SHORT HISTORY OF MEXICO
HISTORY:
After independence from Spain in the early nineteenth century, there were many songs popular with the public that were an attempt to be a national anthem, but none succeeded. Finally, in 1853, President Santa Ana announced a nation-wide contest for the lyrics for a new national anthem. One of the entrants, an accomplished poet named Francicso González Bocanegra, was originally not interested in entering. However, his fiancée was confident in his skills and, under false pretenses, lured him into a room of her parent’s house and locked him inside, refusing to let him out until he wrote an entry for the contest. After four hours, using the pictures in the room of the epics of Mexican history as his inspiration, Bocanegra finally won his freedom by slipping a ten verse poem under the door. His fiancée and her father approved of the submission, and so did the judging committee, his entry won unanimously.
After the contest for the lyrics came the contest for the melody. This contest was won by Jaime Nunó Roca, a Spaniard from the small Catalan Pyrennes town of Sant Joan de les Abadesses, who was conductor of the National Band He titled his entry “Dios y Libertad” (God and Freedom). The combination of Nunó’s music with González’s lyrics was first presented to the nation at the Independence Day celebrations on September 16, 1854. Shortly after his work was adopted as the national anthem, Nunó Roca left Mexico to spend the rest of his life in Buffalo, New York, United States, and sold the anthem to a music house in that country. When he visited Mexico in 1901, he was given a state reception, a medal, and money. He passed away in 1908, but in 1942, shortly before the national anthem was officially adopted, his remains were flown to Mexico and given a state funeral in the Hall of Heroes, where Francicso González Bocanegra was also buried.
In 1943, the anthem was officially adopted, and at that time it was decreed that the first, fifth, sixth, and tenth verses would comprise the anthem. When a shorter version of the anthem is required, it is somtimes performed with the chorus, then the first verse, followed by the chorus, followed by the tenth verse, followed by the chorus; a shorter version still just has the chorus, first verse, and the chorus.
Anthem of Mexico in Spanish & English :
CHORUS
Mexicanos, al grito
de guerra
el acero aprestad y
el bridón
y retiemble en sus
centros la tierra
al sonoro rugir del
cañón.
Ciña ¡oh Patria! tus sienes de oliva
de la paz el
arcángel divino
que en el cielo tu
eterno destino
por el dedo de Dios
se escribió.
Mas si osare un
extraño enemigo
profanar con su
planta tu suelo
piensa ¡oh Patria
querida! que el cielo
un soldado en cada
hijo te dio.
Chorus
¡Guerra, guerra sin tregua al que intente
de la patria
manchar los blasones!
¡Guerra, guerra!
los patrios pendones
en las olas de
sangre empapad.
¡Guerra, guerra! en
el monte, en el valle
los cañones
horrísonos truenen,
y los ecos sonoros
resuenen
con las voces de
¡Unión! ¡Libertad!
Chorus
Antes, patria, que inermes tus hijos
bajo el yugo su
cuello dobleguen,
tus campiñas con
sangre se rieguen,
sobre sangre se
estampe su pie.
Y tus templos,
palacios y torres
se derrumben con
hórrido estruendo
y sus ruinas
existan diciendo:
de mil héroes la
patria aquí fue.
Chorus
¡Patria! ¡Patria! tus hijos te juran
exhalar en tus aras
su aliento
sí el clarín con su
bélico acento
los convoca a
lidiar con valor.
¡Para ti las
guirnaldas de oliva!
¡Un recuerdo para
ellos de gloria!
¡Un laurel para ti
de victoria!
¡Un sepulcro para
ellos de honor!
MEXICO ANTHEM IN ENGLISH
CHORUS
Intro:
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is
a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to
the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific
Ocean; to the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean
Sea; and to the east by the Gulf of Mexico. Mexico covers 1,972,550
square kilometers (761,610 sq mi), making it the world's 13th-largest
country by area; with approximately 126,014,024 inhabitants, it is
the 10th-most-populous country and has the most Spanish-speakers.
Mexico is organized as a federal republic comprising 31 states and Mexico
City, its capital. Other major urban areas include Monterrey, Guadalajara, Puebla, Toluca, Tijuana, Ciudad
Juarez, and León.
Human
presence in Pre-Columbian Mexico goes back to 8,000 BCE and
it went to become one of the world's six cradles of civilization. In
particular, the Mesoamerican region was home to many intertwined
civilizations; including the Olmec, Maya, Zapotec, Teotihuacan,
and Purepecha. Last were the Aztecs, who dominated the region in the
century before European contact. In 1521, the Spanish Empire and
its indigenous allies conquered the Aztec Empire from its
capital Tenochtitlan (now Mexico City), establishing the colony
of New Spain. Over the next three centuries, Spain and the Catholic
Church played an important role expanding the territory, enforcing
Christianity and spreading the Spanish language throughout. With the
discovery of rich deposits of silver in Zacatecas and Guanajuato,
New Spain soon became one of the most important mining centers worldwide.
