PACT OF THE EMBASSY: ANTECEDENTS, CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES - HISTORY - 2025

The Embassy Pact is an agreement signed by Félix Díaz and Victoriano Huerta in which the Mexican president, Francisco I. Madero, is not recognized, and a provisional cabinet is formed. It is also known as the Pact of La Ciudadela and the signing was carried out on February 18, 1913, at the facilities of the United States embassy in Mexico.

This event closed the brief mandate of Francisco I. Madero, one of the first political periods of Mexican democracy, which was lived in turbulence with more than five revolts.

Mexican General Victoriano Huerta (left), American General Edgar Zell Steever II (center) and Mexican General Joaquín Téllez (right). Source: Bain News Service, publisher.

Background

Francisco Ignacio Madero was a believer in the national democratic movement. After a failed attempt to become governor in Coahuila, he promoted reflections and activities in favor of suffrage and in rejection of reelection.

The success of his book The Presidential Succession in 1910 and the founding of the Anti-Reelection Party, prepared the ground that would lead him to be leader against the dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz.

On the eve of an electoral farce in 1910 he was arrested for rebellion. Soon after, he was released on bail and managed to escape to San Antonio, Texas. There he wrote the Plan of San Luis Potosí, in which he proposed political, economic and some social reforms.

His intention was to establish democracy and favor Mexican companies over foreign ones. The plan also condemned the Porfirian tyranny and called for arms.

After the capture and resignation of Díaz in Ciudad de Juárez, an interim government was established under the leadership of Francisco León de la Barra. Months later, in October 1911, elections were held and Madero obtained an overwhelming result.

The acclaimed "Apostle of Democracy" assumed the presidency in December 1911, after more than 30 years of Diaz's continuous mandate.

Causes

The triumph of Francisco I. Madero momentarily dissipated the tension and discontent that had begun with the dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz and they remained calm during the transitional government.

However, during his 15 months in power, Madero had to face the division of the revolutionary movement and the disappointment of the agrarian leaders. On the one hand, the revolutionaries expected more radical social reforms. On the other, the conservative forces were dormant, waiting for their chance to return.

Insurrections

The first uprising occurred on the side of the insurgents. Emiliano Zapata himself, who was one of Madero's key allies in his coming to power, considered him a traitor for not having fulfilled his promise to return communal lands to the peasantry.

The Zapatistas proposed that Plan Ayala be implemented as the axis of revolutionary politics and ideology. In essence, this plan involved establishing a profound agrarian reform and the distribution of land to the peasantry.

In parallel, the Madero government had to put down various insurrections and counterrevolutionary pronouncements. One of the most prominent was that of Bernardo Reyes and Félix Díaz, nephew of the dictator Porfirio Díaz.

In addition to internal instability, there is an unharmonious relationship with the United States government, specifically with that country's ambassador to Mexico, Henry Lane Wilson. The diplomat and Madero had strong differences on economic issues, which had damaged their image in the northern country.

The Tragic Ten

In containing the rebellions on both sides, one of the military leaders, General Victoriano Huerta, was acquiring a leading role in the political stability of that time.

Huerta came to enjoy the full confidence of President Madero, who did not realize in time that his loyalty would not be permanent. In secret, Huerta had changed his position by allying himself with the rebels Bernardo Reyes and Félix Díaz.

On February 9, 1913, another uprising was registered in the Citadel of Mexico, an area that until the middle of the 20th century functioned as a weapons depot, prison and barracks.

The insurgents commanded by General Manuel Mondragón, sought the release of Reyes and Díaz who were imprisoned in the place. With the assault on other government agencies, the executive decreed a state of exception until internal order was restored.

General Huerta was part of the uprising and was charged with pretending that he had besieged the building. The contest lasted 10 days, which is why this event is known as the Tragic Ten.

In this combat the brother of President Gustavo Adolfo Madero, the Captain of the Frigate Adolfo Bassó Bertoliat and the journalist Manuel Oviedo were assassinated.

Proposals

Once President Madero was arrested, the insurgents held a meeting at the United States Embassy in Mexico. In the presence of the ambassador of the moment Henry Lane Wilson, they drew up and signed the so-called Embassy Pact.

