Mexican Settlement Essay, Research Paper

During 1200 B.C through A.D 900 Maya, Olmec, and Zapotec cultures thrived in Mexico, building monuments that still stand today. In the thirteen hundreds the Aztecs founded Tenochtitlan, the site of modern Mexico City. In 1519 Hernan Cortes defeated large Aztec armies and founded Veracruz. the first Spanish settlement in Mexico. In 1521 Cortes completed his conquest of the Aztec Empire. In 1810 Miguel Hidalgo and Costilla, a Mexican priest, instigated a revolt in the hopes of winning Mexico’s independence. In 1821 Mexico won it’s independence from Spain.

Three years later it became a republic. In 1836The Mexican Province of Texas became an independent after defeating General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna at the battle of San Jacinto. In 1846-1848 Mexico lost a war with the United States and was forced to cede huge amounts of territory. In 1848 revolution led to the declaration of the second republic. In 1863 French troops occupied Mexico City. The next year, the French named Maximllian of Austria emperor of Mexico. In 1867 Mexican forces regained control of the country and shot Maximillian. In 1910 Francisco I Madero led a revolution that ousted the dictator Porfirio Diaz from power the following year. In 1913 Madero was assigned and civil war broke out. The forces of Venustiano Carranza occupied Mexico City the following year, aided by the United States. In 1929 the national revolutionary party was formed. It quickly came to dominate Mexican politics.

In 1938 Mexico seized foreign dramatically during World War II to help meet Allied demands for war goods . In 1968 the government cursed student protests during the 14968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. In 1963 Mexico , the United States , and Canada ratified the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). In 1994 The Zapatista National Liberation Army (a group of Native American rebels from the southern state of Chiapas) declared war on the Mexican government . The group captured four towns before a cease-fire was declared and the government agreed to negotiations for social and political reforms. In 1996 Zapatista National Liberation Army announced formation of a new civilian political organization to be called Zapatista National Liberation Army front.