Viva Mexico! Viva la Independencia! September 16 Independence Day

On September 16 each year, Mexican Independence Day, the president of Mexico stands on the balcony above the entrance to the National Palace in Mexico City facing the huge Zocalo filled with people.  He recreates Father Miguel Hidalgo’s famous shout Viva Mexico!  Viva la Independencia! that Hidalgo made from the church in the town of Dolores in the state of Guanajuato, on September 15, 1810.

Thus began Mexico’s war of independence from Spain which was not fully realized until 1821.

Known as El Grito de Dolores, the cry is the most important symbol of Independence Day.  Each year at eleven o’clock in the morning, mayors and governors of cities and states throughout Mexico echo it as citizens gather to join the shout.

Some think that Cinco de Mayo is Mexican independence day.  It is not.

Mexico’s General Iturbide rode into Mexico City in 1821 to decidedly end the War of Independence. The Puebla nuns, also known for their mole poblano, created the red, white and green  Chiles en Nogada in his honor. He’s the man who designed the Mexican flag.

The other Mexican revolution started on November 20, 1910. Also known as the Mexican Civil War, the ten-year conflict succeeded in ousting the thirty-year dictatorship of Porfirio Diaz.

Travel every city, town and village in Mexico and you will see streets named for the revolutionary heroes and the dates of independence.

Viva Mexico! Viva la Independencia! Give a shout out!