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The Second Mexican Empire was the name of Mexico under the regime established from 1864 to 1867. Using the pretext of collecting overdue loans to Mexico, Napoleon III of France justified the invasion by French troops. The French attempted to use the Mexican adventure to recapture some of the grandeur of earlier Napoleonic times. The military intervention put Archduke Maximilian of Austria on the Mexican Throne as Maximilian I. It was promoted and installed by the French, with some support from the Austrian and Spanish Crowns, in order to create a European-style monarchical system in Mexico. The French also had support from conservative elements within Mexico, who were looking for a way to promote stability and end the constant cycle of unrest and revolution. The Second Mexican Empire lasted three years, with one reigning emperor.
The Empire was divided into 50 departments (departamentos).
The rule of Emperor Maximiliano was blemished by constant conflict. On his arrival in 1864 with his wife, Empress Carlota of Mexico, daughter of King Léopold I of the Belgians, he found himself in the middle of a political struggle between the Liberals, headed by Benito Juárez, and the Conservatives that backed him. The two factions had set up parallel governments; the Conservatives in Mexico City controlling central Mexico and the Liberals in Veracruz. The Conservatives received funding from Europe, especially from Isabella II of Spain and Napoleon III of France; the Liberals found backing from United States Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson, after they had finished their own Civil War in 1865.
Because Emperor Maximilian was viewed as a French puppet by some, he was unpopular and many citizens did not regard him as the legitimate leader of Mexico. Under the orders of Benito Juárez in 1867 Maximillian was publicly executed at the Cerro de las Campanas, near Queretaro.
Before his death, he adopted the grand sons of the first Mexican emperor, Agustín de Iturbide. He attempted to make them his future successors to the throne of Mexico because they would be seen as legitimate due to their pure Mexican bloodline. Just before his death, Maximilian sent his adopted sons to an adoptive family as he was realizing the dangerous situation of Mexico. The adoptive sons started the Mexican Royal family and the House of Götzen-Iturbide in the exile.
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Popular culture
The 1970 film Two Mules for Sister Sara was set in Mexico during the years of the Second Mexican Empire. The two main characters, played by Clint Eastwood and Shirley MacLaine, aided a Mexican resistance force and ultimately led them to overpower a French garrison.
See also
- First Mexican Empire
- French intervention in Mexico
- Mexican Imperial Orders
- List of Emperors of Mexico
External links
