Cinco de Mayo was over a week ago, but now that the flurry of Mexican restaurants offering specials for the holiday has died down, we can take a closer look at what we actually celebrated. Many people mistakenly believe that Cinco de Mayo is Mexico’s Independence Day, but that’s on September 16th. In fact, the Mexican War of Independence occurred between 1810 and 1821, and the event Cinco de Mayo commemorates happened in 1862, over 40 years later. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
What are we really celebrating when we go to our favorite Mexican restaurants for Cinco de Mayo? Let’s take a look at the history.
Who did Mexico gain independence from?
Before we get into what Cinco de Mayo is actually about, let’s go back to the Mexican War of Independence. For three hundred years, Mexico was under the rule of the Spanish Empire. The Mexican War of Independence was part of the Age of Revolution, a period from the late 18th century to the early 19th century when multiple revolutions occurred in Europe and the Americas. In Mexico, the revolution was not a single event but a series of local and regional struggles that ended with the drafting of the Declaration of Independence of the Mexican Empire in 1821.
What happened on May 5, 1862?
So, if Mexico was already an independent nation, what happened in 1862? To understand that, we need to take a quick look at a few more wars. First, there was the Mexican-American War from 1846-1848 and then the Reform War from 1858-1861, which was a civil war within Mexico. After these two wars, the Mexican Treasury was nearly bankrupt, so Mexican President Benito Juárez suspended all foreign debt payments for two years. However, the countries those payments were owed to—England, France, and Spain—weren’t happy with that arrangement. Emperor Napoleon III of France decided to take advantage of the situation and attempt to establish a French Empire in Mexico.
Now we come to what Cinco de Mayo is all about. On May 5, 1862, the outnumbered Mexican army had a decisive victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla. This victory gave the Mexican people a much-needed morale boost. Although the Battle of Puebla was a significant victory for Mexico, the French did capture Mexico City a year later. However, French rule was short-lived, and they were forced to fully retreat in 1867.
Why do we still celebrate Cinco de Mayo?
All this history still doesn’t explain why Mexican restaurants in the United States celebrate Cinco de Mayo. It’s not even a national holiday in Mexico. Only the states of Puebla, where the battle took place, and the neighboring Veracruz observe it. In the United States, celebrating Cinco de Mayo started as a way for Mexican-Americans to support resistance to French rule in Mexico, with the first celebration taking place in Columbia, California, in 1863. Celebrations of Cinco de Mayo have continued in California ever since, and the holiday began to spread across the country in the 1950s and 60s, especially in cities with large Mexican-American populations.
Cinco de Mayo, Mexican Heritage, and Los Reyes
Every year in Cinco de Mayo, Mexican restaurants across the country take the opportunity to celebrate and share their heritage with their customers. We couldn’t let the day go by unacknowledged at Los Reyes, and we were happy to welcome our customers and enjoy our authentic and traditional Mexican dishes.
