HISTORY HOMEWORK

– “Porfirio Díaz”
Teacher: Celia Lazaro

Student: José Leonardo Sayán B. – IV°”B”

IB DIPLOMA - 2016
 Biography of Porfirio Diaz
José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori (1830-1915) was a Mexican general, President, politician and
dictator. He ruled Mexico with an iron fist for 35 years, from 1876 to 1911. His period of rule,
referred to as the Porfiriato, was marked by great progress and modernization and the Mexican
economy boomed. The benefits were felt by very few, however, as millions of peons labored in
virtual slavery. He lost power in 1910-1911 after rigging an election against Francisco I. Madero,
which brought about the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920).

Early Military Career:

Porfirio Díaz was born a mestizo, or of mixed Indian-European heritage, in the state of Oaxaca
in 1830. He was born into extreme poverty and never even reached complete literacy. He
dabbled in law, but in 1855 he joined a band of liberal guerrillas who were fighting a resurgent
Antonio López de Santa Anna. He soon found that the military was his true vocation and he
stayed in the army, fighting against the French and in the civil wars that wracked Mexico in the
mid-to-late nineteenth century. He found himself aligned with liberal politician and rising star
Benito Juárez, although they were never personally friendly.

The Battle of Puebla:

On May 5, 1862, Mexican forces under General Ignacio Zaragoza defeated a much larger and
better-equipped force of invading French outside the city of Puebla. This battle is
commemorated every year by Mexicans on “Cinco de Mayo.” One of the key players in the battle
was young general Porfirio Díaz, who led a cavalry unit. Although the Battle of Puebla only
delayed the inevitable French march into Mexico City, it did make Díaz famous and cemented
his reputation as one of the best military minds serving under Juarez.

Díaz and Juárez:

Díaz continued to fight for the liberal side during the brief rule of Maximilian of Austria (1864-
1867) and was instrumental in reinstating Juarez as President. Their relationship was still cool,
however, and Díaz ran against Juarez in 1871. When he lost, Díaz rebelled, and it took Juarez
four months to put the insurrection down. Amnestied in 1872 after Juarez died suddenly, Díaz
began plotting his return to power. With the support of the United States and the Catholic
Church, he brought an army into Mexico City in 1876, removing President Sebastián Lerdo de
Tejada and seizing power in a dubious “election.”

Don Porfirio in Power:

Don Porfirio would remain in power until 1911. He served as President the entire time except
for 1880-1884, when he ruled through his puppet Manuel González. After 1884, he dispensed
with the farce of ruling through someone else and re-elected himself several times, occasionally
needing his hand-picked Congress to amend the Constitution to allow him to do so. He stayed
in power through deft manipulation of the powerful elements of Mexican society, giving each
just enough of the pie to keep them happy. Only the poor were excluded entirely.
The Economy under Díaz:

Díaz created an economic boom by allowing foreign investment to develop Mexico's vast
resources. Money flowed in from the United States and Europe, and soon mines, plantations
and factories were built and humming with production. The Americans and British invested
heavily in mines and oil, the French had large textile factories and the Germans controlled the
drug and hardware industries. Many Spanish came to Mexico to work as merchants and on the
plantations, where they were despised by the poor laborers. The economy boomed and many
miles of railway track were laid to connect all of the important cities and ports.

The Beginning of the End:

Cracks began appearing in the Porfiriato in the first years of the 20th century. The economy went
into a recession and miners went on strike. Although no voices of dissent were tolerated in
Mexico, exiles living abroad, primarily in the southern United States, began organizing
newspapers, writing editorials against the powerful and crooked regime. Even many of Díaz'
supporters were growing uneasy, because he had picked no heir to his throne, and they worried
what would happen if he left or died suddenly.

Madero and the 1910 Election:

In 1910, Díaz announced that he would allow fair and free elections. Isolated from reality, he
believed that he would win any fair contest. Francisco I. Madero, a writer and spiritualist from a
wealthy family, decided to run against Díaz. Madero didn't really have any great, visionary ideas
for Mexico, he just naively felt that the time had come for Díaz to step aside, and he was as good
as anyone to take his place. Díaz had Madero arrested and stole the election when it became
apparent that Madero would win. Madero, freed, fled to the United States and declared himself
the winner and called for armed revolution.

The Revolution Breaks Out:

Many heeded Madero's call. In Morelos, Emiliano Zapata had been fighting the powerful
landowners for a year or so already and quickly backed Madero. In the north, bandit leaders-
turned-warlords Pancho Villa and Pascual Orozco took to the field with their powerful armies.
The Mexican army had decent officers, as Díaz had paid them well, but the foot soldiers were
underpaid, sickly and poorly trained. Villa and Orozco routed the federals on several occasions,
growing ever closer to Mexico City with Madero in tow. In May of 1911, Díaz knew that he had
been defeated and was allowed to go into exile.

Source:

McLynn, Frank. Villa and Zapata: A History of the Mexican Revolution. New York: Carroll and
Graf, 2000.
Illustration of Porfirio Díaz

The image contrasts with the “statue” poses

that almost always he took. Porfirio Diaz from
his distant medals disdained the common man.
Photo taked form: INAH (Instituto Nacional de
Antropología e Historia).

Source: RETINA MAGAZINE; Imaginario Político

Francisco I Madero y Porfirio Díaz. Mostrando
como una fuente fiable de información puede
ser afectada con el INAH [en línea]
<http://www.retinamagazine.com/rmfullscree
n/index.php?relnota=201> (Retrieved on
March 30th, 2016)