AYUTLA REVOLUTION: CAUSES, CONSEQUENCES AND CHARACTERS - HISTORY - 2024

The Ayutla revolution was a Mexican movement that aimed to overthrow the dictator Antonio López de Santa Anna, who maintained a dictatorial regime. This movement was the first step towards liberal reform in Mexico.

This revolution began in 1854 and ended in 1855. It had its center in the state of Guerrero, which is located in the south of the country.

However, shortly after the start of the rebellion, it spread to other states in Mexico: Michoacán, Morelos, Oaxaca, Zacatecas, San Luis Potosí and Nuevo León.

Thanks to the Ayutla revolution, the dictator resigned and fled the country. With this, the Liberals were able to come to power and introduce reforms that would improve the country's situation.

This movement was guided mainly by Juan Álvarez and Ignacio Comonfort. After these events, both reached the presidency of Mexico.

Figures of importance during the Ayutla revolution

The most important figures who participated directly or indirectly in the Ayutla revolution were Juan Álvarez and Ignacio Comonfort (leaders of the state of Guerrero), Benito Juárez, Melchor Ocampo, José María Mata and Ponciano Arriga (exiles).

All of these were in favor of the elimination of the dictatorship that was developing in Mexico.

On the other hand, the figures who sought to maintain the dictatorship were Antonio López de Santa Anna (dictator of Mexico at the time) and his followers (such as General Pérez Palacios).

Development of the revolution

In 1854, a rebellion known as the Ayutla Revolution broke out. This movement aimed not only to overthrow the dictator but also to change the country's politics through the armed conflict.

In March 1854, Santa Anna mobilized his troops to end Álvarez's resistance in Guerrero. In the first battle, Santa Anna's army was victorious, so it advanced towards Acapulco.

However, when the dictator arrived in Acapulco on April 19, he was informed that his lines of communication with Mexico City had been tapped by the liberal rebels. For this reason, he withdrew his forces.

A short time later, the rebellion spread to other states in Mexico: Michoacán, Oaxaca and Morelos. They were among the first to join the revolution and were joined by Zacatecas, Nuevo León and San Luis Potosí.

The rebellion continued until 1855, with victories on the part of both sides. However, on August 12 of this year, after Mexico City declared itself against the dictator, Santa Anna resigned and went into exile.

Álvarez and his army marched to the capital of Mexico where they were well received. Immediately afterwards, he assumed the presidency of the country.

Causes

The main cause of the Ayutla revolution was the discontent generated by the dictatorial regime of Antonio López de Santa Anna.

After the separation of Texas from the Mexican state, the López de Santa Anna administration was characterized by corruption and embezzlement of funds to obtain benefits destined for a few.

Such misappropriation of funds caused the nation's coffers, previously full of gold thanks to the intervention of the United States, to be emptied. In this way, the government went into a state of bankruptcy.

To solve this situation, López de Santa Anna adopted a series of policies that only increased the discontent of the citizens.

Dictatorial regime of Antonio López de Santa Anna

He proposed the collection of excise taxes according to the number of doors and windows a house had.

Likewise, it reintroduced the figure of the alcabalas, which collected taxes on sales. Added to this, it restored the other tax systems that had been eliminated by previous governments.

The Santa Anna government applied certain beneficial policies, such as laws to regulate vandalism and improvements to the country's highway system.

However, the more he got used to power, the more authoritarian and "pompous" he became. In fact, he issued a constitutional decree that stated that he should be called His Serene Highness.

López de Santa Anna saw a threat in the liberal party, so he was in charge of eliminating the opposition exponents of that party. Many of these were exiled, as happened with Benito Juárez and Melchor Ocampo.

However, one of the most decisive elements that made this regime less popular was the Sale of the Table.

On October 30, 1853, López signed a treaty with the United States ambassador to Mexico, James Gadsden.

This treaty included the sale of an area of ​​76,845 km ² of Mexican territory to the United States. In exchange, the Mexican government received $ 10 million.

All these elements were added, causing the opposition to the government to increase.

Ayutla Plan

The other cause of weight for the development of the revolution was the Ayutla Plan. In 1854, Guerrero was the only Mexican state that was not under the influence of the Santa Anna regime. Instead, Guerrero was ruled by General Juan Álvarez.

In order to gain control of the state of Guerrero, Santa Anna ordered General Pérez Palacio to take Acapulco. Álvarez in turn began organizing preparations for war.

Colonel Ignacio Comonfort, Álvarez's subordinate, urged him to develop a plan that provided for the release of a written statement. The purpose of this communiqué would be to win public opinion, an essential element for the development of a rebellion.

The statement had to be as vague as possible, to avoid the exclusion of certain groups. Thus, the majority of the people could identify with the cause and adhere to it.

Said communiqué was written in February 1854 by Colonel Florencio Villarreal and was proclaimed in Ayutla, Guerrero, on March 1, 1854.

The most important point of this plan was the preparation of a strategy to overthrow the dictator Santa Anna. Likewise, the creation of a constituent assembly to draft a federal constitution was envisaged.

Neither Juan Álvarez nor Ignacio Comonfort demonstrated their support for this plan publicly. They considered that the moderates would not have sympathized with the cause. However, they were secretly part of it.

Consequences

The most obvious consequence of the Ayutla revolution was that political power passed to the liberals. They developed a series of laws that were intended to reform the country's political system.

These laws include the Juárez law, the Lerdo law and the Iglesias law. All three were opposed to the Catholic Church and were oriented to eradicate the special considerations that were had for the members of this organization.

The Juarez law abolished special courts for members of the military and clergy.

The Lerdo law replaced communal ownership of land with individual ownership. The government prohibited the Church from having control over land that was not directly related to the institution's operations.

That is to say, the idle lands under the dominion of the Church were taken over by the government. These were later put up for sale at public auctions.

Finally, the Churches law sought to control the costs of administering the sacraments of the Catholic Church.

Constitution of 1857

Another consequence of the Ayutla revolution was the creation of a new constitution in 1857, which was based on that of 1824.

The difference between the two was the limitation of the presidential term to a four-year term and the creation of a unicameral and non-bicameral legislature.

This document included the three laws mentioned above. Likewise, other provisions of a liberal nature were added, such as freedom of thought, freedom of the press, the right to appeal in court, the right of the defendant to have access to evidence so that he can prove his innocence, among others..

The 1857 constitution also reaffirmed the abolition of slavery, a practice that had been illegal since 1829.

Freedom of worship was not part of this document. However, neither was it declared that Catholicism was the official state religion.

The anticlerical elements of the 1857 constitution generated discontent among conservatives as well as members of the Catholic Church, who rejected the reforms implemented by the liberals.

Some members of the Church released statements that sought to annul this constitution. Others declared that they were going to excommunicate those who bought Church properties at public auctions.

For this reason, the Mexican Catholics were faced with a dilemma: swear allegiance to the constitution or swear allegiance to the Church?

If they supported the constitution, the Church would consider them heretical. If they supported the Church, the State would consider them traitors. This opposition gave rise to a civil war in Mexico, known as the War of the Reform or the Three Years' War (1858-1869).

References

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