Profile of the Day: Benito Juárez

Benito Juárez

Happy Cinco de Mayo! The holiday commemorates the Mexican Army’s unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. In honor of the holiday, were highlighting Benito Juárez, who was at the time the President of Mexico.

After the Mexican-American War, Mexico faced a civil war known as the Reform War that left the country bankrupt. In 1861, Juárez suspended all foreign debt repayments. In response, France, Spain, and Britain sent their naval forces to demand repayment. Although Britain and Spain eventually negotiated and withdrew, France, which was ruled at the time by Napoleon III, saw it as an opportunity to establish a Latin empire in Mexico.

On May 5, 1862, the French attacked the city of Puebla. Although the French army was much larger, they were defeated by Mexican forces in an unlikely victory. Although the French would ultimately defeat the Mexican army and establish Maximillian I the Emperor of Mexico in the short-lived Second Mexican Empire, the Mexican victory at the Battle of Puebla would remain a great inspiration to the Mexican resistance. Five years later, with the assistance of the United States, Mexico was able to expel the French forces and reestablish their government with Juárez as president.

Image: DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University , Flickr

Juárez declared the anniversary of the Battle of Puebla a national holiday. Today, Cinco de Mayo has gained significance beyond Mexico. Although it is not celebrated much in Mexico, it is widely observed in the United States as a celebration of Mexican-American culture and heritage.

Benito Juárez is connected to over 114 million people in Geni’s World Family Tree. How are you related?
 

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Image: Smithsonian’s National Anthropological Archives