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Santa Anna and the Gómez Farías Administration in Mexico, 1833-1834
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 June 2017
Extract
Despite numerous biographies, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna remains one of the most enigmatic characters to have emerged in nineteenth century Latin America. Often dismissed by his many detractors as an unprincipled opportunist in the worst military caudillo tradition, he nevertheless dominated the turbulent and often chaotic Mexican political scene in the thirty years between independence and the Reform. His life has naturally been subjected to close scrutiny by both his contemporaries and more recent historians but his genius for political manouevre and equivocation have left many episodes in his career obscure and subject to doubt. Perhaps nowhere is this more the case than in his first presidency from 1833-1834 and in particular in his relations with his vice-president Gomez Farias' administration. This article seeks to examine his activities and ambitions in these years, and to suggest reasons, which hitherto have been overlooked or at least not given sufficient attention by his biographers, why he chose to betray and destroy the liberals' first attempt at reform.
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- Copyright © Academy of American Franciscan History 1974
References
1 This article is based on my study of the first Federal Republic, to be published by the Fondo de Cultura Economica. For financial assistance towards my research, I am grateful to the Sir Ernest Cassel Educational Trust and the American Philosophical Society.
2 Landero was alleged to have lost 18,000 pesos of the garrison's funds in gambling: El Sol, 10 January 1832. Callcott states that Santa Anna offered to pay off the debt provided Landero initiated the revolt: W. H. Callcott, Santa Anna (Connecticut, 1964), p. 88. The full text of the plan is in the newspaper El Fenix de la Libertad, 11 January 1832.
3 There is a copy of this letter in the Gomez Farias Papers, University of Texas, folder 115.
4 See Santa Anna's letter of 11 November 1831, cited in Callcott, Santa Anna, pp. 87-88.
5 The full text of the Zavaleta agreement is in V. Riva Palacio, ed., Mexico a truves de los siglos (4th ed., Mexico, 1962), vol. IV, pp. 303-304.
6 Santa Anna issued several proclamations and circulars during the first weeks of January; see, for example, those published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 16, 20 January 1833.
7 Several generals were also demoted: see one list published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 5 February 1833.
8 Zavala was formally reelected to the governorship of the state of Mexico on 21 February 1833. He was also elected a deputy for Yucatan to the new federal congress but he did not attend the sessions until the beginning of October.
9 Speech published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 20 February 1833.
10 El Mono began on 1 March 1833 and appeared irregularly at three or four day intervals. La Verdad Desnuda began on 20 February 1833 as a biweekly.
11 See La Verdad Desnuda, 6,13,16 March 1833.
12 El Mono, 5 March 1833.
13 On 2 March Santa Anna wrote to Gomez Farias warning him to be vigilant of the active opposition; letter in Gomez Farias Papers, folder 44A, no. 24.
14 Callcott believed that Santa Anna at this time was a real liberal (Santa Anna, p. 99) on the basis of letters which he wrote to Gomez Farias during March and April in which he spoke of their unity of ideas (ibid., p. 100). Given Santa Anna's past career, his widely known tendency to fit his views to the prevailing circumstances, and certainly in the light of subsequent events, it would seem most unlikely that he was a liberal at any stage.
15 Gomez Farias Papers, folder 44A, no. 26.
16 Again Callcott seems to have believed it. In his Church and State in Mexico, 1822- 1851 (Durham, N. Carolina, 1926), p. 87, he wrote that it is hard to believe that he deliberately exercised so much self restraint.
17 C. M. de Bustamante, Diario historico', 23 March 1833, cited in C. A. Hutchinson, Valentin Gomez Farias: a biographical study', Ph.D. dissertation, University of Texas, 1948, p. 162. 18 Reports of sessions published in the government newspaper, El Telegrafo, 5, 14 April, 1833.
19 Deputies session of 9 April reported in El Fenix de la Libertad, 11 April 1833.
20 Deputies session of 6 April published in El Telegrafo, 8 April 1833.
21 These various circulars and laws are in M. Dublan y J. Lozano, Legislation mexicana (Mexico, 1876), vol. II, pp. 503-514.
22 La Columna de la Constitution Federal de la Repiiblica Mexicana, 6 May 1833.
23 The words aristocrats was one of the terms used by the liberals to depict their political opponents. It embraced generally the so-called privileged classes', e.g. clergy, military, as well as the more affluent of the property owning groups, e.g. landowners, wealthy merchants, etc.
