Presentation/The Conspiracy of Queretaro
Presentation
Hello everyone, my name is Alex, and after reading some timelines in this site, I decided to make my own, speaking about my country: Mexico. Since this is my first proper timeline, I consider myself as a sort of amateur, so I will try my best to properly learn and not commit (much) mistakes, and at the same time, I will give myself time to publish new threads. In any case, I will appreciate any help available to improve myself. The timeline will be not always lineal, which means that some threads will be related to previous events that happened before the content said in the previous thread. And I think that's it, let's get start, shall we?
After the beginning of the French Invasion of Spain, the viceregal government in New Spain found itself in a delicate situation: the bond that was supposed to unite the Spanish Metropolí with the Viceroyalty had disappeared: Ferdinand VII had abdicated, and Spain was de facto a puppet of the French Empire. This further worsened the already tense relationship between the peninsular Spaniards and the Creoles (born in America), as opposing ideas began to form in both groups as to from whom sovereignty emanated. This clash of ideas was reflected, for example, in the coup d'état of 1808, as a result of the inclination of Viceroy José de Iturrigaray to the proposal of the Creole Francisco Primo de Verdad to form a Government Board in the Viceroyalty, which would govern in the absence of Fernando VII (considered the legitimate king against the usurper José Bonaparte). This Board would not imply the independence of the Viceroyalty, but it would imply the displacement of sovereignty from the King to the people, something unacceptable in the opinion of many peninsulars.
The coup, which took place on September 15, 1808, led to the dismissal and imprisonment of Iturrigaray, as well as Primo de Verdad and other Creole sympathizers. Ironically, the coup not only failed to stabilize the situation, but only further fueled the prospect of insurrection. The Conjura de Valladolid, for example, proposed a coup d'état that would allow the defense of King Ferdinand against the possibility of Spain falling into French hands for good. However, the Conjura was discovered, and its instigators were arrested (although they were not severely punished). A situation contrary to other Viceroyalties in the continent, where successful Government Boards were formed, such as the Board of Caracas, predecessor of the republican government in Venezuela, New Granada and Quito, united in the Republic of Colombia [1]. The most important case, and the one that led to the eventual formation of the Mexican Republic, was the Conspiracy of Queretaro: formed by a group of enlightened criollos commanded by the priest Miguel Hidalgo; whose objectives were, like his predecessors, a coup against the Viceroyalty government, although unlike its predecessor in Valladolid, the Conspirators had different objectives, sometimes contradictory (so it is thought that there was more than one existing Conspiracy, for example, the plans of the conspirator Ignacio Allende were not the same as those of Epigmenio Gonzalez, with the former advocating for a Government Board, and the latter for Independence under an Empire).
In any case, the conspirators, commanded by Hidalgo, planned to gather enough weapons and sympathizers (Creoles, mestizos and natives) to be able to carry out a general uprising that would prevent a timely response from the viceregal government. Originally it was planned that the uprising would take place at the beginning of December 1810; but a closer date was accepted: October 2. Although there were rumors that an uprising was indeed planned, especially after the denunciation of the messenger José Mariano Galván, the local government dismissed the accusations [2]. The plan, methodically studied, foresaw the capture of the city of Queretaro and San Miguel el Grande (today San Miguel de Allende), to then accumulate troops, resources and popularity, until having the capacity to capture Mexico City. It was also planned to capture as many gachupines as possible, both lay and religious.
On the night of October 1, the uprising began: Hidalgo himself supervised the arrest of different religious leaders in Queretaro, while Allende made sure to take his hometown. Several Franciscan friars joined the cause, and thanks to the contacts that Epigmenio had, as well as the financial help of the corregidor Miguel Rodriguez and his wife, Josefa Ortiz, it was possible to gather around 300 to 500 men in the first hours of the uprising. Due to his status as a clergyman, Hidalgo sought the support of the city's population through religious talk, while other conspiratorial leaders, such as Juan Aldama or Mariano Abasolo, carried out "heavy work" (taking over the city square). Months of preparation helped, so the city was quickly taken almost without bloodshed, to which Hidalgo decided to pronounce the so-called Grito of Queretaro in the Oratory of San Felipe Neri, a church that he himself had blessed some years before. There are no exact records of the exact words spoken by Hidalgo, although the most accepted theory is that he shouted:
"¡Viva nuestra madre santísima de Guadalupe!, ¡viva Fernando VII y muera el mal gobierno!".
