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May 05, 2008
Happy Cinco de Mayo!!!!
Did you know that Cinco de Mayo celebrations are not celebrating Mexico's Independence Day?
Cinco de Mayo acutally:
Commemorates the victory of the Mexican militia over the French army at The Battle Of Puebla in 1862. From: MEXonline.com
History of Cinco de Mayo:
During the French-Mexican War, a poorly supplied and outnumbered Mexican army under General Ignacio Zaragoza defeats a French army attempting to capture Puebla de Los Angeles, a small town in east-central Mexico. Victory at the Battle of Puebla represented a great moral victory for the Mexican government, symbolizing the country's ability to defend its sovereignty against threat by a powerful foreign nation.
In 1861, the liberal Mexican Benito Juarez 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, 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 Juarez and his government into retreat. To finish reading the history of Cinco de Mayo go to: http://www.history.com/minisite.do?content_type=Minisite_Generic&content_type_id=767&display_order=4&mini_id=1099
For more information on Cinco de Mayo:
Mexonline.com Cinco de Mayo History and Celebration, Mexican Holidays
What Do Mexicans Celebrate on Cinco de Mayo (May 5th)?
Cinco de Mayo - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Posted by d-nadler at May 5, 2008 11:04 AM