24 La Verdad Desnuda, 24 April 1833.
25 His speech was published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 16 May 1833.
26 Alocucion del Presidente de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos a sus compatriotas', published in El Telegrafo, 22 May 1833. Santa Anna had travelled by way of Puebla and Gomez Farias received several letters from people who had talked with him during the journey. One was Carlos Garcia who wrote on 11 May saying that viene el Sr. Presidente poseido de buenas ideas y ha recibido muy bien las insinuaciones que hice de parte de V.. What these insinuaciones were is not known. He added that Santa Anna was alone, not having brought his family with him; me parece, he said, que seria bueno preparale una cama, a mas de aquello en que pensamos. The next day, 12 May, Garcia wrote again describing Santa Anna's welcome in Puebla and adding that the President had chosen Jose Maria Tornel to write the speech he was to make to congress. These letters are in Gomez Farias Papers, folder 44A, no. 44.
27 The full text is in J. M. Bocanegra, Memorias para la historia de Mexico independiente, 1821-1842 (Mexico, 1892-1897), vol. II, pp. 486-487.
28 Proclamation published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 29 May 1833.
29 Bustamante, Diario', 29 May 1833, cited in Hutchinson, p. 194.
30 He certainly seems to have been expecting supporting revolts elsewhere: see his unaddressed letter, dated 6 June 1833, in Gomez Farias Papers, folder 44B, no. 121.
31 G. Duran to Santa Anna, 1 June, published in El Telegrafo, 2 June 1833.
32 Correspondence published in ibid.
33 These decrees are in Dublan y Lozano, II, 528-532.
34 Circular published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 10 June 1833.
35 Mora claimed that many military officers had been bribed: J. M. L. Mora, Obras sueltas (Mexico, 1963), p. 48.
36 Proclama del Excmo. Sr. Vice-Presidente de la Republica (Mexico, 7 p.m., 7 June 1833).
37 The text of the Arista plan, issued at Huejocingo on 8 June 1833 is in Bocanegra, II, 486-491. It is interesting to note that both Arista and Duran had been put up for promotion only a few weeks before; see El Fenix de la Libertad, 3 April 1833.
38 M. Arista, Resena historica de la revolution que desde 6 de junto hasta 8 de octubre tuvo lugar en la republica el ano de 1833 a favor del sistema central (Mexico, 1835), and Arista, Cartas dirigidas al Excmo. Sr. Tresidente de la republica D. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna y sus contestaciones (Mexico, 1833). 39 El Fenix de la Libertad, 9 June 1833.'
40 Santa Anna's letter was published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 14 June 1833. For the official version of his arrest, see Relacion oficial de lo ocurrido con la persona de S. E. el Presidente, desde el dia de su prision hasta el de su libertad', dated 14 June and published in El Telegrafo, 15 June 1833. For Santa Anna's own uninformative account, see Mi historia militar y politica in G. Garcia y C. Pereyra, Documentos ineditos o muy raws para la historia de Mexico (Mexico, 1905), vol. II, pp. 29-30.
41 Most of his biographers have concluded that he was behind the revolts; see, for example, F. C. Hanighen, Santa Anna, the Napoleon of the West (New York, 1934), pp. 74-75; J. Fuentes Mares, Santa Anna, aurora y ocaso de un comediante (Mexico, 1956), p. 100. Callcott (Santa Anna) does not offer any conclusion, and O. L. Jones, Santa Anna (New York, 1968) omits any mention of these events.
42 Apparently Santa Anna had written to G6mez Farias on 3 June asking him to arrange the suspension of a proposed law on ecclesiastical patronage and also that he should try to stop newspaper discussion of Church matters. This letter, and Gomez Farias reply to it on 5 June, are cited by various authors as being in the Gomez Farias Papers, although I was unable to find them: see Callcott, Santa Anna, p. 101; Hanighen, Santa Anna, p. 73; H. M. Hunnicut, The relations between Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna as President and Valentin Gomez Farias as Vice-President, April 1833-January 1835', M.A. thesis, University of Texas, 1925, pp. 28-29.
43 Mora, Obras sueltas, p. 48. Most later writers have agreed with Mora's explanation: see, for example, Hanighen, Santa Anna, pp. 74-75; V. Fuentes Diaz, Gomez Farias, padre delareforma (Mexico, 1947), p. 117; Fuentes Mares, Santa Anna, pp. 100-101.
44 See the letters published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 7 June 1833.
48 See the letters in G6mez Farias Papers, folder 44B, nos. 123-126.
46 For example, after the successful coup against Guerrero in December 1829, Santa Anna declared he would fight on, only to discover that few soldiers would back him and he was forced to make an abject retreat back to Manga de Clavo.
47 In a letter to Santa Anna on 6 July, Arista and Duran tried to broaden their appeal by declaring that they were fighting, not just for the Church and the army, but also to achieve a change in the political system, that is, to centralism; see correspondence published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 10,13 July 1833.
