair, such as seeking reconciliation with Austria
, which had been defeated during the Franco-Austrian War
, counterbalancing the growing U.S. power by developing a powerful Catholic neighbouring empire, and exploiting the rich mines in the north-west of the country.
The British, Spanish and French fleets arrived at Veracruz, between 6 January and 8 January 1862 intending to pressure the Mexicans into settling their debts. The city of Campeche
surrendered to the French fleet on 27 February, and a French army, commanded by General Lorencez
, arrived on 5 March. When the Spanish and British realized the French ambition to conquer Mexico, they withdrew their forces on 9 April, their troops leaving on 24 April. In May, the French man-of-war Bayonnaise blockaded Mazatlán
for a few days.
The French army suffered an initial defeat in the Battle of Puebla
on 5 May 1862 (commemorated with the Cinco de Mayo
holiday) against the Mexican forces commanded by General Ignacio Zaragoza
. The pursuing Mexican army was then contained by the French at Orizaba
, Veracruz, on 14 June. More French troops arrived on 21 September, and General Bazaine arrived with more reinforcements on 16 October. Tampico
, Tamaulipas, was occupied by the French on 23 October, with Xalapa
, Veracruz, taken peacefully on 12 December.
.
On 30 April, the French Foreign Legion
earned its legendary status in the Battle of Camarón
when the small infantry patrol unit led by Captain Jean Danjou
numbering 62 soldiers and three officers was attacked and besieged by Mexican infantry and cavalry units numbering three battalions, and was forced to make a defense in Hacienda Camarón. Danjou was mortally wounded in the defense of the hacienda, and the last of his men mounted a desperate bayonet attack. They fought to nearly the last man, with three survivors. To this day, 'Camerone Day' is still the most important day of celebration for Legionnaires.
The French army of General François Achille Bazaine
defeated the Mexican army led by General Comonfort in their attempt to relieve the siege of Puebla, at San Lorenzo
, to the south of Puebla. Puebla surrendered to the French shortly afterward, on 17 May. On 31 May, President Juárez fled the city with his cabinet, retreating northwards to El Paso del Norte and later to Chihuahua
, where the government-in-exile remained until 1867, taking the treasure of the state with them.
French troops under Bazaine entered Mexico City
on 7 June 1863. The main army entered the city three days later led by General Forey. General Almonte was appointed the provisional President of Mexico on 16 June, by the Superior Junta (which had been appointed by Forey) The Superior Junta with its 35 members met on 21 June, and proclaimed a Catholic Empire on 10 July. The crown was offered to Maximilian, due to Napoleon's efforts. Maximilian accepted the crown on 3 October, at his castle Miramar near Trieste
, having been offered it by the Comisión Mexicana, sent by the Superior Junta.
, but were repelled by Mexicans commanded by Colonel Gaspar Sánchez Ochoa.
The French under Bazaine occupied Guadalajara
on 7 January 1864, and troops under Douay occupied Zacatecas
on 6 February. Further French victories continued with the fall of Acapulco
on 3 June, occupation of Durango
on 3 July, and the defeat of republicans in the states of Sinaloa
and Jalisco
in November.
Maximilian formally accepted the crown on 10 April, signing the Treaty of Miramar, and landed at Veracruz on 28 May (or possibly 29 May) 1864 in the SMS Novara
. He was enthroned as Maximilian, Emperor of Mexico. Maximilian of Habsburg was very much the product of the progressive ideas in vogue in the West at the time. He favoured the establishment of a limited monarchy sharing powers with a democratically-elected congress and inspired laws that abolished child labour, limited working hours, and abolished a system of land tenancy that virtually amounted to serfdom among the Indians. This was too liberal to please Mexico's conservatives, while the liberals refused to accept a monarch, leaving Maximilian with few enthusiastic allies within Mexico.
On Sunday, November 13, 1864, three French
men-of-war (Victoire
, D'Assas and Diamante
) shelled Mazatlán
13 times, and Imperial Mexican forces under Manuel Lozada
entered and captured the city.
on 9 February (defeating the city's defenders under General Porfirio Díaz
). The French fleet landed soldiers who captured Guaymas
on 29 March. However on 11 April, republicans defeated Imperial forces at Tacámbaro
in Michoacán
. In April and May the republicans had many forces in the states of Sinaloa
and Chihuahua. Most towns along the Rio Grande
were also occupied by republicans. The Belgian volunteers were defeated by the republicans at the Second Battle of Tacámbaro
on 11 July.