Wealth coming from Asia and the New World contributed to Spain's
status as a major world power for the next centuries, and brought about a price
revolution in Western Europe. The colonial order came to an end in the
early nineteenth century with the War of Independence against Spain.
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Mexico's
early history as an independent nation state was marked by political
and socioeconomic upheaval, both domestically and in foreign affairs. The Federal
Republic of Central America shortly seceded the country. Then two
invasions by foreign powers took place: first, by the United States as
a consequence of the Texas Revolt by American settlers, which
led to the Mexican–American War and huge territorial losses in
1848. After the introduction of liberal reforms in the Constitution
of 1857, conservatives reacted with the war of Reform and prompted
France to invade the country and install an Empire, against the
Republican resistance led by liberal President Benito Juárez, which
emerged victorious. The last decades of the 19th century were dominated by the
dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz, who sought to modernize Mexico and restore
order. However, the Porfiriato era led to great social unrest and ended with the outbreak
in 1910 of the decade-long Mexican Revolution (civil war). This
conflict had profound changes in Mexican society, including the proclamation of
the 1917 Constitution, which remains in effect to this day. The remaining
war generals ruled as a succession of presidents until the Institutional
Revolutionary Party (PRI) emerged in 1929. The PRI in turn governed Mexico
for the next 70 years, first under a set of paternalistic developmental
policies of considerable economic success. During World War II Mexico
also played an important role for the Allied war effort. Nonetheless, the
PRI regime resorted to repression and electoral fraud to
maintain power; and moved the country to a more US-aligned neoliberal economic
policy during the late 20th century. This culminated with the signing of
the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994, which caused a
major indigenous rebellion in the state of Chiapas. PRI lost the
presidency for the first time in 2000, against the conservative party (PAN).
Mexico
has the world's 15th-largest economy by nominal GDP and the 11th-largest
by PPP, with the United States being its largest economic partner. As a newly
industrialized and developing country ranking 86th, high in
the Human Development Index, its large economy and population, cultural
influence, and steady democratization make Mexico a regional and middle
power which is also identified as an emerging power by several
analysts. Mexico ranks first in the Americas and seventh in the world for
the number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It is also one of the
world's 17 mega diverse countries, ranking fifth in natural biodiversity. Mexico's
rich cultural and biological heritage, as well as varied climate and geography,
makes it a major tourist destination: as of 2018, it was the sixth most-visited
country in the world, with 39 million international arrivals. However, the
country continues to struggle with social inequality, poverty and extensive
crime. It ranks poorly on the Global Peace Index, due in large part
to ongoing conflict between drug trafficking syndicates, which
violently compete for the US drug market and trade routes. This "drug war"
has led to over 120,000 deaths since 2006. Mexico is a member of United
Nations, the G20, the Organization (OECD), the World Trade
Organization (WTO), the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum,
the Organization of American States, Community of Latin American and
Caribbean States, and the Organization of Ibero-American States.
Indigenous civilizations
The prehistory of Mexico stretches back millennia. The earliest human artifacts in Mexico are chips of stone tools found near campfire remains in the Valley of Mexico and radiocarbon-dated to circa 10,000 years ago. Mexico is the site of the domestication of maize, tomato, and beans, which produced an agricultural surplus. This enabled the transition from paleo-Indian hunter-gatherers to sedentary agricultural villages beginning around 5000 BCE. In the subsequent formative eras, maize cultivation and cultural traits such as a mythological and religious complex, and a simvigial (base 20) numeric system, were diffused from the Mexican cultures to the rest of the Mesoamerican culture area. In this period, villages became more dense in terms of population, becoming socially stratified with an artisan class, and developing into chiefdoms. The most powerful rulers had religious and political power, organizing the construction of large ceremonial centers.
The earliest complex civilization in Mexico was the Olmec culture,
which flourished on the Gulf Coast from around 1500 BCE. Olmec cultural traits
diffused through Mexico into other formative-era cultures in Chiapas, Oaxaca
and the Valley of Mexico. The formative period saw the spread of distinct
religious and symbolic traditions, as well as artistic and architectural
complexes. The formative-era of Mesoamerica is considered one of the six
independent cradles of civilization. In the subsequent pre-classical
period, the Maya and Zapotec civilizations developed
complex centers at Calakmul and Monte Albán, respectively. During
this period the first true Mesoamerican writing systems were
developed in the Epi-Olmec and the Zapotec cultures. The Mesoamerican
writing tradition reached its height in the Classic Maya Hieroglyphic
script. The earliest written histories date from this era. The tradition of
writing was important after the Spanish conquest in 1521, with indigenous
scribes learning to write their languages in alphabetic letters, while also
continuing to create pictorial texts.
In Central Mexico, the height of the classic period saw the
ascendancy of Teotihuacán, which formed a military and commercial empire
whose political influence stretched south into the Maya area as well as north.
