My StumbleUpon Page
Celebrate Cinco de Mayo: What It Is
Tuesday, May 5th, 2009 @ 9:16 am | We Think
Cinco de Mayo, Spanish for May 5th, is a holiday that is more celebrated in the United States than it is in Mexico where the reason for celebration originated.
Cinco de Mayo is not the Mexican celebration of independence from Spain. Mexican Independence Day is September 16th.
In 1862, in the city of Puebla, the outnumbered Mexican Army defeated the French who had invaded Mexico late in the previous year to force payment of an outstanding debt. The victory by the Mexican Army, led by General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín, is noted because they not only conquered the larger, better trained and better equipped armed forces from France, they vanquished an army that had not been defeated in fifty years.
The Mexican defeat of the French attack at Puebla was a short lived success. In 1863 France invaded and occupied Mexico City, installed Ferdinand Maximilian Joseph, an Austrian, Maximilian I as Emperor of Mexico.
May 5th, however, is commemorated for its historical significance, though not a federal holiday in Mexico, it is proudly celebrated in the City of Puebla, as well as cities across the United States and a few locations around the world.
Recently
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.