The decree known as the "Black Decree" was issued by Maximilian on 3 October, which threatened any Mexican captured in the war with immediate execution. This was the later basis of his own execution. Several high-ranking republican officials were executed under this order on 21 October.
had supported the republicans under Juárez
, but was unable to intervene due to the American Civil War
. Immediately after the end of the war, in 1865, United States Army
General Philip Sheridan
, under the supervision of President Andrew Johnson
and General Ulysses S. Grant
, assembled 50,000 troops, and dispatched them to the border between Mexico and the United States. There, his corps ran patrols to visibly threaten intervention against the French, and also supplied weapons to Juárez's forces. The United States Congress
had unanimously passed a resolution which opposed the establishment of the Mexican monarchy on 4 April 1864. On 12 February 1866, the US demanded the French withdraw their forces from Mexico, moved soldiers to positions along the Rio Grande, and set up a naval blockade to prevent French reinforcements from landing. The US officially protested to Austria about the Austrian volunteers in Mexico on 6 May.
on 25 March, taking Guadalajara
on 8 July, further capturing Matamoros, Tampico and Acapulco in July. Napoleon III urged Maximilian to abandon Mexico. The French evacuated Monterrey
on 26 July, Saltillo
on 5 August, and the whole state of Sonora in September. Maximilian's French cabinet members resigned on 18 September. The Republicans defeated imperial troops in the Battle of Miahuatlán
in Oaxaca
in October, occupying the whole of Oaxaca in November, as well as parts of Zacatecas, San Luis Potosí and Guanajuato. On 6 December the Austrian and Belgian volunteers disbanded and were supposed to join the Mexican Army; however, 3500 of the 4648 volunteers did not enlist, and tried to leave the country.
On 13 November, Ramón Corona and the French agreed to terms for the liberation of Mazatlán
. At noon the invaders boarded three men-of-war, Rhin, Marie and Talisman and departed.
On 13 February 1867, Maximilian withdrew to Querétaro
. The Republicans began a siege of the city on 9 March, and Mexico City on 12 April. An imperial sortie from Querétaro failed on 27 April.
On 11 May, Maximilian resolved to attempt an escape through the enemy lines. He was, however, intercepted before he could carry out this plan on 15 May and, following a court-martial, was sentenced to death. Many of the crowned heads of Europe and other prominent figures (including Victor Hugo
and Giuseppe Garibaldi
) sent telegrams and letters to Mexico pleading for Maximilian's life to be spared, but Juárez refused to commute the sentence, believing that it was necessary to send a message that Mexico would not tolerate any government imposed by foreign powers.
Maximilian was executed on 19 June (along with his generals Miguel Miramón
and Tomás Mejía
) on the Cerro de las Campanas, a hill on the outskirts of Querétaro
, by the forces loyal to President Benito Juárez, who had kept the federal government functioning during the French intervention. Juárez's position was further strengthened when the United States deployed troops to the Rio Grande, and threatened an invasion. Mexico City surrendered the day after Maximilian was executed.
The republic was restored, President Juárez was returned to power in the national capital, yet there was little change in policy given that Maximilian had upheld most of Juárez's liberal reforms.
After the victory, the Conservative party was so thoroughly discredited by its alliance with the invading French troops that it effectively ceased to exist, and the Liberal party was almost unchallenged as a political force during the first years of the "restored republic". In 1871, however, Juárez was re-elected to yet another term as president in spite of a constitutional prohibition of re-elections, provoking one of the losing candidates, Porfirio Díaz
(a Liberal general and a hero of the French war, but increasingly conservative in outlook) to launch a rebellion against the president. Supported by conservative factions within the Liberal party, the attempted revolt (the so-called Plan de la Noria
) was already at the point of defeat when Juárez died in office on 19 July 1872, making it a moot point. Díaz ran against interim president Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada
, lost the election, and retired to his hacienda
in Oaxaca
. Four years later, in 1876, when Lerdo himself ran for re-election, Díaz launched a second, successful revolt (the Plan de Tuxtepec) and captured the presidency, which he effectively held through eight terms until 1911.
). 6,654 French died, including 5,000 from disease. Among these losses, 1,918 of the deaths were from a single regiment of the French Foreign Legion
.
Général de Division Forey
Not yet arrived:
Second French Empire
The Second French Empire or French Empire was the Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 1852 to 1870, between the Second Republic and the Third Republic, in France.-Rule of Napoleon III:...
, supported in the beginning by the United Kingdom
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
and the Kingdom of Spain. It followed President
President of Mexico
The President of the United Mexican States is the head of state and government of Mexico. Under the Constitution, the president is also the Supreme Commander of the Mexican armed forces...
