Mexico, From Revolution to Revolution, Part 1

We've mapped modern Mexico and traveled back in time to old Mexico. Now, with Mexico still grabbing headlines, let's see how modern Mexico came to be--with a two-part timeline. (We'll start looking at the flu later in the week.)

What historians call the "Mexican Revolution" didn't start until 1910. But truth is, Mexico's history is full of revolts, rebellions, insurgencies, and coups. Here's how that history unfolded, from the nation's fight for freedom from Spain in the early 19th century to its revolt against a French-imposed Austrian emperor to its own controversial "Reform."

1808 – Napoleon invades Spain and inadvertently sparks a rebellion 6,000 miles away in Mexico City. With their colonial overlords preoccupied, Mexico's elites vie for control.

1810 – With the elites struggling, a parish priest, Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, launches a popular insurrection, calling for land redistribution, racial equality, and independence. Fearing a caste war--not to mention losing their special privileges--Mexican conservatives side with the crown. By 1815, royalists have gained the upper hand, but they can't crush the rebellion, now led by Vicente Guerrero.

1820 – Back in Spain, reformers force King Ferdinand VII to accept a liberal constitution. Back in Mexico, conservative leaders don't want liberal reforms.

1821 – A royalist commander, Agustín de Iturbide, cuts a deal with Guerrero and the rebels. Joining forces as the "Army of the Three Guarantees" (independence, union, and Catholicism), they compel the Spanish viceroy to sign the Treaty of Cordoba, creating an independent Mexican Empire. Iturbide becomes emperor in 1822, but conflict ensues.

1824 - Iturbide is arrested and shot. Mexico adopts a new constitution and officially becomes a republic. But that doesn't bring stability. For the next decade, revolt follows revolt as centralist and federalist factions fight for control.

1833 – A charismatic general, Antonio López de Santa Anna, becomes president. During his term, Santa Anna enacts a new constitution that reduces Mexican states' rights. That sparks trouble in several regions--including Texas, then a sparsely populated part of Mexico.

1836 – Texas declares independence. Santa Anna attacks, defeating a force at the Alamo before losing the Battle of San Jacinto. He's captured, and his troops retreat. Mexico refuses to recognize the new Republic of Texas but doesn't try to take it back. After his release and return to Mexico, Santa Anna is forced into retirement. He returns to power in 1839, and again in 1841, before being exiled to Cuba.

1845 – The United States annexes Texas.

1846 – A dispute over the Texas-Mexico border triggers war with the United States. Santa Anna returns to power yet again. But he can't block the U.S. invasion. U.S. forces take Mexico City in 1847, and Santa Anna goes back into exile.

1848 – The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo officially ends the war. Under the treaty's terms, the United States pays $15 million and receives northern Mexico--more than 525,000 square miles (1,360,000 sq km) of land, including all or part of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. Mexico's government is left in shambles.

1853 – Santa Anna returns from retirement again, this time to become dictator. He raises $10 million by selling what's now southern Arizona and southern New Mexico to the United States. U.S. historians call it the Gadsden Purchase.

1854 – Fed up with "His Most Serene Highness," liberal rebels drive Santa Anna from power yet again. They launch La Reforma ("the Reform"), an effort to rein in the military, separate church from state, seed economic development, and establish the rule of law.

1857 – The reformers enact a new constitution. Conservatives revolt, and the "War of the Reform" (1858-60) is on, with Spain supporting the conservatives and the United States supporting the reformers. The reformers prevail, and their leader, Benito Juárez, becomes president.

1861 – Hoping to repair a beleaguered and bankrupt nation, Juárez stops payment on foreign debts. Conservatives, who've been plotting a return to power with help from France's Napoleon III, see their chance. France, Spain, and Britain send an army to Mexico to force debt repayment. Spain and Britain quickly pull out, but not France.

1862 - The French march on Mexico City, but meet stiff resistance at the town of Puebla on May 5--the original "Cinco de Mayo"--and have to retreat.

1863 – French forces finally overwhelm the Mexicans. The following year a new emperor arrives, courtesy of Napoleon III. He is Maximilian, archduke of Austria, and before long he manages to annoy nearly everyone in Mexico.

1867 – The French decide that Mexico isn't worth the trouble and pull out. Maximilian tries to make a stand against a resurgent Juárez but winds up in front of a firing squad. Juárez is reelected president and charts a course for "Liberty, Order, and Progress."

1872 – Juárez dies in office and, surprisingly, peace ensues. His constitutional successor, Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada, takes office and largely continues the reform program.

--Steve Sampson