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The Political Constitution of the Mexican Republic of 1857 ( Spanish : Constitución Política de la República Mexicana de 1857 ), often called simply the Constitution of 1857 , was the liberal constitution promulgated in 1857 by Constituent Congress of Mexico during the presidency of Ignacio Comonfort . Ratified on February 5, 1857, the constitution established individual rights , including universal male suffrage , and others such as freedom of speech , freedom of conscience , freedom of the press , freedom of assembly , and the right to bear arms . It also reaffirmed the abolition of slavery , debtors' prisons , and all forms of cruel and unusual punishment such as the death penalty . The constitution was designed to guarantee a limited central government by federalism and created a strong national congress, an independent judiciary , and a small executive to prevent a dictatorship . Liberal ideals meant the constitution emphasized private property of individuals and sought to abolish common ownership by corporate entities, mainly the Catholic Church and indigenous communities , incorporating the legal thrust of the Lerdo Law into the constitution.

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90-494: Juárez refers to a number of places and things, most of which are named after Benito Juárez , former President of Mexico. Juárez or Juarez may refer to: Benito Ju%C3%A1rez Benito Pablo Juárez García ( Spanish: [beˈnito ˈpaβlo ˈxwaɾes ɣaɾˈsi.a] ; 21 March 1806 – 18 July 1872) was a Mexican politician, military commander, and lawyer who served as the 26th president of Mexico from 1858 until his death in office in 1872. Of Zapotec ancestry, he

180-610: A Habsburg , to establish a Mexican monarchy with the Church's support. The republican government-in-domestic-exile was headed by President Benito Juárez as the legitimate Mexican government under the constitution. With the ouster of the French and the defeat of the conservatives in 1867, the Restored Republic was again governed under the 1857 Constitution. The constitution was durable but its provisions not always followed in practice. It

270-491: A territory , and the federal district . It supported the autonomy of municipalities in which each state was divided politically. These were most relevant articles: Despite problems in Texas, some deputies unsuccessfully proposed a law granting certain rights to foreign colonization by arguing that the country needed to be settled. In 1841, Mexican justice Manuel Crescencio Rejón ( Spanish : Manuel Crescencio García Rejón )

360-503: A writ of Amparo . Amparo is the Spanish word for "protection" (literally also "favor", "aid", "defence", "shelter" or "help" ). The generic legal concept of " amparo " is the annunciation of individual guarantees, and the judicial proceedings to protect those rights. Section 101 of the 1857 constitution established that the amparo will lie only against violations of individual rights. The conscious division of Amparo into two sections in

450-611: A Conservative coup overthrew Arista, and brought back Santa Anna for what would end up being his final dictatorship. Juárez fell victim to the restored Santa Anna, and the authorities confined him to the fortress of San Juan de Ullua. He was eventually released and exiled to Havana, from which he then traveled to New Orleans . There he found a day job as a cigar maker in one of the city's factories, while his wife remained in Mexico with their children, and were looked after by Liberal partisans. His time as governor of Oaxaca had not left him with

540-516: A Liberal body of troops under Miguel Cruz de Aedo arrived in order to negotiate. Landa was allowed to leave Guadalajara, and the Liberal prisoners were released as well. Juárez and his cabinet now made their way to the port of Manzanillo from which they embarked for the Liberal stronghold of Veracruz by way of Panama. On 4 May 1858, Juárez arrived in Veracruz where the government of Manuel Gutiérrez Zamora

630-601: A cook. In 1818, while the Mexican War of Independence was ongoing, a twelve year old Juárez entered domestic service under the lay Franciscan and bookbinder Antonio Salanueva. The young boy showed potential at primary school, upon which Salanueva sought to sponsor Juárez to enter a seminary to study for the priesthood. Juárez entered the seminary in Spring of 1821, only a few months before Mexico won its independence in September of

720-436: A decree on 6 November 1860, fixing the date of presidential and congressional elections for the following January, with the newly elected congress scheduled to meet on 19 February. After Guadalajara was captured on 20 December 1860, the Liberal armies had an unrestricted path back towards Mexico City. Liberal troops entered the capital on Christmas Day 1860 without encountering any military Conservative resistance. Juárez won