Benito Juárez
Benito Juárez
Benito Juárez born Benito Pablo Juárez García, was a Mexican lawyer and politician of Zapotec origin from Oaxaca who served five terms as president of Mexico: 1858–1861 as interim, 1861–1865, 1865–1867, 1867–1871 and 1871–1872...
's suspension of interest payments to foreign countries on 17 July 1861, which angered Mexico's major creditors: Spain, France and Britain.
Napoleon III of France
Napoleon III of France
Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte was the President of the French Second Republic and as Napoleon III, the ruler of the Second French Empire. He was the nephew and heir of Napoleon I, christened as Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte...
was the instigator, justifying military intervention by claiming a broad foreign policy of commitment to free trade. For him, a friendly government in Mexico would provide an opportunity to expand free trade by ensuring European access to important markets, and prevent monopoly by the United States. Napoleon also needed the silver that could be mined in Mexico to finance his empire. Napoleon built a coalition with Spain and Britain at a time the U.S. was engaged in a full-scale civil war
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. The U.S. protested but could not intervene directly until its civil war was over in 1865.
The three powers signed the Treaty of London
Treaty of London (1861)
The Treaty of London was a treaty, signed by France, Spain, and the United Kingdom, in 1861. The purpose of the treaty was to agree on a course of action towards obtaining loan repayments from Mexico....
on October 31, to unite their efforts to receive payments from Mexico. On 8 December the Spanish fleet and troops from Spanish-controlled Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
arrived at Mexico's main Gulf
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
port, Veracruz
Veracruz, Veracruz
Veracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
. When the British and Spanish discovered that the French planned to invade Mexico, they withdrew.
The subsequent French invasion resulted in the Second Mexican Empire
Second Mexican Empire
The Second Mexican Empire was the name of Mexico under the regime established from 1864 to 1867. It was created by Napoleon III of France, who attempted to use the Mexican adventure to recapture some of the grandeur of earlier Napoleonic times...
, which was supported by the Roman Catholic clergy, many conservative elements of the upper class, and some indigenous communities; when the presidential terms of Benito Juárez
Benito Juárez
Benito Juárez born Benito Pablo Juárez García, was a Mexican lawyer and politician of Zapotec origin from Oaxaca who served five terms as president of Mexico: 1858–1861 as interim, 1861–1865, 1865–1867, 1867–1871 and 1871–1872...
(1858–71) were interrupted by the rule of the Habsburg monarchy in Mexico (1864–67). Conservatives, and many in the Mexican nobility
Mexican nobility
Mexican nobility refers to the titled nobles and untitled gentry families of Mexico. Most of the descendants of these families still live in Mexico today, but some can be found in Europe and other countries....
, tried to revive the monarchical form of government (see: First Mexican Empire
First Mexican Empire
The Mexican Empire was the official name of independent Mexico under a monarchical regime from 1821 to 1823. The territory of the Mexican Empire included the continental intendencies and provinces of New Spain proper...
) when they helped to bring to Mexico an archduke from the Royal House of Austria, Maximilian Ferdinand, or Maximilian I of Mexico
Maximilian I of Mexico
Maximilian I was the only monarch of the Second Mexican Empire.After a distinguished career in the Austrian Navy, he was proclaimed Emperor of Mexico on April 10, 1864, with the backing of Napoleon III of France and a group of Mexican monarchists who sought to revive the Mexican monarchy...
(who married Charlotte of Belgium, also known as Carlota of Mexico), with the military support of France. France had various interests in this Mexican affair, such as seeking reconciliation with Austria
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
, which had been defeated during the Franco-Austrian War
Second Italian War of Independence
The Second War of Italian Independence, Franco-Austrian War, Austro-Sardinian War, or Austro-Piedmontese War , was fought by Napoleon III of France and the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia against the Austrian Empire in 1859...
, counterbalancing the growing U.S. power by developing a powerful Catholic neighbouring empire, and exploiting the rich mines in the north-west of the country.
1862: Arrival of the French
Campeche, Campeche
San Francisco de Campeche is the capital city of the Mexican state of Campeche, located at,...
surrendered to the French fleet on 27 February, and a French army, commanded by General Lorencez
Charles de Lorencez
Charles Ferdinand Latrille, Comte de Lorencez was a French Army general under Emperor Maximilian of Mexico during the 19th century. He was a relative of the Empress Charlotte, who was the only daughter of King Leopold I, King of the Belgians and wife of Emperor Maximilian.Lorencez was born in...
, arrived on 5 March. When the Spanish and British realized the French ambition to conquer Mexico, they withdrew their forces on 9 April, their troops leaving on 24 April. In May, the French man-of-war Bayonnaise blockaded Mazatlán
Mazatlán
Mazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding municipio for which the city serves as the municipal seat is Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning...
for a few days.