And with that, the War of Independence began.
The coup, which took place on September 15, 1808, led to the dismissal and imprisonment of Iturrigaray, as well as Primo de Verdad and other Creole sympathizers. Ironically, the coup not only failed to stabilize the situation, but only further fueled the prospect of insurrection. The Conjura de Valladolid, for example, proposed a coup d'état that would allow the defense of King Ferdinand against the possibility of Spain falling into French hands for good. However, the Conjura was discovered, and its instigators were arrested (although they were not severely punished). A situation contrary to other Viceroyalties in the continent, where successful Government Boards were formed, such as the Board of Caracas, predecessor of the republican government in Venezuela, New Granada and Quito, united in the Republic of Colombia [1]. The most important case, and the one that led to the eventual formation of the Mexican Republic, was the Conspiracy of Queretaro: formed by a group of enlightened criollos commanded by the priest Miguel Hidalgo; whose objectives were, like his predecessors, a coup against the Viceroyalty government, although unlike its predecessor in Valladolid, the Conspirators had different objectives, sometimes contradictory (so it is thought that there was more than one existing Conspiracy, for example, the plans of the conspirator Ignacio Allende were not the same as those of Epigmenio Gonzalez, with the former advocating for a Government Board, and the latter for Independence under an Empire).
In any case, the conspirators, commanded by Hidalgo, planned to gather enough weapons and sympathizers (Creoles, mestizos and natives) to be able to carry out a general uprising that would prevent a timely response from the viceregal government. Originally it was planned that the uprising would take place at the beginning of December 1810; but a closer date was accepted: October 2. Although there were rumors that an uprising was indeed planned, especially after the denunciation of the messenger José Mariano Galván, the local government dismissed the accusations [2]. The plan, methodically studied, foresaw the capture of the city of Queretaro and San Miguel el Grande (today San Miguel de Allende), to then accumulate troops, resources and popularity, until having the capacity to capture Mexico City. It was also planned to capture as many gachupines as possible, both lay and religious.
On the night of October 1, the uprising began: Hidalgo himself supervised the arrest of different religious leaders in Queretaro, while Allende made sure to take his hometown. Several Franciscan friars joined the cause, and thanks to the contacts that Epigmenio had, as well as the financial help of the corregidor Miguel Rodriguez and his wife, Josefa Ortiz, it was possible to gather around 300 to 500 men in the first hours of the uprising. Due to his status as a clergyman, Hidalgo sought the support of the city's population through religious talk, while other conspiratorial leaders, such as Juan Aldama or Mariano Abasolo, carried out "heavy work" (taking over the city square). Months of preparation helped, so the city was quickly taken almost without bloodshed, to which Hidalgo decided to pronounce the so-called Grito of Queretaro in the Oratory of San Felipe Neri, a church that he himself had blessed some years before. There are no exact records of the exact words spoken by Hidalgo, although the most accepted theory is that he shouted:
"¡Viva nuestra madre santísima de Guadalupe!, ¡viva Fernando VII y muera el mal gobierno!".
And with that, the War of Independence began.
Miguel Hidalgo, the Father of the Motherland
[1] The Republic of (Gran) Colombia will survive in this TL.
[2] As you can see, the POD is that the Conspiracy is never discovered (OTL, one of the conspirators, Joaquín Arias, in a desperate act of fear, self-incriminated himself, along with the rest of his comrades. This resulted in the conspirators (that were not captured/arrested afterwards) in escaping to the town of Dolores, Guanajuato and launch the uprising earlier. There's some earlier POD's I will try to talk later.
[2] As you can see, the POD is that the Conspiracy is never discovered (OTL, one of the conspirators, Joaquín Arias, in a desperate act of fear, self-incriminated himself, along with the rest of his comrades. This resulted in the conspirators (that were not captured/arrested afterwards) in escaping to the town of Dolores, Guanajuato and launch the uprising earlier. There's some earlier POD's I will try to talk later.
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