Cinco de Mayo

For most of us today is just another Monday, or at most an excuse to go out for Mexican food tonight or make a margarita at home. For Mexican-Americans and Mexicans residing in the US, today is a celebration of Mexican heritage. But what is Cinco de Mayo? The holiday commemorates the highly unlikely victory of a Mexican army over invading French forces on May 5, 1862, near the city of Puebla, Mexico. Here's the background: after the U.S. invasion of 1846-48 and two civil wars, the Mexican government was destitute. President Benito Juarez declared a two-year moratorium on foreign debt payments.  France responded by invading: Napoleon III thought he could take advantage of the situation to establish a puppet state in Latin America that would further French interests. Unfortunately for Napoleon, most Mexicans weren't down with this plan. As the French marched inland, they encountered heavy, but unsuccessful resistance. However, outside the city of Puebla a poorly-equipped Mexican army roughly half the size of the French forces defeated the invaders, forcing them to retreat back toward the coast. The Mexican commander, Ignacio Zaragoza Seguin, sent a one-line note to President Juarez: "Las armas nacionales se han cubierta de gloria" ("The national arms are covered in glory.") The victory was an incredible gift to Mexican morale: the French army was considered the best in the world, and they had been beaten by a Mexican force half their size. The French did successfully regroup, march inland, take Mexico City and establish a puppet government. However, their success was brief. The French-sponsored collapsed in 1867. and President Juarez's government re-convened in Mexico City. If you have any interest at all in Mexican history, come over to the library and browse the shelves where the books have call numbers beginning with 972. Among some of the most interesting reads in that section are Enrique Krauze's Mexico: Biography of Power, a fascinating history of Mexico from 1810 to the present. I also love The Mexico City Reader, which is a kaleidoscopic overview of the cultural, social and historic life of one of the world's greatest megacities. And I think it's obligatory for Americans to read A Glorious Defeat: Mexico and its War with the United States. Happy reading. And perhaps have a margarita while you're at it.