Benito Juárez: biography of this Mexican politician.

A review of the life of this lawyer and politician so influential in the history of Mexico.

There are many presidents and leaders who have governed the destiny of a country, setting the main guidelines of what happens in the territory and how it is structured and acts at the political, institutional, social and economic level.

In the case of Mexico, we are facing a country with a convulsive history in which there have been multiple ideological disputes between the different social strata. One of the most remembered and loved presidents, who tried to seek equal rights and respect for people of different social classes, was Benito Juarez. It is about him that we are going to talk in this article, in which there is a short biography of Benito Juarez. a short biography of Benito Juarez..

Biography of Benito Juarez

Benito Pablo Juárez García was born in San Pablo de Guelatao, Oaxaca, on March 21, 1806. From an indigenous family (members of the Zapotec group) and dedicated to agriculture, his parents were Marcelino Juárez and Brígida García. Unfortunately both parents died young, when the little boy was three years old.

After their death, he and his sisters were left in the care of his grandparents, who in turn left the future president under the tutelage of his uncle Bernardino. This man would introduce him to the world of shepherding and would make him work as a shepherd in the fields, as well as to speak Spanish. Beyond that, the child had no schooling whatsoever, as his town was a rural area without a school (something Juárez (something that Juárez considered necessary if he wanted to receive an education).

Academic training and first jobs

In 1818 Juárez lost one of the sheep, which, fearing possible reprisals, made him flee the place. After that he went to Oaxaca in search of one of his sisters, who worked for a merchant named Antonio Maza. The latter took him in and gave him a job. In addition, shortly after that, the young man met a priest met a priest by the name of Salanueva, with whom he would begin to learn the bookbinder's trade, and who helped him to enroll in the and who helped him enroll in a local school. In 1821 Salanueva helped him enter the seminary of Santa Cruz, where the young man obtained excellent grades.

However, monastic life and theology did not appeal to the young man, who at the age of twenty left the seminary to enroll in the Institute of Sciences and Arts of the State of Oaxaca. At the Institute he began to study law and jurisprudence, a career from which he graduated in 1834.

When he finished his training, he was hired as a physics teacher, and at the same time he began to dedicate himself to the legal defense of the indigenous communities and the poorest classes. This led him to be accused of trying to promote an uprising among the indigenous communities, which led to his imprisonment.which eventually led to his imprisonment.

Politics and governance

In 1831 Juárez was chosen as alderman of the Oaxaca City Council, to be appointed deputy a year later. After that, he he rose little by little in the world of politics.. However, at that time there was a conflict between liberals and conservatives regarding the fight for the elimination of privileges of the clergy and the army, which ended with the victory of the military and caused Juarez to temporarily retire from political life.

He also rose through the ranks as a lawyer, and by 1841 he had become a civil judge in Oaxaca. He also returned to politics, where he was appointed substitute minister in the Superior he was appointed alternate minister in the Superior Court of Justice..

In 1843 he married Margarita Maza, daughter of his former patron and protector Antonio Maza. He would later be appointed deputy for Oaxaca in the Congress of the Union, and after that co-governor of the state.

In 1846, the so-called Mexican-American began the so-called Mexican-American WarIn 1846 the Mexican-American War began, a conflict between the United States and Mexico in which Juárez participated making proposals that allowed his country to face the expenses of the war. The conflict came to an end with the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, which Juarez opposed as Mexico lost a large part of its territory. Among other actions, he denied the entry of General Santa Anna, who at that time was fleeing from the Americans, something that would generate his resentment.

In 1847, he was appointed federal deputy and later governor of Oaxaca.. During this period his action contributed to generate infrastructure, schools and different advances, at the same time he was named rector of the Institute of Sciences and Arts of Oaxaca. But in 1853 General Santa Anna took power, something that caused Juarez to be arrested and was even close to being shot, to later decide his exile to Cuba. Juarez went to New Orleans, where he would meet with multiple exiles who planned to overthrow the general.

The so-called Ayutla Revolution was formed, which in 1855 succeeded in getting General Santa Anna to withdraw from the presidency and the liberals came to power. The new president decided to appoint Benito Juarez as Minister of Justice. Likewise, in 1857 they managed to decree a Constitution.

Presidency and conflicts

In 1857 Benito Juárez was appointed Minister of the Interior and President of the Supreme Court of Justice, during the term of President Comonfort. However, in 1855 a coup d'état in 1855 there was a coup d'étatin 1855, a coup d'état, proposed by Comonfort himself to overthrow the government, caused the president to resign. His resignation made Juárez president according to his country's Constitution, although the perpetrators of the coup (who supported the ecclesiastical and military establishment and were against liberal policies) appointed Zuloaga as president.

This caused Juarez to go to Guanajuato and Guadalajara, where he was able to form a government and was officially named president. The Three Years' War would begin, in which Juarez's liberals and Zuluaga's conservatives would fight until 1860, when the former achieved victory.

At the same time, the harsh conditions of the war and its expenses made Juárez suspend the foreign debt, which also led France to invade Mexico and make Maximilian I emperor of Mexico.. This meant a new war that would end with Maximilian's death in 1867.

After that, Juarez would be reelected and would try again to promote a reform of the system and the defense of freedom and equality. In fact, based on this he was named Benemérito de las Américas (Meritorious of the Americas). However, some of his policies some of his policies caused many politicians to fear that he would want to keep the office by force, which meant that CongressCongress became hostile. Despite this, the elections of 1867 were favorable to him and allowed him to remain in office.

Last years and death

The years went by, and with them Benito Juarez began to suffer various medical complications. In 1870 the president suffered what was then known as cerebral congestion, in which the president would manifest bradycardia among other problems.The president would manifest bradycardia among other problems, and this would be repeated shortly thereafter. To this difficult situation was added the fact that his wife was diagnosed with terminal Cancer in 1869, an illness that would end her life in 1871.

During that same year Juarez would be reelected president, but his long political life and his emotional and health condition would cause discontent among a portion of the population. Among this opposition was Porfirio Díaz, who harshly criticized the reelection and even accused him of being a dictator. They even took up arms, with some conflicts and riots that ended up being suppressed.

A year later, during the month of March, Benito Juárez had an angina pectoris. had an angina pectoris which he managed to overcome. However, months later, the Mexican president began to experience a relapse of his heart condition while he was having a series of audiences with various personalities and government and military officials. Shortly thereafter, at his home, his condition worsened until it finally ended his life. He died in Mexico City on July 18, 1872, at the age of 66.