810-407: A little more than a decade later, the number of cases had risen to 2,108, and in a three-month period from June 1901 to August 1901 there were 957 amparo suits heard and decided. In 1897, the first Federal Code of Civil Procedure was enacted, which included an Amparo suit, thus effectively repealing the 1882 law, followed by a similar Federal Code of Civil Procedure provision in 1908, which reflected

900-524: A new constitution embodying liberalism. The following year, the incumbent president , Ignacio Comonfort , endorsed the call to move the headquarters to Mexico City . The Congress was divided between two main factions. Most members were moderate liberals and planned to restore the Constitution of 1824 with some changes. Some of the prominent figures were Mariano Arizcorreta, Marcelino Castañeda, Joaquín Cardoso, and Pedro Escudero y Echánove. Their opponents

990-534: A period of unprecedented constitutional change for Mexico, and Juárez was to be a key figure throughout this era. Prior to La Reforma , and dating back to the legal system of New Spain , neither clerics nor soldiers were under the jurisdiction of the civil judiciary, and could only be tried for all offenses under their own respective, independent court systems. It was the aim of the Liberal Party to abolish all such sovereign court systems and bring all offenses under

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1080-537: A poor rural Indigenous family and orphaned as a child, Juárez passed into the care of his uncle, eventually moving to Oaxaca City at the age of 12, where he found work as a domestic servant. Sponsored by his employer, who was also a lay Franciscan , Juárez temporarily enrolled in a seminary and studied to become a priest, but he later switched his studies to law at the Institute of Sciences and Arts , where he became active in liberal politics . He began to practice law and

1170-446: A priest, whom they accused of abuses. He did not win the case, and was thrown into jail along with community members, "thanks to the collusion between Church and the state," writing later that it "strengthened in me the goal of working constantly to destroy the pernicious power of the privileged classes." Juárez gained the goal of fighting for equality before the law in the face of the lingering legal privileges that remained in Mexico from

1260-420: A serious burden for society; everyone who can be bound by any obligation that implies either a contract, or a promise, or religious vows is prohibited; the free exercise of all cults is admitted, and everyone is granted the full power to manifest publicly and openly all kinds of opinions and thoughts." In March 1857, Archbishop José Lázaro de la Garza y Ballesteros stated that Catholics could not swear allegiance to

1350-585: A vast fortune, and he survived off of his cigar rolling job and funds sent to him from Mexico by his wife. Juárez met other Liberal exiles in New Orleans including the anti-clerical former governor of Michoacan Melchor Ocampo , and the Cuban separatist exile, Pedro Santacicilia , who later married Juárez's oldest daughter, and served as a valuable ally during the Reform War and the second French intervention As

1440-428: Is no comparable mechanism in the common law. During the promulgation of the constitution, the nation was composed of 23 states and one federal territory. Nuevo León merged with Coahuila with the latter name being adopted. The creation of a new state and the admission of three of the four territories as free states of the federation also occurred. The only federal territory was Baja California . Also, Mexico City

1530-530: Is that Reform liberals, including Benito Juárez and Ignacio Comonfort saw the flaws of the 1857 constitution, which undercut the power of the executive. With the triumph of the Constitutionalists on the battlefield, there was a reassessment of the constitutional framework. Venustiano Carranza initially opposed calls for drafting an entirely new constitution in 1916, but advisers convinced him that doing that would be far easier than doing piecemeal amendments to

1620-576: The Ley Lerdo , which with the aim of selling them off to stimulate economic development, had nationalized most of the Catholic Church's properties, along with the communal properties of Mexico's Indigenous communities. The new constitution which would come to be known as the Constitution of 1857 , was promulgated on 5 February 1857, with the aim of coming into effect on Mexican Independence Day, 16 September of that year. It had abandoned Roman Catholicism as

1710-461: The Centralist Republic of Mexico in which the states of the nation were replaced by departments directly administered by Mexico City. For this, Juárez was briefly imprisoned, but he was shortly released. Juárez then returned to private practice. After practicing law for several years. In 1842 Liberal governor of Oaxaca Antonio León , appointed Juárez to serve as a Civil and Revenue Judge for

1800-606: The Juárez Law as part of the broader program of constitutional reforms known as La Reforma (The Reform). Later, as the head of the Supreme Court, he succeeded to the presidency upon the resignation of the Liberal president Ignacio Comonfort in the early weeks of the Reform War between the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party , and led the Liberal Party to victory after three years of warfare. Almost immediately after

