The Mexican Revolution

The construction of the post revolutinoary state (1920-1940)

 Obregon’s election Álvaro Obregón

• 1919: Álvaro Obregón, the most successful

general of the Revolution resigned from
Venustiano Carranza’s cabinet and announced
he would run for the presidency in the
upcoming 1920.
• Plan of Agua Prieta: interim government to be
named by
• Congress to rule until there were fair elections.
• Carranza was accused of having betrayed the
Revolution and the 1917 Constitution.
• Murdered by Obregón supporters. Venustiano
Carranza
Obregón´s plan: Reconstruction
• As well as confronting corruption,
Obregón faced huge tasks in rebuilding
Mexico: ‘The reforms which Mexico needs
require at least four factors for their
complete solution: time, capital,
education and a directing hand,’ (E.J.
Dillon)
• Rebuild Mexico’s infrastructure.
• Repair relations with the USA (Oil –
personal
• Discipline the army.
 Obregón reforms (Land and workers)
• Álvaro Obregón made a half-hearted attempt at
land reform.
• He was more successful in promoting the expansion
of education and helping to shape a new Mexican
national identity.
• John Mason: “Ultimate compromiser” -
Diplomatically skillful
• Union: Regional Confederation of Mexican Labor
(CROM)
• No distribution of the land. (He was a rich
landowner)
• Set up the National Agrarian Commission in 1922 to
survey Mexico’s agricultural areas. Not the “Agrarian
Reform”
 Obregón’s Reforms (Education and Culture)
• Notable achievements
• He chose the intellectual José
Vasconcelos as the head of the newly
created Ministry of Education.
• 2000 Libraries and 1000 schools were
created (1920-24) Mural of Diego de Rivera
• Mexico’s Indian past was also heavily
promoted in an attempt to unite the
country
• Literacy to the rural areas
• Muralist (government buildings)
The last Caudillo
• Many historians see Obregón as a pragmatist and
reformer.
• Context 1920: Demographic fall.
• Obregón provided was some semblance of order and
stability, though this came at some cost.
• Thomas Skidmore, ‘Obregón succeeded to the spoils of
the presidency’. He was now in a position to increase his
wealth and, while corruption in the government
certainly continued, Obregón was able to pass the offi
ce to his successor Plutarco Calles without violent
upheaval (…).”

Achievements? Failures?
 Plutarco Calles in power
• The candidate of Obregón
• Create many schools. Provide cultural and
educational programs for the Indians
• Increase land reforms
• Provide legal protections to the industrial workers
• Provide better living conditions for the masses
• Create national system of health clinics Plutarco Calles
Create many institutions
• National Bank of Mexico
• National Agricultural Credit Bank and a political
Even those goals, Calles couldn’t
• The PRI party improve the relations with the USA.
• National Road Commision
Land reform: Redistribution of the land
Table from La Reforma
Agraria de Mexico, Su
crisis durante el
periodo
1928–1934 by Ing.
Marta R. Gomez,
Librería de Manuel
Porrua, S.A,
Mexico City, Mexico,
1964, quoted in Land
Reform and Politics:
A Comparative
Analysis by Hung-chao
Tai, University of
California
Press, Berkeley, 1974
Relations with the USA (Tensions)
• The relationship between Mexico and the USA
remained tense during Calles’ official term in office
• Nicaragua (opposing sides). Calles support the
liberal Juan Bautista Sacasa and the US supported
the conservative Adolfo Díaz (small-scale trade war).
• Bolshevism: 1924: The Soviet Union opened its
embassy in Mexico City
• US Secretary of State Frank (12 June 1925): “It is
declared to be a fact that radical doctrines have
been spread in Mexico”
• Threats against US petroleum CO. and properties by
the Mexican government

