Mexico

Historical overview

Mexico’s history includes some of the most influential civilisations of the ancient Americas. The Olmec, Maya, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Mixtec and Mexica societies developed complex cities, political institutions, trade systems, writing traditions, architecture and scientific knowledge. The Mexica-led Aztec Empire controlled much of central Mexico before the Spanish conquest.

Spanish forces led by Hernán Cortés entered the region in 1519 and, with Indigenous allies and amid regional conflicts, captured Tenochtitlan in 1521. New Spain became a central part of the Spanish Empire. Colonial rule transformed landholding, religion, labour and social hierarchy. Indigenous communities experienced epidemics, dispossession, tribute obligations and forced labour. African slavery also became part of the colonial economy.

The independence movement began in 1810 with Miguel Hidalgo’s uprising. José María Morelos and other leaders developed the movement, while the Plan of Iguala and the Army of the Three Guarantees helped secure independence in 1821. The Mexican Empire under Agustín de Iturbide was short-lived; a federal republic was established in 1824. gob.mxThe nineteenth century was marked by political instability, conflict between centralists and federalists, and disputes over the role of the Catholic Church and military. The Mexican–American War of 1846–48 resulted in the loss of a large portion of Mexico’s northern territory. The Reform War of 1857–61 and French intervention led to the establishment and eventual collapse of the Second Mexican Empire under Maximilian I. The liberal Constitution of 1857 became a major foundation of modern Mexican constitutionalism.

Porfirio Díaz dominated Mexican politics from 1876 to 1911, with a short interruption. His government promoted railways, investment and economic modernisation, but concentrated political power, restricted opposition and intensified land inequality. The Mexican Revolution began in 1910, involving multiple movements with differing goals. Leaders included Francisco I. Madero, Emiliano Zapata, Pancho Villa and Venustiano Carranza. The revolutionary conflict transformed land policy, labour relations and political institutions.

The Constitution of 1917 established a new framework that included provisions on land, labour, education and national sovereignty over natural resources. It remains a central document in Mexican political history. gob.mxThe Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) dominated national politics for much of the twentieth century. The 1968 student movement and the Tlatelolco massacre exposed the use of state violence against political dissent. The 1994 Zapatista uprising in Chiapas raised questions about Indigenous rights, poverty and political representation. Electoral reforms gradually strengthened competition, and the PRI lost the presidency in 2000, ending its uninterrupted presidential rule.

Contemporary Mexican history includes democratisation, drug-related violence, migration, corruption, disappearances, Indigenous rights struggles and debates over the role of the military and public security institutions.

Key historical timeline

1. c. 1200–400 BCEOlmec civilisation flourishes.c. 250–900 CEClassic Maya cities flourish across the region.
2. c. 1325Tenochtitlan founded by the Mexica.
3. 1519Spanish expedition led by Cortés enters Mexico.
4. 1521Fall of Tenochtitlan; Spanish colonial rule expands.
5. 1535Viceroyalty of New Spain formally established.
6. 16 September 1810Hidalgo’s uprising begins the independence struggle.
7. 1821Mexico achieves independence from Spain.
8. 1824Federal Constitution establishes the republic.
9. 1846–48Mexican–American War.
10. 1857Liberal Constitution adopted.
11. 1862Mexican forces defeat French troops at the Battle of Puebla.
12. 1864–67Second Mexican Empire under Maximilian I.
13. 1876Porfirio Díaz begins long period of political dominance.
14. 20 November 1910Mexican Revolution begins.
15. 1917Constitution adopted.
16. 1938President Lázaro Cárdenas nationalises the oil industry.
17. 1968Student protests and Tlatelolco massacre.
18. 1985Major Mexico City earthquake and civic mobilisation.
19. 1994Zapatista uprising and North American Free Trade Agreement takes effect.
20. 2000PRI loses the presidency for the first time since 1929.
21. 2011Constitutional human-rights reform strengthens rights protections.Important historical documents to digitiseMaya, Mixtec and other Indigenous codices.Colonial land titles and community records.Records of New Spain’s administration.Hidalgo’s independence proclamations.Sentimientos de la Nación (1813).Constitution of Apatzingán (1814).Plan of Iguala (1821).Act of Independence (1821).Constitutions of 1824, 1857 and 1917.Reform Laws and related decrees.Mexican Revolution manifestos and correspondence.Plan of Ayala (1911).Records of the 1968 student movement and Tlatelolco.Indigenous rights and Zapatista-related documents.National human-rights and disappearance investigation records.Archives and research linksArchivo General de la Nación – Mexico – colonial, independence, presidential, constitutional and photographic collections.Mexican National Archives – Documentary and graphic collections – descriptions of major holdings.Mexican War of Independence documentary collection – insurgent and royalist records from 1808–1821.Mexico’s 1917 Constitution – National Archives – constitutional documents and preservation information.Archivo General de la Nación – archival collection guide – historical manuscripts, constitutions, maps, audio and photographs.National Institute of Historical Studies of the Mexican Revolutions – research on independence, reform and revolution.Human-rights focus: Colonial exploitation, Indigenous land dispossession, political repression during the Porfiriato, revolutionary violence, the 1968 massacre, forced disappearance, organised crime-related violence and the rights of Indigenous communities.