1890-489: The Reform War . States of Jalisco , Guanajuato , Querétaro , Michoacán , Nuevo León , Coahuila , Tamaulipas , Colima and Veracruz supported the liberal government of Benito Juárez and the Constitution of 1857. States of México , Puebla , San Luis Potosí , Chihuahua , Durango , Tabasco , Tlaxcala , Chiapas , Sonora , Sinaloa , Oaxaca and Yucatán supported the conservative government of Zuloaga. After

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1980-717: The Seven Laws ("Siete Leyes"). Borrowing the Yucatán's Constitution, Otero promoted an Amparo procedure, known as the Fórmula Otero , on the national level as part of the Act of Reforms (" Spanish : Acta de Reformas ") (Article 25 ), which was almost universally approved. The "Otero Formula", a provision of the Act of Reforms which persists today, provided that the protection granted by an amparo judgment should contain no general declarations about

2070-527: The Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation , Benito Juárez , and the president of Congress , Isidoro Olvera, were taken prisoner. On December 19, Mexican President Ignacio Comonfort adhered to the plan: "I just change my legal title of president, by those of revolutionary miserable." The states of México , Puebla , San Luis Potosí , Tlaxcala and Veracruz agreed the plan. Veracruz changed from supporting

2160-475: The pure liberals , who wanted to make a completely-new constitution. Among them were Ponciano Arriaga , Guillermo Prieto , Francisco Zarco , José María Mata , and Santos Degollado . The discussions were heated and lasted over a year. President Comonfort interfered through its ministers for the moderate faction, which he preferred. Despite opposition from the executive branch and the minority, pure liberals ensured that their proposals successfully included:

2250-580: The 1857 Mexican Constitution, as opposed to the United States Constitution, meant that, although it protects against violation of constitutional privileges, it may not issue an order to maintain respect for treaties and laws. The 1857 Constitution provided that a special law relating to the procedure and regulation of an amparo suit should be enacted subsequently. This law of Amparo was divided into four sections: 1) violations of individual rights; 2) violations of state sovereignty; 3) violations of

2340-480: The 19th century. Benito Juárez was born on 21 March 1806, in the village of San Pablo Guelatao , Oaxaca , located in the mountain range since named for him, the Sierra Juárez . It was a small settlement of about two hundred inhabitants, made up of straw huts, and a small church, the village being located at the edge of a mountain pond known for its picturesque transparent waters, and called La Laguna Encantada ,

2430-602: The British government aimed to respect Mexican sovereignty and maintain cordial relations between both countries. On 27 May, Wyke met with the Mexican Minister of Foreign Affairs Zarco, with the latter attempting to convince Wyke of the impossibility for Mexico to meet its current foreign debts. On 3 June, President Juárez issued a decree, under the authority of congress postponing all payments to foreign creditors for one year. Events were now set in motion which would culminate in

2520-679: The Constitution on pain of excommunication . Justice Minister Ezequiel Montes met in the Holy See with the Cardinal Secretary of State. The Pope accepted the Juárez Law and the disposals of the Lerdo Law but demanded the ability to acquire political rights. The negotiations were interrupted by the resignation of President Comonfort. In Mexico, the Congress presided over by Valentín Gómez Farías and

2610-645: The Constitution was suspended. In 1867 the liberal, republican forces succeeded in ousting the monarchy, and restored the Republic and bringing the constitution into effect. The winning faction of the Mexican Revolution , the Constitutionalists fought in the name of the Constitution of 1857, with the explicit understanding that they fought for constitutional order. During the Porfiriato, Díaz had strengthened

2700-641: The Liberal Plan of Ayutla broke out against Santa Anna in March, 1855, Juárez sought to return to Mexico. He arrived at the port of Acapulco near the Southern center of the revolt in the summer of 1855. Santa Anna fled the nation and a subsequent Liberal assembly elected Juan Alvarez as the new president. Juárez, who had been secretary to the assembly was made Minister of Justice and Religion. The Plan of Ayutla had inaugurated what would come to be known as La Reforma ,

2790-621: The Liberal armies were making advances upon Mexico City. General Degollado occupied the suburbs of Mexico City throughout February and March, 1859, only to be repulsed by the efforts of the Conservative General Marquez, who then gained infamy for shooting all of his prisoners of war in the suburb of Tacubaya. Juárez remained entrenched in Vera Cruz. In the course of the war through 1859, the Liberals captured Mazatlan and Colima. By April,

