Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla was born at the Corralejo Hacienda in Pénjamo, Guanajuato, on May 8, 1753. He was sent to Valladolid (now Morelia) to study at the San Nicolás Obispo College, where he later taught theology, philosophy and ethics. He eventually became college Rector. In 1792, he was ordained as a priest and, after […]
Continue ReadingThe history of Mexico begins perhaps as much as 30,000 years ago. Sometime during the last ice age nomadic tribes of hunter-gatherers from Asia first crossed the Bering Strait and entered the Western Hemisphere. (There is is now an alternative theory that peoples also landed in the South Americas from both Africa and the Pacific […]
Continue ReadingI have never been an ‘ aficionado’ or ardent fan of bullfighting, but during the summer of ’57 I went to the bullfights regularly while spending the summer in Mexico City as a student. It left a lasting impression on me. Since then I have only attended one bullfight, in Tijuana. I am motivated to write […]
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What’s more, he wrote it without ever setting foot in Mexico! Most people know Jules Verne (1828-1905) as one of the pioneers of science fiction writing. His most famous works include Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (a submarine voyage with Captain Nemo as the enigmatic hero), A Journey to the Center of the Earth (in which Prof Lidenbrock […]
Continue ReadingIn the nineteenth century, prior to the advent of the railroads, overland travel was decidedly slow and arduous. To get to Lake Chapala, for example, from Guadalajara usually entailed either an overnight stop en route, or a full day’s travel, with a change of horses mid-way. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that relatively few people […]
Continue ReadingIt is time that women discover the Aztec Indian woman called Doña Marina by the Spaniards and La Malinche by her fellow Indians and demand recognition of her as a true heroine. She certainly had as great an impact on the history of the New World as any woman, yet has been belittled and defamed […]
Continue ReadingIn the Mesoamerican civilizations that preceded the Spanish Conquest, intellectuals usually derived from the priestly caste rather than from the ranks of warriors and statesmen. But there was one exception: a man with the tongue-twisting name of Nezahualcoyotl. (Approximate pronunciation: neza-howl-coyotl.) Luis Valdez, professor of Chicano studies at the University of California at Berkeley, describes […]
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Would you believe that Free Mason Benito Juárez was the one who decapitated the Catholic Church¹s control with his Reform Laws of 1859? Would you believe that Masonic Lodge Member and Free Mason Benito Juárez would become President of Mexico in 1861? Or that Mexico did not have another great president until almost a hundred […]
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History of Oaxaca – Part 3 – Modern Era Also, see: Part 1 Pre-Hispanic Era Part 2 Colonial Era Let us continue our overview of life in Oaxaca, past and present. In this final section, we will review the period from Independence in 1821 through 1999 and the incalculable changes which these few years have […]
Continue ReadingBIBLIOGRAPHY FOR: The Ancient Maya An Exploration of Trade & Commerce During the Mayan Period Source Article: The Ancient Maya – A Commercial Empire Andrews, Anthony P. 1983 Maya Salt Production and Trade. Tucson, Arizona: University of Arizona Press. Chase, Alfred F. 1992, “Elites and the Changing Organization of Classic Maya Society.” In Mesoamerican Elites. Diane and Arlen […]
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