48 Fuentes Mares (Santa Anna, p. 105) wrote, Carecia absolutamente de ideas en lo tocante al conflicto entre la Iglesia y el Estado; ni piadoso ni infiel, no era un fervoroso de la religion sino del Te Deum.
49 See the letter from J. M. Tornel to Inspector and Commanders, 5 December 1833, published in El Telegrafo, 6 December 1833.
50 Santa Anna had already been in dispute with Gomez Farias over a proposed coalition of states which involved a substantial increase in the power of the militia: for details, see Hutchinson, pp. 243-245.
51 El Fenix de la Libertad, 2 November 1833.
52 El Telegrafo, 2 November 1833. 53 Published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 1 December 1833.
54 Oficio del Excmo. Sr. Ministro de Relaciones a los Excmos. Sres. Secretarios de la Camara de Diputados, solicitando licencia para que S. E. el Presidente de la republics pueda separarse de los negocios mientras restablece su salud quebrantada', published in El Fenix de la Libertad, 29 November 1833. Santa Anna also felt it necessary to canvass support for his request directly. On 2 December he wrote to deputy Ignacio Herrera asking him to vote in favour, agitando por mi parte la pronta resolucion para que si es posible en el mismo de hoy sea despachada en su camara; pues cada dia que paso en esta, va padeciendo mi fisica extraordinariamente; letter in Garcia Collection, University of Texas, folder 216, Documentos relativos a Santa Anna etc.
55 Minister of War to congress, published in El Telegrafo, 6 December 1833.
56 Callcott and Jones, in common with most of the other biographies, missed, or at least fail to mention, this significant dispute with congress.
57 In a letter to Gomez Farias on 4 January, Santa Anna implied his support for a recent Veracruz state law against the monasteries and their goods; the letter is in Gomez Farias Papers, folder 45, no. 231.
58 For examples, see El Mosquito Mexicano, 18,21,25 March, 1,29 April 1834.
59 Ibid., 2 May 1834.
60 A. Butler to L. McLane, 8 March 1834, Justin Smith Papers, University of Texas, vol. Ill, p. 66.
61 It is interesting to note that Santa Anna apparently had begun a collection of Napoleana at this time; Hanighen, Santa Anna, p. 73.
62 Mora, Obras sueltas, p. 153. Santa Anna referred to these various pleas subsequently: see letters given in full at the end of this article.
63 Santa Anna to Gomez Farias, 12 March 1834, Gomez Farias Papers, folder 45, no. 267.
64 Mora, Obras sueltas, p. 153.
65 Bocanegra, II, 546. Santa Anna claimed the letters were forgeries; see Hutchinson, 302-303.
66 About the middle of April, Gomez Farias asked congress to grant him a year's leave of absence, with salary paid in advance; Hutchinson, 300.
67 Printed proclamation by Santa Anna, dated 29 April 1834, also published in El Telegrafo, 3 May 1834.
68 The following details of this dispute with congress are taken from press reports of the time, especially those in El Fenix de la Libertad, 13, 14, 16, 19, 23, 24, 26, 28, 31 May, 1,2,4 June 1834 and El Telegrafo, 16,22 May, 1 June 1834.
69 The Puebla plan was entitled Protesta que hace la guarnicion de Puebla de sostener ilesa y sin tolerancia de otra alguna, la religion catolica, apostolica, romana, asi como la forma de gobierno', dated 11 May 1834, text published in Bocanegra, II, 565-568. A copy was sent to Gomez Farias by the governor of Puebla who wrote that the people had received the laws of clerical reform with the utmost displeasure; Cosme Furlong to G6mez Farias, 11 May 1834, Gomez Farias Papers, folder 45, no. 294.
70 Solatia's letter was published In El Fenix de la Libertad, 31 May 1834.
71 Callcott, Santa Anna, p. 110.
72 The text is in Bocanegra, II, 573-574.
73 The ecclesiastical corporations in the capital agreed to make Santa Anna a loan of 30,000-40,000 pesos a month for six months; El Telegrafo, 3 June 1834.
74 El Fenix de la Libertad, 31 May 1834.
75 Zacatecas legislature to Santa Anna, 10 June 1834, published in El Telegrafo, 22 June 1834. The states plan of coalition was published in La Lima, 24 May 1834.
76 A. Butler, unaddressed, 9 July 1834, Justin Smith Papers, III, 72.
77 For example, see Santa Anna's proclamation of 1 June, published in El Telegrafo, 3 June 1834.
78 Santa Anna later said that he felt a wise and virtuous despotism was the type of government best suited to Mexico; Callcott, Santa Anna, pp. 108-109.
79 These letters are in the Garcia Collection, University of Texas, Folder 36, Archivo de Francisco Garcia Salinas, 1829-1847, nos. 14,15,17.