The French army suffered an initial defeat in the Battle of Puebla
Battle of Puebla
The Battle of Puebla took place on 5 May 1862 near the city of Puebla during the French intervention in Mexico. The battle ended in a victory for the Mexican Army over the occupying French forces...
on 5 May 1862 (commemorated with the Cinco de Mayo
Cinco de Mayo
Cinco de Mayo is a holiday held on May 5. It is celebrated nationwide in the United States and regionally in Mexico, primarily in the state of Puebla, where the holiday is called El Dia de la Batalla de Puebla...
holiday) against the Mexican forces commanded by General Ignacio Zaragoza
Ignacio Zaragoza
Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín was a general in the Mexican army, best known for defeating invading French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862 ....
. The pursuing Mexican army was then contained by the French at Orizaba
Orizaba
Orizaba is a city and municipality in the Mexican state of Veracruz. It is located 20 km west of its sister city Córdoba, and is adjacent to Río Blanco and Ixtaczoquitlán, on Federal Highways 180 and 190. The city had a 2005 census population of 117,273 and is almost coextensive with its small...
, Veracruz, on 14 June. More French troops arrived on 21 September, and General Bazaine arrived with more reinforcements on 16 October. Tampico
Tampico
Tampico is a city and port in the state of Tamaulipas, in the country of Mexico. It is located in the southeastern part of the state, directly north across the border from Veracruz. Tampico is the third largest city in Tamaulipas, and counts with a population of 309,003. The Metropolitan area of...
, Tamaulipas, was occupied by the French on 23 October, with Xalapa
Xalapa
Xalapa-Enríquez, commonly Xalapa or Jalapa, is the capital city of the Mexican state of Veracruz and the name of the surrounding municipality. In the year 2005 census the city reported a population of 387,879 and the municipality of which it serves as municipal seat reported a population of...
, Veracruz, taken peacefully on 12 December.
1863: The French take the capital
The French bombarded Veracruz on 15 January 1863. Then, on 16 March, General Forey and the French Army began the siege of PueblaPuebla, Puebla
The city and municipality of Puebla is the capital of the state of Puebla, and one of the five most important colonial cities in Mexico. Being a planned city, it is located to the east of Mexico City and west of Mexico's main port, Veracruz, on the main route between the two.The city was founded...
.
On 30 April, the French Foreign Legion
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion is a unique military service wing of the French Army established in 1831. The foreign legion was exclusively created for foreign nationals willing to serve in the French Armed Forces...
earned its legendary status in the Battle of Camarón
Battle of Camarón
The Battle of Camarón, which occurred 30 April 1863 between the French Foreign Legion and the Mexican army, is regarded by the Legion as a defining moment in its history...
when the small infantry patrol unit led by Captain Jean Danjou
Jean Danjou
Jean Danjou was a decorated captain in the French Foreign Legion. He commanded the two lieutenants and 62 legionnaires who fought the legendary Battle of Camarón during the French intervention in Mexico. He was killed during the battle.-Education:Jean Danjou was born in Chalabre into a family with...
numbering 62 soldiers and three officers was attacked and besieged by Mexican infantry and cavalry units numbering three battalions, and was forced to make a defense in Hacienda Camarón. Danjou was mortally wounded in the defense of the hacienda, and the last of his men mounted a desperate bayonet attack. They fought to nearly the last man, with three survivors. To this day, 'Camerone Day' is still the most important day of celebration for Legionnaires.
The French army of General François Achille Bazaine
François Achille Bazaine
François Achille Bazaine was a French General and from 1864, a Marshal of France, who surrendered the last organized French army to the Prussians during the Franco-Prussian war. He was the first Marshal who had started as a legionnaire and like the great Marshals of the First Empire, he had risen...
defeated the Mexican army led by General Comonfort in their attempt to relieve the siege of Puebla, at San Lorenzo
San Lorenzo
San Lorenzo is the Spanish and Italian name for Saint Lawrence, the 3rd century Christian martyr, and may refer to:-Places:Argentina* San Lorenzo, Santa Fe* San Lorenzo Department, ChacoBolivia* San Lorenzo, TarijaColombia* San Lorenzo, Nariño...
, to the south of Puebla. Puebla surrendered to the French shortly afterward, on 17 May. On 31 May, President Juárez fled the city with his cabinet, retreating northwards to El Paso del Norte and later to Chihuahua
Chihuahua, Chihuahua
The city of Chihuahua is the state capital of the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It has a population of about 825,327. The predominant activity is industry, including domestic heavy, light industries, consumer goods production, and to a smaller extent maquiladoras.-History:It has been said that the...
