Treaty of Córdoba

Context

The Mexican War of Independence took place during a very turbulent time for the Spanish Empire. The colonies, increasingly unhappy with Spain, desired autonomy. At the same time, there was increasing social tension between the criollos, those of Spanish descent born in the New World, and the peninsulares, Spaniards from the mother country. The era saw the growth of criollismo, a movement promoting pride in American origin and empowering the criollo population. Peninsulares predominated in the highest offices of the government and Catholic Church in the colonies, including Mexico, even though criollos outnumbered them by a factor of ten or more. Compounding this social tension was the legal, organized discrimination against others under the sistema de castas (caste system), which differentiated between individuals by their calidad, or “quality.” Under this system, mestizos (people of mixed European and Indian heritage) and Indians were denied many of the rights enjoyed by both peninsulares and criollos.

Spain itself was entering a very troubled time. In 1808 France's Napoléon Bonaparte invaded Spain, deposed King Ferdinand VII, and installed his brother, Joseph Bonaparte, on the throne of Spain as Joseph I of Spain. This simultaneously diverted Spanish attention from the colonies and provided a rallying point for the fighters in the War of Mexican Independence and, indeed, for revolutionaries across the Americas. Many Spanish colonies broke away from the mother country when Napoleon deposed Ferdinand VII. The colonies cited Spanish law that declared that colonies belonged to the monarch, not to Spain. Therefore, the colonies would rule themselves while the “false king” was on the throne of Spain. By the time the Treaty of Valençay restored Ferdinand VII to the throne in December of 1813, the colonies had grown accustomed to governing themselves. The independence movements, including Mexico's, grew from this. For the next decade, Spain fought wars all over Latin America, trying to keep its crumbling empire together. Mexico was the first of Spain's American colonies to successfully break away.

The Mexican War of Independence began on September 16, 1810, with the “Grito de Dolores” (Cry of Dolores), a speech delivered by the criollo priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, who called upon his parishioners in the community of Dolores to revolt. Hidalgo had long worked to improve the welfare of his parishioners, trying to stimulate the local economy and provide employment through practices such as grape cultivation and beekeeping. Hidalgo's goals in the revolution included social and economic reform that would benefit both criollos and Indians. Soon after Hidalgo gave the “Grito de Dolores” speech, the Battle of Guanajuato, the first battle of the War of Independence, was fought.

The peasant army, only nominally under the direction of Hidalgo and his ally, Captain Ignacio Allende, proceeded to sack and loot the city, massacring both peninsulares and criollos. Although Hidalgo's army was largely successful for several months, within a year Hidalgo was captured, tried, and executed. After the death of Hidalgo, José María Morelos y Pavón arose as one of the leaders of the War of Independence. Like Hidalgo, Morelos was a priest who was dedicated to social reform. Under his leadership, the Congress of Chilpancingo was convened in 1813. In an initial document endorsed by Morelos, the Congress called for Mexican independence, the establishment of the Roman Catholic Church as the country's sole religion, division of government into executive, legislative, and judiciary branches, and the abolition of slavery and the ending of the sistema de castas. Morelos was captured and executed late in 1815.

From 1815 on, the war devolved into guerrilla activity led by Vicente Guerrero, Morelos's deputy, and Guadalupe Victoria, which continued until near the war's end in 1821. The guerrillas met with mixed success. In 1820 General Agustín de Iturbide was appointed to lead the royalist forces against the insurgents. The year 1820, however, also marked the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, in which liberals sought to press constitutional reforms and limitations on the Spanish monarch. Faced with the loss of prestige, many conservative criollos, including Iturbide, chose to change allegiances and support the independence movement.

Iturbide's defection to the insurgents was codified in a document known as the Plan of Iguala, or the Plan of the Three Guarantees. Iturbide and Guerrero, the architects of the plan, agreed to unite their forces. The three guarantees that the plan laid out were Mexican independence, establishment of Roman Catholicism as the state religion, and legal codification of social equality through the abolition of the sistema de castas. Iturbide and Guerrero further agreed that Mexico would become a constitutional monarchy. The plan, signed on February 24, 1821, was the basis for the Treaty of Córdoba.

Iturbide, now head of the newly christened Army of the Three Guarantees, quickly cemented the insurgents' victory on the battlefield, which led to the resignation of Spain's highest-ranking political representative in New Spain, Juan O’Donojú. Iturbide and O’Donojú signed the Treaty of Córdoba on August 24, 1821, formalizing Mexican independence and establishing a constitutional monarchy.

In accordance with the treaty, Ferdinand VII was called upon to become king of Mexico. When he refused, the throne was offered to other members of his family, each of whom also declined, refusing to recognize Mexican independence. The Spanish legislature also declined to recognize Mexican independence, declaring it illegal on February 13, 1822. Ultimately, Iturbide himself assumed the throne. After a short reign (1822–1823), Iturbide was overthrown by General Antonio López de Santa Anna and Guadalupe Victoria, who called for the establishment of a republic. Spain tried to retake Mexico several times, most significantly through an invasion from Cuba in June 1829. Mexican forces defeated the invaders, and Spain was compelled to recognize Mexican independence in 1830.