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Porfirio Díaz, bemedalled and distinguished, in the twilight of his decades as Mexico’s undisputed ruler (1905). Although old, he still held Mexico in a grip of iron. His biggest problem was that, like many dictators, he had failed to establish institutions to carry on his programs after his departure.. Porfirismo, which is what his political and economic program was called, was just that: without Porfirio there was no Porfirismo.

He could look back on great accomplishments. He had played a major role in driving the French out of Mexico, had settled the north, and had put Mexico well on the road to modernity — the rail network in Mexico is still basically the one he built. The average Mexican was probably better off after Díaz than before; and he had accomplished all this with far less brutality than most other dictators. Yet he remains one of the most reviled men in Mexican history. This is probably largely because he failed to recognize the deep-seated need of the Mexican people to feel that they played a role in governing themselves. He doubtless wanted to crown his career by leaving as a legacy a peaceful and prosperous Mexico. Instead he left a country on the brink of chaos, and about to plunge into an incredibly bloody revolution/civil war.

That is the grand tragedy of this otherwise great leader.

One revolutionary leader actually said of Díaz: "The only mistake he ever made was to grow old."

  A message from Porfirio Díaz, enclosed in the cornerstone of a school founded at Chapingo in 1896. Not only is it an interesting memento of another time, it also illustrates some of the most common spelling errors in Spanish. While Spanish is generally spelled phonetically and, again generally, is easier to spell than English, there are some problem areas, and the old gentleman managed to hit most of them. A transcription follows, with the errors noted.

"Quisiera el Supremo Creador del saber humano que en el ciglo [the c should be an s, but they sound the same] 20 (two indecipherable words) esta escuela que benimos [should be a v, but again the pronunciation is the same] a fundar solemnamente vajo [should be a b] la generosa protecsion [should be a double c, the o should be accented ó] del Sr. Coronel D. Manuel Gonzalez [the a should be accented á to keep the stress from falling on the last syllable --ez] hijo.

Chaping[o] oct[u]bre 18/96

                                                                             Porfirio Díaz (signature)

Díaz's regime ended in 1910 with the legitimate and more-or-less peaceful election of Francisco Madero, one of Mexico's heroes.  Madero was soon assassinated, and a bloody decade of "revolution" and civil war ensued.   Mexico's dead numbered in the millions, mostly civilians, and many Mexicans doubt that the results justified the sacrifice.  Some popular songs from the war include La Cucaracha and La Adelita (La Adelita is in Level I of the program), identified with the [in]famous Pancho Villa; and La Valentina, which was identified with the "Federalistas", led by Venustiano Carranza, "El jefe máximo", who later became President and was killed while attempting to flee with a train-full of loot, including the country's gold reserves.  

Enough history.  You can now listen to a big part of  La Valentina, sung by one of Mexico's idols of song Jorge Negrete.   The most famous line in the song says a lot about the attitudes of many who took part in the revolution:  Si me han de matar mañana, que me maten de una vez. (If they're going to kill me tomorrow, let them kill me right away.) 

ew count started October 23,2004