, where the government-in-exile remained until 1867, taking the treasure of the state with them.
French troops under Bazaine entered Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
on 7 June 1863. The main army entered the city three days later led by General Forey. General Almonte was appointed the provisional President of Mexico on 16 June, by the Superior Junta (which had been appointed by Forey) The Superior Junta with its 35 members met on 21 June, and proclaimed a Catholic Empire on 10 July. The crown was offered to Maximilian, due to Napoleon's efforts. Maximilian accepted the crown on 3 October, at his castle Miramar near Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
, having been offered it by the Comisión Mexicana, sent by the Superior Junta.
1864: Arrival of Maximilian
On 28 and 31 March 1864, men from the French man-of-war Cordelière tried to take MazatlánMazatlán
Mazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding municipio for which the city serves as the municipal seat is Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning...
, but were repelled by Mexicans commanded by Colonel Gaspar Sánchez Ochoa.
The French under Bazaine occupied Guadalajara
Guadalajara, Jalisco
Guadalajara is the capital of the Mexican state of Jalisco, and the seat of the municipality of Guadalajara. The city is located in the central region of Jalisco in the western-pacific area of Mexico. With a population of 1,564,514 it is Mexico's second most populous municipality...
on 7 January 1864, and troops under Douay occupied Zacatecas
Zacatecas, Zacatecas
Zacatecas is a city and municipality in Mexico and the capital of the state of Zacatecas. It is located in the north central part of the country. The city had its start as a Spanish mining camp in the mid 16th century. Prior to this, the area's rich deposits in silver and other minerals were known...
on 6 February. Further French victories continued with the fall of Acapulco
Acapulco
Acapulco is a city, municipality and major sea port in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific coast of Mexico, southwest from Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semi-circular bay and has been a port since the early colonial period of Mexico’s history...
on 3 June, occupation of Durango
Durango, Durango
-Climate:The city of Durango has a semi-arid climate, classified as Bsk in the Koppen system. The climate is temperate in the western portion , with the average annual temperature being 15 °C and consisting of an average annual rainfall of 1,600 millimeters. In the eastern region, the average...
on 3 July, and the defeat of republicans in the states of Sinaloa
Sinaloa
Sinaloa officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 18 municipalities and its capital city is Culiacán Rosales....
and Jalisco
Jalisco
Jalisco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in Western Mexico and divided in 125 municipalities and its capital city is Guadalajara.It is one of the more important states...
in November.
Maximilian formally accepted the crown on 10 April, signing the Treaty of Miramar, and landed at Veracruz on 28 May (or possibly 29 May) 1864 in the SMS Novara
SMS Novara (1850)
SMS Novara was a sail frigate of the Austro-Hungarian Navy most noted for sailing the globe for the Novara Expedition of 1857–1859 and, later for carrying Archduke Maximilian and wife Carlota to Vera Cruz in May 1864 to become Emperor and Empress of Mexico.-Service :The SMS Novara was a frigate...
. He was enthroned as Maximilian, Emperor of Mexico. Maximilian of Habsburg was very much the product of the progressive ideas in vogue in the West at the time. He favoured the establishment of a limited monarchy sharing powers with a democratically-elected congress and inspired laws that abolished child labour, limited working hours, and abolished a system of land tenancy that virtually amounted to serfdom among the Indians. This was too liberal to please Mexico's conservatives, while the liberals refused to accept a monarch, leaving Maximilian with few enthusiastic allies within Mexico.
On Sunday, November 13, 1864, three French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
men-of-war (Victoire
Victoire
Victoire, Victory in French, may refer to :* La Victoire, Haiti, a municipality in the Nord Department* Station Victoire Victoire is a French feminine given name, equivalent to English Victoria...
, D'Assas and Diamante
Diamante
- Argentina :* Diamante, Entre Ríos, a municipio in Diamante Department* Diamante Caldera, a volcanic caldera partly in the Province of Mendoza* Diamante River, a river in the Province of Mendoza* Laguna del Diamante, a lake in the Province of Mendoza...
) shelled Mazatlán
Mazatlán
Mazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding municipio for which the city serves as the municipal seat is Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning...
13 times, and Imperial Mexican forces under Manuel Lozada
Manuel Lozada
General Manuel Lozada, nicknamed The Tigre of Alicá, was a Mexican bandit and insurgent. He was an Indian or mestizo of the Cora tribe. He was the son of Norberto García and Cecilia González.His father died when he was young and his mother lacked the means to raise him...
entered and captured the city.