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2880-524: The Liberal government won the Reform War , President Juárez and his government added to the Constitution of 1857, the Reform Laws that had been enacted in Veracruz . Because of the civil war, the Constitution remained without effect on almost all the country until January, 1861, when the Liberals returned to the capital. In 1862, as a result of Franco-Mexican War and the establishment of Second Mexican Empire ,

2970-532: The Liberals during the Reform War and returned to banditry after the war's end. The reconstruction of the country also involved a reorganization of finances, but for the time being the Mexican government found it impossible to meet its domestic and its foreign obligations. A British Minister Plenipotentiary, Sir Charles Wyke , was commissioned on 30 March 1861, to negotiate British claims while providing reassurance that

3060-730: The Pacific Ocean, and the Isthmus of Tehuantepec was the narrowest crossing in Mexico between the bodies of water. Juárez needing allies against the Conservatives, and his government proceeded to negotiate and ratify the McLane-Ocampo Treaty by December 1859. The treaty would have granted the United States perpetual extraterritorial rights for its citizens and its military through key strategic routes in Mexico. The treaty however, ultimately

3150-609: The Power of the Union; and 4) decisions and sentences. The first Amparo Law had little effect due to the French intervention, first by the war in which the nation was then engaged, and later by the establishment of the Empire under Maxmilian of Austria which suspended constitutional government. The Secretary of Justice drafted and presented a new law at the end of the year 1868, which was approved by Congress and promulgated on 20 January 1869. This law

3240-596: The Reform War as it would come to be known, was marked by repeated Conservative victories, albeit indecisive ones. On 10 March 1858, the Liberals lost the Battle of Salamanca , near Juárez’ base in Guanajuato City , upon which he and his government retreated to Guadalajara . While the Liberal government was ensconced there, the garrison mutinied against them, and Juárez along with his ministers which included Melchor Ocampo and Guillermo Prieto were imprisoned. The commander of

3330-678: The Reform War had ended, President Juárez was faced with a French invasion , the Second French Intervention aimed at overthrowing the government of the Mexican Republic and replacing it with a French-aligned monarchy, the Second Mexican Empire . The French soon gained the collaboration of the Conservative Party who aimed at returning themselves to power after their defeat in the Reform War, but Juárez continued to lead

3420-462: The Reform War. When the government of Juárez refused to honor the debts contracted by the Conservative government, Jecker took his complaints to the government of France. Constitution of 1857 A number of articles were contrary to the traditional powers of the Catholic Church, such as the ending of Catholicism as official religion , the nationwide establishment of secular public education,

3510-606: The Second French Intervention in Mexico, and the failed efforts of the Second French Empire to overthrow the government of the Mexican Republic and impose a monarchy upon the nation. The main French pretext for subsequently invading Mexico had been specifically the issue of the Jecker Bonds, a series of high interest loans which had been contracted through a Swiss banker named Jecker, by the Conservative government during

3600-482: The Supreme Court, Juárez became president of Mexico on 21 January 1858. Conservatives refused to recognize the new constitution or the liberal government. Conservative Félix Zuloaga established a Conservative Government in Mexico City ; through the promulgation of Five Laws repealed the liberal reforms. Liberal were forced to move the seat of government to Guanajuato . Armies of the two opposing governments clashed in

3690-445: The United States had recognized the Liberal government as the legitimate government of Mexico and sent Robert Milligan McLane as its official representative. On 7 July 1859, Juárez laid out an agenda of legislation decreeing the de jure separation of church and state, the greater independence of the judiciary, the expansion of affordable education, a program of road construction, a program of railroad construction, financial reform,

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3780-471: The amparo. The 1917 constitution largely tracks the 1857 constitution in order of article and text, only argumenting and clarifying certain clauses. Therefore, both of these amaro provisions featured in the subsequent 1917 Mexican constitution, i.e. article 101 (1857 version) was identical to article 103 (1917 version); and article 102 (1857 version) corresponded to article 107 (1917), with amendments Currently, amparo exists in 17 other countries, however, there

3870-419: The city of Oaxaca added "de Juárez" to its name in his honor, and numerous other places and institutions have been named after him. He is the only individual whose birthday (21 March) is celebrated as a national public and patriotic holiday in Mexico. Many cities (most notably Ciudad Juárez ), streets, institutions, and other locations are named after him. He is considered the most popular Mexican president of

