TREATY OF MON-ALMONTE: CHARACTERISTICS, CONSEQUENCES - HISTORY - 2025

The Treaty of Mon-Almonte was an agreement reached by the Mexican conservative politician Juan Almonte, with the representative of the Queen of Spain, Alejandro Mon, in 1859. The conservatives requested the support of the Spanish Crown through a monetary loan, so that these could be victorious in the War of Reform.

The Reform War was an armed conflict that took place between liberals and conservatives in Mexico. The civil war that was unleashed as a result of this conflict had as main protagonists the leaders of both parties: some in favor of the reforms proposed by Juárez and others against them.

Juan Nepomuceno Almonte

Juárez, a staunch liberal, decreed the sale of Church lands not used for religious purposes and passed another law that removed all special privileges from the Church and the military. This, along with the creation of a federal Constitution, instigated war and the need for the Treaty of Mon-Almonte on the part of conservatives.

characteristics

Clauses

The Treaty of Mon-Almonte had a series of clauses that benefited Spain, in exchange for a monetary loan so that the Conservative government could subsidize war expenses.

After signing the agreement, Mexico and Spain had to reestablish relations after the murder of several Europeans in Mexican territory.

In addition, the Mexican government should be responsible for prosecuting the murderers and compensating the families of the Spaniards killed in Mexican territory.

This was to happen after the end of the war in case the Conservatives triumphed, but after their defeat, the agreement lost effect.

Character of urgency

Conservatives were forced to go to foreign countries to support their cause during the War of the Reform.

Although the conservatives had taken the capital and controlled a part of the country, the liberal government of Benito Juárez was well established in Veracruz.

During the first stage of the war, the Conservatives were victorious in many battles quite easily. This was due to the lack of experience the Liberals had in combat.

However, after the Conservatives twice failed to seize the Liberal command center in Veracruz, the balance of the war began to shift.

The war had started in 1857, and the conservatives were led by the military Félix Zuloaga. However, the government of the United States gave its official recognition to Benito Juárez as constitutional president of Mexico.

The Conservatives had no choice but to go to Spain to ask for a loan, since the war had drained their treasury almost entirely.

Prominent figures

Alexander Mon

Mon was a Spanish politician who held a large number of positions during the course of the 20th century. His first important post in the world of politics was obtained after being appointed Minister of Finance in 1837. Even when he did not belong to any political cabinet, he was always active in that environment.

On the other hand, being part of the Moderate Party throughout his career, he was reappointed Minister of Finance after the moderates obtained power in 1844.

When he held this position for the second time, he was responsible for establishing a reform law in the Spanish tax system that laid the foundations for the country's current system.

His contributions to Spain were so significant that, after the fall of the moderates, the unionist prime minister also offered him various political positions; however, Mon rejected them.

In 1959 he was the representative of Queen Elizabeth II of Spain and, as such, he was sent to Paris to negotiate an agreement with the Conservatives.

It was in France that he and Juan Nepomuceno Almonte signed the agreement that became known as the Treaty of Mon-Almonte.

Juan Nepomuceno Almonte

Juan Almonte was a highly relevant Mexican military and diplomat, who acted in politics in the 19th century.

Almonte also participated in the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution and was one of the military personnel who openly supported the establishment of the Second Mexican Empire after the end of the War of the Reform.

Almonte belonged to the Santa Anna government before it was overthrown by the Liberals in 1855. He held a number of important positions in Mexican politics, but his military contributions were just as significant as the political ones.

In addition, he became one of the important members of the Zuloaga government during the War of the Reform.

He was in charge of signing the treaty with Alejandro Mon. The failure of the conservatives to seize the presidency of Mexico after the war made a foreign intervention in the country look favorably.

During the establishment of the Second Mexican Empire at the hands of Maximilian I, Almonte also played an important role as the emperor's marshal.

He spent his last days in exile in Europe after the Mon-Almonte Treaty came to nothing and the Conservatives lost strength within Mexico.

Consequences

Debt

Several of the aspects of the treaty never became official, since these depended on the conservative victory in the War of the Reform. It was assumed that, once the conflict ended, the Conservatives would progressively pay off the loan to Spain.

After the defeat of the conservatives, the government of Benito Juárez inherited the debt of the conservatives. At that time, Mexico's foreign debt was already quite high; This made it more difficult for him to pay what he owed.

Juárez then made the decision to suspend payments on the foreign debt, which led to a European intervention in Mexico that evolved into the establishment of the Second Mexican Empire.

McLane-Ocampo Treaty

The McLane-Ocampo Treaty was signed between the Liberals and the United States government. Although the signing of this agreement was not a direct consequence of the Treaty of Mon-Almonte, it served as a way to reinforce the liberal resistance during the War of the Reform.

This agreement is considered a counterpart to that signed by Almonte. Unlike its counterpart, it did not go into effect because it was not approved by the United States Congress; however, the Liberals did receive support from the neighboring country.

References

1. La Reforma - Mexican History, Encyclopaedia Britannica, (nd). Taken from britannica.com
2. Laws and War of the Reform, G. Pérez, (nd). Taken from sites.google.com
3. The conservative government signs in Paris the treaty with Spain Mon-Almonte, D. Carmona for Political Memory of Mexico, Original publication in 1859. Taken from memoriapoliticademexico.org
4. Mon and Méndez, Alejandro; MCN Biographies, (nd). Taken from mcnbiografias.com
5. The War of Reform, Secretariat of National Defense, 2015. Taken from gob.mx
6. Juan Almonte, US Mexican War in PBS, (nd). Taken from pbs.org
7. Mon-Almonte Treaty, Wikipedia in English, 2018. Taken from wikipedia.org