Benito Juárez
Early Life and Education
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Margarita
& her
daughters
Benito Pablo Juárez García was born on March 21, 1806 in a small house in San Pablo
Guelatao, Oaxaca
Parents died due to diabetes Benito was only 3 years old
Shortly after, his grandparents also died so his uncle raised him
He worked in the cornfields and could only speak Zapotec
In 1818 he moved to the capital of Oaxaca to educate himself
After some time, he began studying law at the Institute of Sciences & Arts in the state capital
He graduated in 1834 as a lawyer, and in 1841 he was appointed to a civil judge
Juarez with his sister Nela (Left) and
In 1843 when he was in his late 30’s, he married Margarita Maza
wife Margarita
Benito Juárez’s
children
Margarita Maza
Political career
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Following his graduation and service as a civil judge, he became a part of the Oaxaca state government led by
liberal governor Antonio León
He became prosecutor in the state court and then elected to state legislature in 1845
He was elected governor of the state of Oaxaca from 1847 to 1852
During his time as governor, he supported the war effort against the U.S. in the Mexican-American War
After the war was lost he refused Antonio López de Santa Anna's request to regroup and raise new forces
This and the corrupt military dictation of Santa Anna led to his exile to New Orleans in 1853 where he worked in
a cigar factory
He was elected president in 1861
French Intervention
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On May 5th 1862 Mexican forces under Ignacio Zaragoza won
over the French, the Battle of Puebla, celebrated annually as
Cinco de Mayo
The French advanced again in 1863 and captured Mexico city
Juárez and his elected government fled the capital and
became a government in exile
Before he left, Congress granted Juárez an emergency
extension of his presidency which would go into effect in
1865
Following the end of the war, U.S. President Andrew Johnson
demanded the French evacuate Mexico and imposed a naval
blockade in February 1866
French troops began pulling out of Mexico in late 1866, and In
1867, the last of the Emperor's forces were defeated and
Maximilian was sentenced to death by a military court
His last words were said to have been "¡Viva México!"
President
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In 1867, shortly after Maximilian was executed Juárez
made the greatest mistake of his political career
He issued a call for national elections and for a
referendum on whether Congress should make five
amendments to the constitution
The constitutional changes aroused immediate and
violent reaction
His proposed changes came under fire because
amendments enacted by Congress alone were
unconstitutional, and the changes would strengthen
the executive power
Juárez was then reelected and the administration did
not even bother to count the votes on the
amendments
Death and Legacy
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Despite illness and personal loss in October 1870 Juárez suffered a
stroke, and three months later his wife died
Juárez then died of a heart attack on July 18, 1872, while reading a
newspaper at his desk in the National Palace in Mexico City, aged 66
He was succeeded by Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada, the head of the
Supreme Court and a close political ally
Today Benito Juárez is remembered as being a progressive reformer
dedicated to democracy, equal rights for his nation's indigenous
peoples, and his antipathy toward organized religion
The period of his leadership is known in Mexican history as La
Reforma del Norte
The tomb of Benito Juárez
Resources
http://www.emersonkent.com/history_notes/benito_juarez.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benito_Ju%C3%A1rez