3960-633: The colonial legal system, as were accorded to the Mexican Catholic Church, the army, and Indigenous communities. He became a prosecutor for the State of Oaxaca and was soon elected to the Oaxaca state legislature in 1832, serving for two years during the Liberal presidency of Valentin Gomez Farias . A Conservative Party coup led by Santa Anna overthrew the presidency of Gomez Farias in 1834. As part of

4050-427: The conservatives to the liberals in a major blow against Comonfort. Zuloaga distrusted the president, because he thought that he was returning to the side of the Liberals. Without any alternative, Comonfort resorted to the pure and released Juárez and other political prisoners. On January 11, 1858, Comonfort resigned and left with a guard for Veracruz . On 7 February, he sailed for exile in the United States. As head of

4140-464: The constitutional reorganization involved in the subsequent transition from the First Mexican Republic to the Centralist Republic of Mexico , Oaxaca became a department controlled by Mexico City and the state legislature of Oaxaca was dissolved. Juárez protested the dissolution of local government that was being imposed upon Oaxaca, and in fact, the rest of Mexico, as part of the transition to

4230-413: The cornfields and as a shepherd until the age of 12. Up until then Juárez had also been illiterate and could not speak Spanish knowing then only his native Zapotec language. However, his sister had previously moved to the city of Oaxaca for work, and that year Juárez moved to the city to attend school. There he took a job as a domestic servant in the household of Antonio Maza, where his sister worked as

4320-446: The country had begun to fragment into civil war. This was much more than he had intended, and he began to back away from the Conservatives. Juárez was released from prison on 11 January 1858, shortly before Comonfort himself left the country, the presidency thus passing over to Juárez who as Chief Justice was next in line to succeed the presidency. Meanwhile, the Conservatives elected Zuloaga as their president. As Mexico City fell into

4410-540: The elections of 1861 with a large majority over his only rival General Jesús González Ortega . Juárez passed an amnesty towards the Conservatives who had fought against him during the Reform War with certain exceptions including leading generals and clergy. The former Conservative president Miramon had fled the country, but certain Conservative Generals remained at large in the countryside including Leonardo Marquez and Tomás Mejía Camacho . Melchor Ocampo, one of

4500-437: The enchanted pond. His parents, Brígida García and Marcelino Juárez were Zapotec peasants. He described his parents as " indios de la raza primitiva del país " ( Spanish : " Indians from the primitive race of the country" ). He had two older sisters, Josefa and Rosa. Juárez became an orphan at the age of 3. His grandparents also died shortly after, and Juárez was raised by his uncle Bernardino Juárez. Juárez worked in

4590-476: The extremists on both sides in check and pursue a middle course, always his object. It soon became obvious that such an assumption was merely wishful thinking." Comonfort accepted and had Juárez imprisoned in the capital. Comonfort however had blundered in overestimating the support he could expect among the state governors. The strategic port state of Veracruz disowned the Plan of Tacubaya, and Comonfort realized that

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4680-456: The garrison, Colonel Landa, was far from having effective control over the entire city. Landa offered Juárez his liberty if he would order the remaining Liberal troops in Guadalajara to surrender. Juárez refused and Landa responded by ordering his troops to shoot the prisoners. Guillermo Prieto intervened, and the soldiers hesitated. Landa did not repeat his orders, and it was at this point that

4770-459: The government and armed forces of the Mexican Republic, even as he was forced by the advances of the French to flee to the north of the country. The Second Mexican Empire would finally collapse in 1867 after the departure of the last French troops two months previously and President Juárez returned to Mexico City where he continued as president until his death due to a heart attack in 1872, but with growing opposition from fellow Liberals who believed he

4860-535: The guerrillas on 15 June, and his command was handed over to González Ortega. Conservative General Leonardo Márquez took refuge in the Sierra Gorda of Querétaro . In the wake of the Reform War and the demobilization of combatants, Juárez established the Rural Guard or Rurales , aimed at enforcing public security, particularly as banditry and rural unrest grew. Many brigands and bandits had allied themselves with

