Treaty of Córdoba

About the Author

Agustín de Iturbide helped craft two of the documents that were foundational for the establishment of an independent Mexico: the Plan of Iguala and the Treaty of Córdoba. Iturbide was born into a high-status criollo family in Valladolid, New Spain (in the modern-day state of Michoacán, Mexico). He entered the army at an early age, and when the Mexican War of Independence broke out, he chose to fight for Spain, becoming one of the most important leaders of the royalist army. He fought against the insurgents with mixed success; ultimately, however, Iturbide was never able to defeat the insurgent leader Guerrero. This, coupled with the adoption in Spain of a liberal, republican constitution, led him to break with the royalist army and join with the insurgents.

When the new revolutionary government was unable to find a member of the Bourbon dynasty who was willing to take the crown of Mexico, Iturbide took the throne, becoming Emperor Agustín I. The nature of Iturbide's rise to power is hotly debated: some argue that he assumed the crown at the behest of his troops and the people of Mexico. Others contend that Iturbide's rise to power was nothing more than a coup and that public support for him was largely manufactured. Agustín I's reign was very short (1822–1823), and he was quickly overthrown in favor of a more liberal, republican form of government. Sent into exile in 1823, Iturbide tried to return in 1824, only to be arrested and executed.

Other authors of the treaty and its antecedent, the Plan of Iguala, include Vicente Guerrero and Juan O’Donojú. Guerrero was born in 1782 in Tixtla, a town in the Sierra Madre del Sur, a mountain range in southern Mexico. He joined the revolt against Spanish rule in 1810, rising through the ranks to become lieutenant colonel by 1812. Guerrero was one of the most effective commanders for the insurgents in the War of Mexican Independence and fought successfully against Iturbide before they joined forces to form the Army of the Three Guarantees. After the Treaty of Córdoba was signed, Guerrero initially supported Iturbide as Emperor Agustín I. Iturbide's support of the wealthy criollos, however, turned Guerrero against him. Guerrero allied with Antonio López de Santa Anna to overthrow Iturbide, and Mexico became a republic. Guerrero was elected Mexico's second president in 1829. Later that year he was deposed by his vice president, Anastasio Bustamante y Oseguera, who had him executed in 1831.

O’Donojú was born of Irish descent in Seville, Spain, in 1762, joining the army at an early age. In 1814 he was appointed minister of war and then became aide de camp to Ferdinand VII. He served as the last viceroy of Mexico from July to September 1821. Upon his arrival in Mexico in July, he found tremendous support among the population for Iturbide and the Army of the Three Guarantees. O’Donojú, realizing that he had little hope of holding the colony for Spain, called for a meeting with Iturbide. The resulting treaty was modeled closely on the Plan of Iguala. The only real change between the treaty and the plan was the provision that if none of the members of the royal family of Spain would take the Mexican crown, the Mexican congress would choose the ruler. Some historians argue that this provision resulted from a collaboration between Iturbide and O’Donojú and that the two intended for Iturbide to assume the crown from the very beginning. After the signing of the treaty, O’Donojú supervised the removal of Spanish troops from the country. He died of pleurisy in October of 1821.