1865: Beginning of Republican victories
The French continued with victories in 1865, with Bazaine capturing OaxacaOaxaca, Oaxaca
The city and municipality of Oaxaca de Juárez, or simply Oaxaca, is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of the same name . It is located in the Centro District in the Central Valleys region of the state, in the foothills of the Sierra Madre at the base of the Cerro del Fortín...
on 9 February (defeating the city's defenders under General Porfirio Díaz
Porfirio Díaz
José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori was a Mexican-American War volunteer and French intervention hero, an accomplished general and the President of Mexico continuously from 1876 to 1911, with the exception of a brief term in 1876 when he left Juan N...
). The French fleet landed soldiers who captured Guaymas
Guaymas
Guaymas is a city and municipality located in the southwest part of the state of Sonora in northwestern Mexico. The city is located 117 km south of the state capital of Hermosillo, and 242 miles from the U.S. border, and is the principal port for the state. The municipality is located in the...
on 29 March. However on 11 April, republicans defeated Imperial forces at Tacámbaro
Battle of Tacámbaro
The Battle of Tacámbaro took place on April 11, 1865 in the state of Michoacán in western Mexico during the French Intervention in Mexico. The engagement, named for the town in which it was fought, pitted 300 members of the Belgian Foreign Legion against approximately 3,000 Mexican...
in Michoacán
Michoacán
Michoacán officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Michoacán de Ocampo is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 113 municipalities and its capital city is Morelia...
. In April and May the republicans had many forces in the states of Sinaloa
Sinaloa
Sinaloa officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 18 municipalities and its capital city is Culiacán Rosales....
and Chihuahua. Most towns along the Rio Grande
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande is a river that flows from southwestern Colorado in the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way it forms part of the Mexico – United States border. Its length varies as its course changes...
were also occupied by republicans. The Belgian volunteers were defeated by the republicans at the Second Battle of Tacámbaro
Battle of Tacámbaro
The Battle of Tacámbaro took place on April 11, 1865 in the state of Michoacán in western Mexico during the French Intervention in Mexico. The engagement, named for the town in which it was fought, pitted 300 members of the Belgian Foreign Legion against approximately 3,000 Mexican...
on 11 July.
The decree known as the "Black Decree" was issued by Maximilian on 3 October, which threatened any Mexican captured in the war with immediate execution. This was the later basis of his own execution. Several high-ranking republican officials were executed under this order on 21 October.
American perspective
American President Abraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
had supported the republicans under Juárez
Benito Juárez
Benito Juárez born Benito Pablo Juárez García, was a Mexican lawyer and politician of Zapotec origin from Oaxaca who served five terms as president of Mexico: 1858–1861 as interim, 1861–1865, 1865–1867, 1867–1871 and 1871–1872...
, but was unable to intervene due to the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. Immediately after the end of the war, in 1865, United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
General Philip Sheridan
Philip Sheridan
Philip Henry Sheridan was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with Lt. Gen. Ulysses S...
, under the supervision of President Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson was the 17th President of the United States . As Vice-President of the United States in 1865, he succeeded Abraham Lincoln following the latter's assassination. Johnson then presided over the initial and contentious Reconstruction era of the United States following the American...
and General Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, assembled 50,000 troops, and dispatched them to the border between Mexico and the United States. There, his corps ran patrols to visibly threaten intervention against the French, and also supplied weapons to Juárez's forces. The United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
had unanimously passed a resolution which opposed the establishment of the Mexican monarchy on 4 April 1864. On 12 February 1866, the US demanded the French withdraw their forces from Mexico, moved soldiers to positions along the Rio Grande, and set up a naval blockade to prevent French reinforcements from landing. The US officially protested to Austria about the Austrian volunteers in Mexico on 6 May.
1866: French withdrawal and Republican victories
In 1866, Napoleon III announced the withdrawal of French forces beginning 31 May. The Republicans won a series of victories after the end of the French military support to the Imperial troops, occupying ChihuahuaChihuahua, Chihuahua
The city of Chihuahua is the state capital of the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It has a population of about 825,327. The predominant activity is industry, including domestic heavy, light industries, consumer goods production, and to a smaller extent maquiladoras.-History:It has been said that the...
on 25 March, taking Guadalajara
Guadalajara, Jalisco
Guadalajara is the capital of the Mexican state of Jalisco, and the seat of the municipality of Guadalajara. The city is located in the central region of Jalisco in the western-pacific area of Mexico. With a population of 1,564,514 it is Mexico's second most populous municipality...