4950-450: The hands of the Conservatives, President Juárez transferred himself to Guanajuato City , where on 19 January, he assembled his cabinet and vowed to defend the Constitution through war if necessary. The states of Tamaulipas , Sinaloa , Durango , Jalisco , Tabasco , San Luis Potosi , Oaxaca , Guanajuato , and Veracruz proclaimed their loyalty to the Juárez government. The first year of

5040-515: The head of the Executive Comonfort swore the Constitution on 5 February 1857, which was promulgated on 11 March. Despite the fact that Comonfort won the elections, and that in December he should extend his mandate for a new presidential term, he considered that his popularity was seriously affected by the constitutional reforms in religious matters. In December he expressed his intention to reverse

5130-597: The jurisdiction of the state. This was done through the Ley Juárez , named for the Minister of Justice, and promulgated under the presidency of Alvarez. The law would remain on the books, but President Alvarez resigned in December 1855, amid increasing opposition to his administration, passing over the presidency to the more moderate Liberal Ignacio Comonfort , whom it was hoped could more effectively pass progressive reforms. Juárez did not continue as Minister of Justice, and spent

5220-419: The jurisprudence of the Supreme Court. The writ of Amparo legislation transformed Amparo from "an instrument lacking precise contours to a true proceeding directed at violative official acts, with a particular emphasis placed on the protection of life and liberty of the citizens." The 1857 Constitution served as an important model for the subsequent current 1917 constitution , establishing a firm foundation for

5310-579: The law , the sovereignty of civilian power over the Catholic Church and the military , the strengthening of the Mexican federal government , and the depersonalization of political life. For Juárez's success in ousting French invasion, Mexicans considered Juárez's tenure as a time of a "second struggle for independence, a second defeat for the European powers, and a second reversal of the Conquest". After his death,

5400-489: The law or act complained of, thus having no effect beyond preventing the application of the constitutionally defective law to the immediate party complainant. The 1847 Reform Act officially incorporated and amended, the Federal Constitution of 1824 (which made no mention of amparo ), to operate while the next constitution was drafted (1857 constitution). The 1857 constitution was Mexico's first "constitutionalization" of

5490-406: The leading Liberals during the Reform War was assassinated by Marquez on 17 June 1861. Ocampo's assassination led to severe outrage in the capital. Many Conservatives were arrested and faced deadly retaliation, but Juárez intervened on their behalf. Santos Degollado , who had been dismissed from his military command, requested permission from congress to pursue Ocampo's killers. He too was killed by

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5580-517: The legitimacy of the claims. The Conservatives meanwhile were suffering infighting, and after a series of victories, General Miguel Miramon became the new Conservative president in December 1858. President Miramon gathered an army and prepared a siege of Veracruz. On 29 December 1858, President Juárez called upon the inhabitants of Veracruz to prepare for an attack by collecting arms, provisions, and organizing fortifications. The first Conservative siege of Veracruz failed in March, 1859. Meanwhile,

5670-518: The liberals, gathered force in Zacapoaxtla and Puebla . Comonfort sent federal troops and defeated the rebels. The Constitution was promulgated on February 5, 1857, but the clergy threatened that whoever swore the Constitution would be excommunicated. The Constitution of 1857, with 8 titles and 128 articles, was similar to the 1824 Constitution . Both federalism and representative republicanism were again implemented, and there were 23 states ,

5760-522: The municipal council of Oaxaca City. In 1832, he graduated from the Institute of Arts and Sciences with a degree in law. He was eventually admitted to the bar on 13 January 1834. From the very beginning of his legal career, Juárez became an active partisan of the Liberal Party . As a lawyer, Juárez took cases of indigenous villagers. Community members of Loxicha, Oaxaca hired him for their denunciation of

5850-604: The nation. Upon finishing his one term permitted by the state constitution, Juárez became the director of the Oaxaca Institute of Science and Arts where he had previously studied law and also taught science. Juárez also continued his practice of law. Mexico experienced relative peace and stability in the years immediately following the conclusion of the Mexican-American War , through the moderate presidencies of José Joaquín de Herrera and Mariano Arista but in 1852

5940-674: The pivotal year of 1856, peacefully retired in Oaxaca, although continuing to correspond with his Liberal allies in Mexico City as they continued their aims in furthering La Reforma . Juárez personally lobbied for a measure expelling the Jesuits from Mexico which was passed in June, 1856. Meanwhile, the Mexican Congress was drafting a new Constitution which integrated into itself the Ley Juárez along with

