Plan Iguala and the story of the embrace that consummated Mexican independence

In the history of Mexico, many events explain how the country became independent. Plan Iguala is one of the documents with which the insurgent forces reached a political phase of the popular movement, led by Miguel Hidalgo in 1810according to historians.

The online article, The Embrace of Acatempan, an act of reconciliation that demanded independence, published in February 2021 by the Senate, explains that this treaty was the political solution to a war that had lasted 11 years old. With this event, the formation of a nation free from the Spanish crown was achieved.

Plan Iguala was proclaimed by Agustín de Iturbide on February 24, 1821, in the town of Iguala de Independencia, today located in the state of Guerrero. However, there is a history of betrayal in the royalist forces, an act better known as “Acatempan’s Embrace”.

The document was relevant because it represented more than a treaty, since it was a negotiation based on the liberation movement initiated by Miguel Hidalgo. The historical archives collected on the website of the National Commission for Human Rights (CNDH) define Map of Iguala as a political project to formalize Mexican independence.

The plan established the columns with which the new country was erected and tried to represent different sectors of society, made up of criollos and castas who wanted the same rights as the Spaniards. Plan Iguala consisted of 23 itemsbut above all it sought to meet three objectives: to consolidate the independence of Mexico, to impose the Catholic religion and to guarantee social equality between Americans, Spaniards, Africans and Asians.

Additionally, 17 other items also known as Treaties of Cordoba. The new considerations had the political aim of adopting the regime of constitutional monarchy. Another of the most important aspects was the creation of the first name of the independent country: Mexican Empire.

The heroes of independence were aided by allies who started out as enemies of the movement. In the February 2021 online article, The Acatempan Embrace, an act of reconciliation that called for independence, published on the Senate website, it is explained that after 11 years of war which began on September 16, 1810royalist forces and the economy were on the verge of collapse.

In 1820, General Vincent Guerrero He made armed resistance invincible. Until that year, Augustin de Iturbide He was the colonel of the royalist army sent by the viceroy to put down the rebellion. After many failed attempts to defeat Guerrero, the Spanish soldier decided to join the independence movement, aware that it would take time to achieve victory.

During this year, Iturbide began secret communication with Guerrero. The colonel of the Spanish crown was trying to reach a political solution to the armed conflict. For his part, the Mexican general understood that the negotiations could mean the triumph of Mexican independence. It was until February 10, 1821who met at Acatempo, then a population belonging to the State of Mexico, and they sealed the alliance. The act is known as “The Embrace of Acatempan”.

This historical fact symbolizes the evolution of the struggle of independence. With the document, the mass movement was left behind and became a political change of the times, according to information from the National Institute for Historical Studies of the Revolutions of Mexico.

The plan is a turning point in the birth of the country as an independent nation, as the criollos were able to govern the territory where they had first lived. With the enactment of Map of Igualagained independence from September 27, 1821an act that is also due to the alliance between Guerrero and Iturbide.

However, the CNDH website explains that this first attempt to create a constitutional monarchy and unify the colonial people was ignored by the Spanish authorities in 1822despite the fact that they had signed the agreement, and with it, they recognized the freedom of Mexico.