Juan Bautista Sacasa

 Relations with the US (Improvement)
• Dwight Morrow, a Wall Street banker,
as the new US ambassador to Mexico
did much to decrease tensions
(sovereign)
• Aviator Charles Lindbergh took a fl ight
from Washington D.C. to Mexico City.
• Morrow helped to decrease the
tensions concerning US petroleum
• Enrique Krauze: “Calles won more
important items than the oil battle …
Genaro Estrada, Charles Lindbergh and Dwight
The United States withdrew her threat Morrow
of invasion; he dissolved the worries of
a “Soviet Mexico”,
 The Maximato
• Once Calles’ term in office as President
was over, he became the power behind
the scenes of the next three presidents.
• Obregón went to elections (1928). Calles
pressured Congress to amend the 1917
Constitution to allow presidents to be re-
elected and run for a second term.
Sexenio
• The opposition was exterminated
• Obregon assesinated
 Emilio Portes Gil (1928–30)
• Calles acted quickly and pressured
Congress to elect Emilio Portes Gil
(1928-30) as interim president. (Clever
move)
• Portes Gil: “My task will be to
continue the policies developed by
President Calles”
• Portes Gil attempted to enact
significant land reform. He was able to
provide as much land to peasants as
Calles had distributed in 1948
• Foreign relations: broke off diplomatic
relations with the Soviet Union.
Pascual Ortíz Rubio (1930–32)
• PNR became controlling force in
Mexican politics
• Economy suffered as Great
Depression began
• Mexico joined League of Nations
• Calles forced Ortiz Rubio to pack
his cabinet with Calles supporters
• Ousted by Calles when he showed
too much independence
General Abelardo Rodríguez (1932–34)
• Some economic progress made
• Peso allowed to float
• National industries expanded
• Increased locally produced goods
• Military further professionalized
• Minimum wage set
• Repression against suspected
opponents of the regime
• Calles chose Cárdenas as successor
to Rodríguez
Lázaro Cárdenas and Renawal of the
Revolution (Antecedents)

The educational results were not

Agrarian Reform: Unsatisfactory positives

Plan
Sexenal
Corrupted and disorganized labor Progressive laws in favor the mass
movement weren’t accomplished.
Plan Sexenal
It contemplated a series of programs that could be
considered progressive, however, there were two positions
that did not agree:

Attachment to
Obbey Socialist small property
doctrine

These contradictions would give Calles the opportunity to

"advise" Cárdenas in order to continue his interference in
power.
 The Educational Reform
• Socialist Education: Public education will be secular
and for all. Big Budget for the Education.
• Opposition from a side of the Callista group. Clergy
and some members of the civilian elite were
threatened with the new goals of socialist
education.
• 1937: Instituto Politécnico Nacional and
Departamento de Educación Obrera.
• Beyond literacy programs: hygiene, sex education,
vaccination, better farming techniques, anti-alcohol
would be emphasized.
• Teachers would be both foot-soldiers and political
activists.
Agrarian Reform
Departamento Agrarian Reform awas
characterized by trying to
Agrario Autónomo. distribute enough land among the
Gave credits to the majority of the peasants.
peasants 1935: Banco Nacional de
Crédito Ejidal
Land redistribution
without precedents
IV. The Confederación Nacional Campesina
1935: Confederación Nacional
Campesina (CNC). Agrarian
“La tierra debe
central which gave unity to the estar en manos de
peasants. quien la trabaja”

It also controlled this sector from

any riot attempt.
 State and Economy
Trying to avoid any social confrontation, he applied a series of
reforms.

Railroads appearded in
In the labor field: The Social and Economic
different parts of
Federal Law (Ley reforms: agricultural
Mexico, Banco de
Federal) - 7th day and / or livestock
Crédito Ejidal open its
payment cooperatives.
loans.

1936: La
Confederación de
Trabajadores de
Cardenista
México (CTM): Labor
unification
state
Railways and Petroleum industries (Nationalized)
• Nationalized 13 June 1937
• Not much international outrage, as the railways had become
money-losing operations
• Workers demanded raises
• Petroleum companies refused
• STPRM called for strike
• Federal commission investigated situation; found in favor of
the workers
• Mexican Supreme Court ruled in favor of the workers;
petroleum companies ignored this
• Cárdenas nationalized the companies
• International boycott of Mexican oil. US government stopped
purchasing Mexican silver
• Mexico sold oil to Germany, Italy, Soviet Union and Japan
Oil expropiation: International situation

Threats and aggression. The Allies or supporters of

nationalization process was Britain and USA didn’t buy
in danger of a boycott Mexican oil.
Foreign companies
reactions about the
expropiation

No spare parts or machinery Mexican government

were sold for the production warned that it would sell oil
and infrastructure that was to the Italians and Germans
required.
The break with Calles
1935: Calles make
declarations agains The “Jefe Máximo2 states that Cárdenas
Cardenas government policies threats the revolutionary family.
Cárdenas answers saying that this unity is
already broked.

Cárdenas is supported by
workers, peasants and some
deputies.

Calles is expelled from

Mexico in April, 1936.
Official party transformation: The PRM
1937 Cardenas change the party. He wanted a party which could
congregate intellectuals, juvenile aggrupation's, army and workers.

4 sectors:

Working Popular
Agrarian Army
class sector
 Cedillista rebellion
• Cárdenas named secretary of the
Agriculture to the general Saturnino
Cedillo a man, in the words of Cardena, full
greed.
• From his office Cedillo constantly attacked
Cardenas reforms saying they were
communists, and the government must be
destroyed.
• He grouped with some quasi-fascist
(sinarquistas) who hate Cardens reforms
(May, 1938)
• Didn’t last long he was haunted and
excuted on January, 1939.