Teotihuacan, with a population of more than 150,000 people, had some of the
largest pyramidal structures in the pre-Columbian
Americas. After the collapse of Teotihuacán around 600 AD, competition
ensued between several important political centers in central Mexico such
as Xochicalco and Cholula. At this time, during the
Epi-Classic, Nahua peoples began moving south into Mesoamerica from
the North, and became politically and culturally dominant in central Mexico, as
they displaced speakers of Oto-Manguean languages. During the early
post-classic era (ca. 1000–1519 CE), Central Mexico was dominated by
the Toltec culture, Oaxaca by the Mixtec, and the
lowland Maya area had important centers at Chichen Itza and Mayapán.
Toward the end of the post-Classic period, the Mexica established dominance,
establishing a political and economic empire based in the city of Tenochtitlan
(modern Mexico City), extending from central Mexico to the border with
Guatemala. Alexander von Humboldt popularized the modern usage of
"Aztec" as a collective term applied to all the people linked by
trade, custom, religion, and language to the Mexica state and Ēxcān
Tlahtōlōyān, the Triple Alliance. In 1843, with the publication of
the work of William H. Prescott, it was adopted by most of the world, including
19th-century Mexican scholars who considered it a way to distinguish
present-day Mexicans from pre-conquest Mexicans. This usage has been the
subject of debate since the late 20th century.
The Aztec empire was an informal or hegemonic empire because it
did not exert supreme authority over the conquered territories; it was
satisfied with the payment of tributes from them. It was a discontinuous empire
because not all dominated territories were connected; for example, the southern
peripheral zones of were not in
direct contact with the center. The hegemonic nature of the Aztec empire was
demonstrated by their restoration of local rulers to their former position
after their city-state was conquered. The Aztec did not interfere in local
affairs, as long as the tributes were paid. The Aztec of Central Mexico
built a tributary empire covering most of central Mexico. The Aztec were noted
for practicing human sacrifice on a large
scale. Along with this practice, they avoided killing enemies on the
battlefield. Their warring casualty rate was far lower than that of their
Spanish counterparts, whose principal objective was immediate slaughter during
battle. This distinct Mesoamerican cultural tradition of human sacrifice
ended with the gradually Spanish conquest in the 16th century. Other Mexican
indigenous cultures were conquered and gradually subjected to Spanish colonial
rule.
Since the colonial era and through to the twenty-first century, the indigenous roots of Mexican history and culture are essential to Mexican identity. The National Museum of Anthrology in Mexico City is the showcase of the nation's prehispanic glories. Historian Enrique Florescano calls it "a national treasure and a symbol of identity. The museum is the synthesis of an ideological, scientific, and political feat." Mexican Nobel laureate Octavio Paz said of the museum that the "exaltation and glorification of Mexico-Tenochtitlan transforms the Museum of Anthropology into a temple." Mexico pursued international recognition of its prehispanic heritage, and has a large number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the largest in the hemisphere. The existence of high indigenous civilization prior to the arrival of Europeans has also had an impact on European thought.
Now the period from 2000 to 2023 in Mexico has been characterized by a series of significant political, social, and economic developments. Here are some of the key events and trends that have shaped Mexico in this time period:
Presidential Elections: In 2000, Mexico witnessed a historic presidential election, which marked the end of the 71-year rule of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) and the beginning of a new era of multiparty democracy. Vicente Fox, the candidate of the National Action Party (PAN), won the election and became the first opposition candidate to win the presidency in over 70 years.
War on Drugs: The war on drugs has been one of the most significant issues in Mexico during this period. President Felipe Calderon, who took office in 2006, declared war on the drug cartels and launched a massive military crackdown on organized crime. This led to a sharp increase in violence and a rise in the number of drug-related killings.
Economic Reforms: Mexico has undergone significant economic reforms in recent years, aimed at boosting economic growth and reducing poverty. These reforms have included the privatization of key industries, the liberalization of trade, and the implementation of new tax policies.
Corruption Scandals: Corruption has been a major issue in Mexico, and several high-profile corruption scandals have rocked the country in recent years. In 2014, for example, it was revealed that President Enrique Pena Nieto had purchased a luxury home from a government contractor, leading to widespread protests and calls for his resignation.
Natural Disasters: Mexico has also experienced several natural disasters during this period, including earthquakes, hurricanes, and floods. The most devastating of these was the earthquake that struck Mexico City in September 2017, which killed more than 300 people and caused widespread damage.
COVID-19 Pandemic: Like many other countries, Mexico has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with over 3 million confirmed cases and more than 250,000 deaths as of 2023. The pandemic has had a major impact on the Mexican economy, leading to a sharp contraction in GDP and a rise in unemployment.
Despite these challenges, Mexico has made significant progress in areas such as education, health care, and human rights in recent years. The country remains a key player in the region and an important partner for the United States and other countries around the world.
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