on 8 July, further capturing Matamoros, Tampico and Acapulco in July. Napoleon III urged Maximilian to abandon Mexico. The French evacuated Monterrey
Monterrey
Monterrey , is the capital city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León in the country of Mexico. The city is anchor to the third-largest metropolitan area in Mexico and is ranked as the ninth-largest city in the nation. Monterrey serves as a commercial center in the north of the country and is the...
on 26 July, Saltillo
Saltillo
Saltillo is the capital city of the northeastern Mexican state of Coahuila and the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. The city is located about 400 km south of the U.S. state of Texas, and 90 km west of Monterrey, Nuevo León....
on 5 August, and the whole state of Sonora in September. Maximilian's French cabinet members resigned on 18 September. The Republicans defeated imperial troops in the Battle of Miahuatlán
Battle of Miahuatlán
The Battle of Miahuatlán took place on 3 October 1866 in the vicinity of the current municipality of Miahuatlán de Porfirio Díaz in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico...
in Oaxaca
Oaxaca
Oaxaca , , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca is one of the 31 states which, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided into 571 municipalities; of which 418 are governed by the system of customs and traditions...
in October, occupying the whole of Oaxaca in November, as well as parts of Zacatecas, San Luis Potosí and Guanajuato. On 6 December the Austrian and Belgian volunteers disbanded and were supposed to join the Mexican Army; however, 3500 of the 4648 volunteers did not enlist, and tried to leave the country.
Mazatlán
Mazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding municipio for which the city serves as the municipal seat is Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning...
. At noon the invaders boarded three men-of-war, Rhin, Marie and Talisman and departed.
1867: Republicans take the capital
The Republicans occupied the rest of the states of Zacatecas, San Luis Potosí and Guanajuato in January. The French evacuated the capital on 5 February.On 13 February 1867, Maximilian withdrew to Querétaro
Santiago de Querétaro
Santiago de Querétaro is the capital and largest city of the state of Querétaro, located in central Mexico. It is located 213 km northwest of Mexico City, 96 km southeast of San Miguel de Allende and 200 km south of San Luis Potosí...
. The Republicans began a siege of the city on 9 March, and Mexico City on 12 April. An imperial sortie from Querétaro failed on 27 April.
On 11 May, Maximilian resolved to attempt an escape through the enemy lines. He was, however, intercepted before he could carry out this plan on 15 May and, following a court-martial, was sentenced to death. Many of the crowned heads of Europe and other prominent figures (including Victor Hugo
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
and Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Garibaldi was an Italian military and political figure. In his twenties, he joined the Carbonari Italian patriot revolutionaries, and fled Italy after a failed insurrection. Garibaldi took part in the War of the Farrapos and the Uruguayan Civil War leading the Italian Legion, and...
) sent telegrams and letters to Mexico pleading for Maximilian's life to be spared, but Juárez refused to commute the sentence, believing that it was necessary to send a message that Mexico would not tolerate any government imposed by foreign powers.
Maximilian was executed on 19 June (along with his generals Miguel Miramón
Miguel Miramón
Miguel Gregorio de la Luz Atenógenes Miramón y Tarelo was a Mexican conservative general. He served as unconstitutional interim conservative president of Mexico .Miramón was born in Mexico City into a family of French heritage...
and Tomás Mejía
Tomás Mejía
Tomás Mejía was a Mexican soldier, born in Pinal de Amoles, Sierra Gorda, Querétaro. He fought as a Cavalry General on the side of Maximilian I of Mexico during the war between Monarchists and Republicans following the French intervention in 1862 and rise of the Second Mexican Empire in...
) on the Cerro de las Campanas, a hill on the outskirts of Querétaro
Santiago de Querétaro
Santiago de Querétaro is the capital and largest city of the state of Querétaro, located in central Mexico. It is located 213 km northwest of Mexico City, 96 km southeast of San Miguel de Allende and 200 km south of San Luis Potosí...
, by the forces loyal to President Benito Juárez, who had kept the federal government functioning during the French intervention. Juárez's position was further strengthened when the United States deployed troops to the Rio Grande, and threatened an invasion. Mexico City surrendered the day after Maximilian was executed.
The republic was restored, President Juárez was returned to power in the national capital, yet there was little change in policy given that Maximilian had upheld most of Juárez's liberal reforms.
After the victory, the Conservative party was so thoroughly discredited by its alliance with the invading French troops that it effectively ceased to exist, and the Liberal party was almost unchallenged as a political force during the first years of the "restored republic". In 1871, however, Juárez was re-elected to yet another term as president in spite of a constitutional prohibition of re-elections, provoking one of the losing candidates, Porfirio Díaz
Porfirio Díaz
José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori was a Mexican-American War volunteer and French intervention hero, an accomplished general and the President of Mexico continuously from 1876 to 1911, with the exception of a brief term in 1876 when he left Juan N...