The document, by some known as the Pact of the Citadel, established the following agreements:

- The executive branch was unknown and a commitment was made to avoid any attempt to restore the power of Madero or his possible allies.

- A provisional presidency was established in the following 72 hours, with a cabinet made up of 7 ministries: Relations, Finance, Development, Government, Justice, Public Instruction, Communications. In addition, a new portfolio would be formed dedicated to solving the agrarian problem.

- Generals Huerta and Díaz would be in charge of all responsibilities, until new elections were called. However, Díaz would not be part of the provisional cabinet due to his intention to participate in the following electoral elections.

- Official notification would be made to all foreign representations of the termination of Madero's power and his arrest. Likewise, it would be informed about the authority of Díaz and Huerta in this transition period, as well as the guarantee of security for the citizens of their respective countries.

- Revolutionaries were invited to put an end to hostilities.

Consequences

In February 1913, General Huerta assumed the provisional presidency of Mexico after the overthrow of Madero. The "Apostle of Democracy" was arrested and killed while being transferred to prison.

This event was not welcomed by the internal or foreign forces and the delegations of other countries did not recognize the new government. The US ambassador, who tried unsuccessfully to support his country, was removed from his diplomatic status shortly after.

Meanwhile, Huerta concentrated on reducing any attempts at opposition within his term. He replaced all legitimate governors with loyal military personnel. The ministers who represented Díaz in the provisional cabinet were dismissed.

The elections agreed in the Embassy Pact for the positions of president and vice president were postponed indefinitely. Mexico was once again falling under the shadow of a dictatorship.

Huerta's fall

The government repression of this period caused disparate forces to join. On the one hand the Constitutionalist Army, led by Venustiano Carranza. On the other, the revolutionaries, led by Pancho Villa and Emiliano Zapata.

To deal with the danger of rebellion, Huerta reorganized the federal army, but maintaining and supplying the troops was extremely costly. The high military spending was joined by the decrease in income in the Mexican nation, which is why the country began to borrow internationally.

By July 1914, the Huerta government gave in to pressure from its opponents. The insurgents received support from the newly elected president of the United States, Woodrow Wilson, who sent a group of marines to take Veracruz.

Huerta resigns and escapes from Mexico. First it goes to Jamaica, then to Great Britain and finally its destination was Spain. A year after his exile, in the midst of World War I, Huerta was arrested in the United States for violating neutrality laws.

Main characters

Francisco I. Madero

Businessman, politician, defender of democracy and Mexican revolutionary, who successfully overthrew the dictator Porfirio Díaz. He was the first president of Mexico, after more than 30 years of the Porfirian dictatorship, in the period from November 1911 to February 1913.

During his presidency he resisted several revolts, both by conservatives and revolutionaries. He was arrested and killed during the uprising led by Félix Díaz y Reyes.

Victoriano Huerta

Military and Mexican dictator from February 1913 to July 1914. He is remembered for containing the frequent revolts against the Madero government, whom he betrayed by making an agreement with conservative opponents.

He was one of the signatories to the Embassy Pact, in which the Madero government is not recognized and a provisional cabinet is established. He is held responsible for assassinating the ousted president, when he was transferred to prison.

Felix Diaz

Mexican military and nephew of the dictator Porfirio Díaz. He was a staunch opponent of Madero, who arrested him after an attempted coup. He is released by allied officers and participated in the capture of the Citadel and the Tragic Ten.

Participated in the drafting and signing of the Embassy Pact. He intended to run for the presidency, but the Huerta government never called the agreed elections.

References

1. Encyclopædia Britannica & Augustyn, A. (nd). Mexican Revolution. Recovered from britannica.com
2. Silva, J. (2005) Brief history of the Mexican Revolution, II: The constitutionalist stage and the struggle of factions. Mexico: Economic Culture Fund
3. Garciadiego, J. (2005) The Mexican Revolution: chronicles, documents, plans and testimonies. Mexico: Autonomous University of Mexico.
4. Library of Congress (nd). The fall of the Porfiriato and the rise of Francisco Madero. Recovered from loc.gov
5. Delgado de Cantú, G. (2003) History of Mexico. Mexico: Pearson Educación de México, SA