6030-402: The power of the executive and place his loyalists in power in most Mexican state governments, creating a centralized government. Díaz's critics viewed him as a dictator. On February 5, 1903, a liberal group protesting the regime placed on the balcony of the offices of the newspaper El hijo de El Ahuizote a great black banner for mourning with the legend "The Constitution is dead." Less well known

6120-405: The power of the federal government; and his decision to run for reelection in 1871. His opponent, liberal general, and fellow Oaxacan Porfirio Díaz opposed his re-election and rebelled against Juárez in the Plan de la Noria . Juárez came to be seen as "a preeminent symbol of Mexican nationalism and resistance to foreign intervention". His policies advocated civil liberties , equality before

6210-408: The prohibition of purchase of property by ecclesiastical corporations, the exclusion of the clergy in public office, the abolition of ecclesiastical and military fueros ( Juárez Law ), and freedom of religion . Those reforms were contrary to the interests of the Catholic Church . During the sessions of Congress, an insurrection for the clergy supported by conservatives, the staunchest opponents of

6300-436: The reduction of duties, the encouragement of foreign commerce, the subdivision of great estates to encourage peasant proprietorship, and the encouragement of immigration. On 12 July, a series of anti-clerical laws were passed adding upon those that had already been implemented as part of the Constitution of 1857. The properties of the Catholic Church were almost entirely nationalized, the responsibility of carrying out marriages

6390-439: The reforms achieved by the Legislative branch. Conservatives began planning a coup. A conservative general, Félix María Zuloaga , epudiated the Constitution. On 17 December 1857, he proclaimed the Plan of Tacubaya , which sought repeal of the Constitution and the convening of a new Constituent Congress. During the coup against the Congress and the Constitution, several ministers of Presidential Cabinet resigned. The president of

6480-424: The removal of institutional fueros (legal privileges), and the forced sale of Church property. Conservatives strongly opposed the enactment of the constitution, which polarized Mexican society. The Reform War (1858-1860) began as a result, with liberals winning on the battlefield over conservatives. The losing conservatives sought another way back into power, and their politicians invited Maximilian I of Mexico ,

6570-459: The same year. He continued his theological studies for six years, but eventually decided that he was not interested in the priesthood. An Institute of Arts and Sciences had been founded by the Oaxacan state legislature in 1826, and Juárez transferred there in 1827. In 1829, Juárez was appointed a teacher of physics. In 1831, Juárez accepted the post of Regidor del Ayuntamiento , or judicial secretary to

6660-498: The state of Oaxaca, a position which he held until 1846. The Centralist Republic itself would be overthrown in 1846 at the beginning of the Mexican American War , and Oaxaca regained its federal autonomy, its executive now led by a triumvirate which included Juárez. He was subsequently elected to the national congress as a deputy for Oaxaca. Juárez supported President Valentín Gómez Farías , who had returned to power. There

6750-410: The state religion, and aimed to establish religious freedom, freedom of association, civil rights, the abolition of monopolies, and the abolition of hereditary privileges. As opposition to the Constitution of 1857 threatened civil war, Comonfort's ministers resigned on 20 October 1857, and among the replacements was Juárez who was appointed as Secretary of Home Affairs ( Secretario de Gobernacion ), and

6840-495: Was a revolt against the state of Oaxaca during this time, causing Juárez to abandon his congressional post and return to Oaxaca to try and maintain order. In November, 1847, he assumed the governorship. When Santa Anna fell from power disgraced by his loss in the Mexican-American War, Governor Juárez did not allow the ex-president to establish himself in Oaxaca, which gained for him the future enmity of Santa Anna. Juárez

6930-492: Was already announcing that the Constitution ought to be reformed. Chief Justice Juárez rebuffed Comonfort's invitation to join him in abandoning the constitution. On 17 December, Conservatives led by Felix Zuloaga proclaimed the Plan of Tacubaya , which dissolved congress and invited Comonfort to accept the presidency with extraordinary powers in a self-coup . Comonfort "felt that by temporarily assuming dictatorial powers he could hold

7020-487: Was becoming autocratic. During his presidency, he supported a number of controversial measures, including his negotiation of the McLane–Ocampo Treaty , which would have granted the United States perpetual extraterritorial rights across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec ; a decree extending his presidential term for the duration of French Intervention; his proposal to revise the liberal Constitution of 1857 to strengthen

