Every May 5th Americans across the U.S. take the opportunity to celebrate Cinco de Mayo with parades, parties, mariachi music, folk dancing, Mexican food, and of course, margaritas!
But what really happened on the 5th of May? And what are we really celebrating?
For starters, it is NOT Mexican Independence Day as many people mistakenly believe. Mexico actually celebrates its independence on September 16th. Instead, Cinco de Mayo commemorates an event that happened come 50 years after Mexico won its independence: The 1862 victory at the Battle of Puebla against the French forces of Napoleon III.
If you like a bit of summarized history, like I do, below is a quick read on the full skinny about Cinco! And if you rather watch a quick video, here’s a link to a 2 minute on the History Channel.
https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/cinco-de-mayo
Cinco de Mayo—or the fifth of May—commemorates the Mexican army’s 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War (1861-1867). A relatively minor holiday in Mexico, in the United States Cinco de Mayo has evolved into a celebration of Mexican culture and heritage, particularly in areas with large Mexican-American populations. Cinco de Mayo traditions include parades, mariachi music performances and street festivals in cities and towns across Mexico and the United States.
History of Cinco de Mayo: Battle of Puebla
In 1861 the liberal Mexican Benito Juárez (1806-1872) became president of a country in financial ruin, and he was forced to default on his debts to European governments. In response, France, Britain and Spain sent naval forces to Veracruz to demand reimbursement. Britain and Spain negotiated with Mexico and withdrew, but France, ruled by Napoleon III (1808-1873), decided to use the opportunity to carve a dependent empire out of Mexican territory. Late in 1861, a well-armed French fleet stormed Veracruz, landing a large French force and driving President Juárez and his government into retreat.
Certain that success would come swiftly, 6,000 French troops under General Charles Latrille de Lorencez (1814-1892) set out to attack Puebla de Los Angeles, a small town in east-central Mexico. From his new headquarters in the north, Juárez rounded up a rag-tag force of 2,000 loyal men—many of them either indigenous Mexicans or of mixed ancestry—and sent them to Puebla. Led by Texas-born General Ignacio Zaragoza (1829-1862), the vastly outnumbered and poorly supplied Mexicans fortified the town and prepared for the French assault. On May 5, 1862, Lorencez drew his army, well provisioned and supported by heavy artillery, before the city of Puebla and led an assault from the north. The battle lasted from daybreak to early evening, and when the French finally retreated they had lost nearly 500 soldiers. Fewer than 100 Mexicans had been killed in the clash.
Although not a major strategic win in the overall war against the French, Zaragoza’s success at Puebla represented a great symbolic victory for the Mexican government and bolstered the resistance movement. Six years later—thanks in part to military support and political pressure from the United States, which was finally in a position to aid its besieged neighbor after the end of the Civil War—France withdrew. The same year, Austrian Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian, who had been installed as emperor of Mexico by Napoleon in 1864, was captured and executed by Juárez’s forces. Puebla de Los Angeles was renamed for General Zaragoza, who died of typhoid fever months after his historic triumph there.
Now, of course, the fact that we are now a bit more knowledgeable about this holiday, doesn’t mean that we can’t partake of the activities and enjoy some refreshing libations. Here is a link to our Cinco de Mayo festivities!