(a Liberal general and a hero of the French war, but increasingly conservative in outlook) to launch a rebellion against the president. Supported by conservative factions within the Liberal party, the attempted revolt (the so-called Plan de la Noria
Plan de la Noria
The Plan de la Noria was a revolutionary call to arms with the intent of ousting Mexican President Benito Juárez. The plan was drafted by Porfirio Díaz immediately following his defeat by Juárez in the presidential election of 1871. Neither Juárez, Díaz, nor the third candidate Sebastián Lerdo de...
) was already at the point of defeat when Juárez died in office on 19 July 1872, making it a moot point. Díaz ran against interim president Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada
Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada
Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada y Corral was a jurist and Liberal president of Mexico.-Background:...
, lost the election, and retired to his hacienda
Hacienda
Hacienda is a Spanish word for an estate. Some haciendas were plantations, mines, or even business factories. Many haciendas combined these productive activities...
in Oaxaca
Oaxaca
Oaxaca , , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca is one of the 31 states which, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided into 571 municipalities; of which 418 are governed by the system of customs and traditions...
. Four years later, in 1876, when Lerdo himself ran for re-election, Díaz launched a second, successful revolt (the Plan de Tuxtepec) and captured the presidency, which he effectively held through eight terms until 1911.
French expeditionary force, 31 December 1862
At its peak, the French expeditionary force counted 38,493 men (Which represented 20% of the French armyFrench Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
). 6,654 French died, including 5,000 from disease. Among these losses, 1,918 of the deaths were from a single regiment of the French Foreign Legion
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion is a unique military service wing of the French Army established in 1831. The foreign legion was exclusively created for foreign nationals willing to serve in the French Armed Forces...
.
Général de Division Forey
- 1er Division d'Infanterie (GdD Bazaine)
- 1er Brigade (GdB de Castagny)
- 18e Bataillon de Chasseurs
- 1er Régiment de Zouaves
- 81e Régiment de Ligne
- 2e Brigade (GdB ?)
- 20e Bataillon de Chasseurs
- 3eme Régiment de Zouaves
- 95e Régiment d'infanterie Légère
- Bataillon de Tirailleurs Algériens
- 2x Marine artillery batteries
- 1er Brigade (GdB de Castagny)
- 2e Division d'Infanterie (GdB Douay - acting)
- 1er Brigade (Col Hellier - acting)
- 1er Bataillon de Chasseurs
- 2e Régiment de Zouaves
- 99e Régiment d'infanterie Légère
- 2e Brigade (GdB Berthier)
- 7e Bataillon de Chasseurs
- 51e Régiment de Ligne
- 62e Régiment de Ligne
- 2x Army artillery batteries
- 1er Brigade (Col Hellier - acting)
- Brigade de Cavallerie (GdB de Mirandol)
- 1er Régiment du Marche (2 squadrons each of 1er and 2e Chasseurs d'Afrique)
- 2e Régiment du Marche (2 squadrons each of 3eme Chasseurs d'Afrique and 12e Chasseurs)
- Naval Brigade
- Bataillon de Fusiliers-Marin
- 2e Régiment d'Infanterie de Marine
Not yet arrived:
- 7e Régiment de Ligne
- 1e Régiment Etranger
- 2e Bataillon d'Infanterie legère d'Afrique
- Bataillon Egyptien
- det/ 5e Régiment de Hussards
See also
- Pastry WarPastry WarThe Pastry War was an invasion of Mexico by French forces in 1838.-Background:The war arose from the widespread civil disorder that plagued the early years of the Mexican republic. In 1828, President Manuel Gómez Pedraza ejected Lorenzo de Zavala from the office of governor of the state of México...
, an earlier invasion of Mexico by the French - Reform WarReform WarThe Reform War in Mexico is one of the episodes of the long struggle between Liberal and Conservative forces that dominated the country’s history in the 19th century. The Liberals wanted a federalist government, limiting traditional Catholic Church and military influence in the country...
- History of MexicoHistory of MexicoThe history of Mexico, a country located in the southern portion of North America, covers a period of more than two millennia. First populated more than 13,000 years ago, the country produced complex indigenous civilizations before being conquered by the Spanish in the 16th Century.Since the...
- List of battles of the French intervention in Mexico
- Cinco de MayoCinco de MayoCinco de Mayo is a holiday held on May 5. It is celebrated nationwide in the United States and regionally in Mexico, primarily in the state of Puebla, where the holiday is called El Dia de la Batalla de Puebla...