A Concise History of Mexico (Cambridge Concise Histories)

354 Pages·1999·7.11 MB·English

by  Brian R. Hamnett

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CAMBRIDGE CONCISE HISTORIES
AConciseHistoryofMexico
Mexico’sfascinatingcomplexitiesaredifficulttoapproach.Thisillustrated
ConciseHistorybeginswith a brief examinationof contemporaryissues,
whilethebookasawhole–rangingfromtheOlmecstothepresentday–
combinesachronologicalandthematicapproachwhilehighlightinglong-
termissuesandcontroversiesoverinterpretation.
ModernMexico,foundedafterindependencefromSpainin1821,wasa
statecreatedoutofalonganddisparatehistoricalinheritance,whichhas
constantlyinfluenceditsevolution.Thisbooktakesaccountofthatpastand
paysattentiontothepre-ColumbianandSpanishcolonialinfluence,bearing
inmindthatMexicotodayisnotnecessarilyeitherculturallyorterritorially
identical to those past societies. Mexico’s economic problems are given
historicaltreatmenttogetherwithpoliticalanalysisandattentiontosocial
developments and cultural factors. The book stresses several prevailing
themes:thetensionbetweenconstitutionalandpersonalorgrouppower,
thedebateoverfederalismandtheexpansionofcentralpower,theopposi-
tion between liberalism and the Catholic inheritance, nationalism and
Mexico’sglobalposition,indigenousculturesandnationalintegration,and
theproblemsoflegitimisingandtransferringpoliticalpower.Theoverrid-
ing issue of Mexico’s relationship to the United States also emerges as a
centraltheme.
Thebook’sprimeobjectiveisaccessibilitytoarangeofreaders,including
thoseinterestedin gainingabroadgeneralknowledgeofthecountryand
thoseacrossthe professionsanxiousto acquire a rapidbutsecure under-
standingofasubjectwheretherearefewstartingpoints.
brian hamnett is a ResearchProfessorspecialising in Latin America,
basedattheUniversityofEssex.Hehastravelledwidelyandresearchedin
LatinAmericaandtheIberianpeninsula,devotingparticularattentionto
Mexico. Recent works include studies of the late colonial period, the
strugglesforIndependence,andthepoliticalcareerofBenitoJua´rez.
CAMBRIDGE CONCISE HISTORIES
Thisis anew series ofillustrated‘concisehistories’ofselected individual
countries,intendedbothasuniversityandcollegetextbooksandasgeneral
historicalintroductionsforgeneralreaders,travellersandmembersofthe
businesscommunity.
Titlesintheseries:
AConciseHistoryofGermany
maryfulbrook
AConciseHistoryofGreece
richardclogg
AConciseHistoryofFrance
rogerprice
AConciseHistoryofBritain:1707–1975
w.a.speck
AConciseHistoryofPortugal
davidbirmingham
AConciseHistoryofItaly
christopherduggan
AConciseHistoryofBulgaria
richardcrampton
AConciseHistoryofBrazil
borisfausto
AConciseHistoryofSouthAfrica
robertross
AConciseHistoryofMexico
brianhamnett
A Concise History of Mexico
BRIAN HAMNETT
         
The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, Cambridge, United Kingdom
  
The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 2RU, UK
40 West 20th Street, New York, NY 10011-4211, USA
477 Williamstown Road, Port Melbourne, VIC 3207, Australia
Ruiz de Alarcón 13, 28014 Madrid, Spain
Dock House, The Waterfront, Cape Town 8001, South Africa
http://www.cambridge.org
©Brian Hamnett 2004
First published in printed format 1999
ISBN 0-511-03867-4 eBook (Adobe Reader)
ISBN 0-521-58120-6 hardback
ISBN 0-521-58916-9 paperback
Dionisio alegaba que e´l no era antiyanqui . . . por ma´s que no
hubiesenin˜onacidoenMe´xicoquenosupieraquelosgringos,enel
sigloXIX,nosdespojarondelamitaddenuestroterritorio,Califor-
nia,Utah,Nevada,Colorado,Arizona,NuevoMe´xicoyTexas.La
generosidad de Me´xico, acostumbraba decir Dionisio, es que no
guardaba rencor por ese terrible despojo, aunque sı´ memoria. En
cambio,losgringosniseacordabandeesaguerra,nisab´ıanqueera
injusta. Dionisio los llamaba ‘Estados Unidos de Amnesia’. . . El
hecho es que si los gringos nos chingaronen 1848 con su ‘destino
manifesto’,ahoraMe´xicolesdar´iaunasopadesupropiochocolate,
reconquista´ndolosconmexicani´simasbateri´slingu¨i´sticas,racialesy
culinarias.
Dionisio maintained that he wasn’t anti-Yank . . . even though
everyone born in Mexico knew that the Gringosin the nineteenth
centuryhadstrippedMexicoofhalfitsnationalterritory–Califor-
nia, Utah, Nevada, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.
Mexico’snaturalgenorisity,Dionisiowasaccustomedtosay,meant
thatsheborenogrudges:however,thatdidn’tmeanshe’dforgotten.
TheGringos,though,didn’tevenrememberthey’dfoughtthewar,
let alone that it had been unjustified. For that reason, Dionisio
wouldcalltheircountry,the‘UnitedStatesofAmnesia’...Thefact
is that, if the Gringos fucked us up in 1848 with their ‘Manifest
Destiny’,nowMexico wouldgive thema taste of their own medi-
cine, reconquering the lost territories by the most Mexican of
methods – the Spanish language, racial identity, and the national
cuisine.
CarlosFuentes,Lafronteracristalina(Mexico1995)

CONTENTS
Listofillustrations pageix
Preface xii
1 Mexicoinperspective 1
Nationalismandterritory 3
LivingwiththeUSA 7
Theborder 10
Drugtrafficking 14
IndigenousMexico 18
2 Thepre-Columbianera 24
TheOlmecs 24
MonteAlba´nandtheZapotecculturesofOaxaca 28
TheMayas 32
Teotihuacan 36
Thenorth 40
Thetimeoftroubles,750–950 40
TheToltecs 41
ThePost-ClassicMaya 43
TheZapotecsandMixtecsofthePost-Classicera 45
CentralMexico 47
TheAztecs 48
3 TheEuropeanincursion,(1519–1620) 58
TheimpactofthefallofTenochtitla´n 59
TheimpositionofChristianity 64
viii Contents
Hispaniclandacquisition 76
4 NewSpain,1620–1770:SpanishcolonialismandAmerican
society 80
SpainandtheEmpire:merchants,financiers,and 81
markets
Indiancommunities 90
NewSpain’sBaroqueculture 92
ThecultoftheVirgin 102
Theexposednorthandfarnorth 105
Thepoliticalprocesses 108
5 Destabilisationandfragmentation,1770–1867 112
Partone:theclimaxandcollapseofNewSpain, 115
1770–1821
Parttwo:thefailuresandsuccessesofanewly 143
sovereignstate,1821–1867
6 Reconstruction,1867–1940 177
Partone:theLiberalrepublic:constitutionalism 180
orpersonalrule,1867–1911?
Parttwo:therevolutionarysystem:statepoweror 209
democratisation,1911–1940?
7 Themonopolyparty,1940–2000 249
Partone:the‘Mexicanmiracle’andpolitical 251
control,1940–1970
Parttwo:economiccrisesandpoliticaldivisions, 272
1970–2000
Finalcomments 306
Bibliography 310
Index 316