7110-556: Was called the State of Valley of Mexico but only if the powers of the Federation moved to another site. On February 26, 1864, Nuevo León was separated from Coahuila and regained its status as a free state. In December 1856, Pope Pius IX denounced the new Constitution and criticized the Juárez Law and the Lerdo Law : "All privileges of ecclesiastical jurisdiction are removed; it establishes that no one can absolutely enjoy emoluments that are

7200-467: Was completely removed from the Catholic Church and was declared to be a purely civil contract, and the registration of births and deaths was also removed from the Church and handed over to the state. Furthermore, monasteries were dissolved although nunneries were allowed to remain with the condition that they accept no more novices. The U.S. at this time was seeking a route for transit from the Caribbean to

7290-478: Was eventually appointed as a judge, after which he married Margarita Maza , a woman from a socially distinguished family in Oaxaca City. Juárez was eventually elected Governor of Oaxaca and became involved in national politics after the ousting of Antonio López de Santa Anna in the Plan of Ayutla . Juárez was made Minister of Justice under the new Liberal president Juan Álvarez . He was instrumental in passing

7380-457: Was faced with chaos in the state finances, the state justice department, and the state police organization. Juárez proceeded to carry out a program of economic improvements which included an elimination of the state deficit, the construction of roads and bridges, and the development of education. Governor Juárez also prepared and published a Civil and Penal Code. Oaxaca became a model state, and Juárez’ gained fame as an able administrator throughout

7470-531: Was instrumental in placing the inaugural Amparo in the constitution of the Republic of Yucatán (now the State of Yucatán ), a procedure adopted to strengthen the judicial enforcement of individual rights in that state. In 1847, Rejón (from Yucatán) and Mariano Otero (considered the "second father of Amparo ) were members of the six-member committee appointed to draft up the new 1857 Federal Constitution, that abrogated

7560-480: Was made Chairman of the Council of Ministers. When, one month later, Comonfort was formally elected as the first president under the new constitution, Juárez was appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. In the face of increasing opposition however and with civil conflict already erupting in the state of Puebla , the moderate President Comonfort sought to distance himself from the Constitution of 1857 and by December

7650-452: Was more simple in its procedure, establishing a single suit to be judged in a summary proceeding by the district courts of the federal judiciary. This was likewise also superseded by an Amparo law in 1882., promulgated on 14 December 1882 and effective the following year. The use of the legislative writ of Apmaro increased significantly during the life span of the 1857 constitution, for example in 1869 only 123 suits were decided, in 1880, only

7740-477: Was one of increasing Liberal victories and Miramon once again indecisively attacked Veracruz in March. In September, the Juárez government suffered a scandal when the Liberal General Santos Degollado raided a mule train of money being sent to European merchants. Juárez made efforts to recover the money and gave orders for restitution. As an inevitable Liberal victory approached, Juárez issued

7830-482: Was rejected by the United States Senate. The American recognition of the Juárez government at Veracruz also led the United States to defend it against another one of Miramon's siege attempts. Towards the end of 1859, the Conservative government commissioned two gun boats to depart from Cuba and attack Veracruz while Miramon attacked from the land, but they were seized by the U.S. Navy as pirates. The year 1860

7920-598: Was revised in 1874 to create a Senate. It remained as Mexico's constitution until 1917 although many of its provisions ceased to be enforced. Having overthrown the dictatorship of Antonio López de Santa Anna in 1855, liberals sought to implement their ideology in new laws and briefly had Juan Álvarez in the presidency. As established in Plan of Ayutla , he convened the Constituent Congress on October 16 to establish headquarters in Dolores Hidalgo and to draft

8010-467: Was stationed with General Ignacio de la Llave . Upon his arrival Juárez was joined by his wife and greeted with enthusiasm by the population. One of Juárez's first challenges in the new capital was meeting French and English claims over loans that had been forced upon English and French merchants by the Liberal General Garza. Juárez warded off the threat of military intervention by recognizing

8100-541: Was the first indigenous president of Mexico and the first democratically elected indigenous president in the postcolonial Americas. A member of the Liberal Party , he previously held a number of offices, including the governorship of Oaxaca and the presidency of the Supreme Court . During his presidency, he led the Liberals to victory in the Reform War and in the Second French intervention in Mexico . Born in Oaxaca to

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