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© Copyright by Juan Manuel Galván Rodríguez May, 2016 1 HISTORICAL MEMORY, PROTO-NATIONALISM, AND NATIONALISM IN MEXICO: SOUTHWESTERN PUEBLA FROM 1519 TO 1862 _______________ A Dissertation Presented to The Faculty of the Department of History University of Houston _______________ In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy _______________ by Juan Manuel Galván Rodríguez December, 2016 2 HISTORICAL MEMORY, PROTO-NATIONALISM, AND NATIONALISM IN MEXICO: SOUTHWESTERN PUEBLA FROM 1519 TO 1862 _________________________ Juan Manuel Galván Rodríguez APPROVED: _________________________ John Mason Hart, Ph.D. Committee Chair _________________________ Thomas F. O’Brien, Ph.D. _________________________ Susan Kellogg, Ph.D. _________________________ Philip A. Howard, Ph.D. _________________________ Paul M. Liffman, Ph.D. El Colegio de Michoacán _________________________ Steven G. Craig, Ph.D. Interim Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Department of Economics 3 HISTORICAL MEMORY, PROTO-NATIONALISM, AND NATIONALISM IN MEXICO: SOUTHWESTERN PUEBLA FROM 1519 TO 1862 _______________ A Dissertation Presented to The Faculty of the Department of History University of Houston _______________ In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy _______________ by Juan Manuel Galván Rodríguez December, 2016 4 ABSTRACT This dissertation traces the evolution of micro-patriotism as practiced in pre-Columbian Mexico; the development of parallel proto-nationalist ideologies among Indians, blacks, castas, and criollos during the colonial era; and the widespread expressions of popular nationalism expressed from the mid-eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth centuries in the Atlixco-Izúcar region. The concept of a glorious and noble Aztec nation promoted by the writings of Spanish, criollo, and Indian historians was a tenet held by many colonial subjects. Similarly, holy icons such as the Virgen de Guadalupe, herself a syncretic figure composed of Indian and Spanish elements, gave a common religious identity to the different ethnic groups that lived side by side in southwestern Puebla. Armed by similar patriotic sentiments, large popular sectors came together in a common struggle for independence in the 1810s and in resistance to the United States and French invaders in the mid-nineteenth century. These dynamics, however, do not constitute evidence for the existence of a continuous line of nationalist thought in Mexico since ancient times. By focusing on the patriotic sentiments of people of color in the Atlixco-Izúcar region, this dissertation instead traces an unbroken line of popular nationalism to the popular uprisings of mid- and late-eighteenth century New Spain. This study illustrates how oppression at the hands of the Spaniards gave impoverished people of color and some criollos a common enemy and a shared class consciousness. By focusing on the patriotic sentiments of the people of southwestern Puebla, this dissertation suggests that the widespread expressions of popular nationalism found in this region are linked to popular historical memory and to local histories of anti-colonial resistance. 5 Acknowledgments This dissertation is the result of a journey that began long ago. Along this process, many upheld me up and encouraged me to finish. I am grateful, first and foremost, to my wife Silvia and my daughter Sofia, whose daily inspiration gave me the strength to continue when there seemed to be no light at the end of the tunnel. My mother, father, brothers and sisters were also always there for me. My parents, Daniel Galván and Inés Rodríguez, with their first-grade education, struggled valiantly to inspire in their children a love for learning, and have been a constant source of inspiration and support. My siblings, all six of them, carried me during hard times. I am especially indebted to Lucía, who earned a graduate degree along with me, for the countless and enlightening conversations we continue to have together about all things academia. I dedicate this dissertation to my mentors at the University of Houston. To my advisor, John Mason Hart, whose love for Mexico inspired me to dedicate years of my life to the study of Mexican history. To Susan Kellogg who, with her passion for pre- Columbian and colonial Mexican history, urged me to study those periods in depth and to always search for the origins of historical events and processes. To Thomas O’Brien, who taught me to always place events within their global context. To Philip Howard, who often reminded me that it is okay to be “only human” and to occasionally stumble and fall. At El Colegio de Michoacán, Paul Liffman, with his profound insight and knowledge of Mexican history, along with his eagerness to help, asked proving questions and assisted me into including a much-needed anthropological perspective to this study. I am equally grateful to the University of Houston Center for Mexican American 6 Studies (UH-CMAS), which at two different stages supported me with a graduate fellowship and a dissertation completion grant, both of which made it possible for me to undertake more than one research trip to archives in Mexico. At UH-CMAS, Tatcho Mindiola, Pamela Quiroz, Helen Meza, Lorenzo Cano, and Rebeca Trevino, were also sources of constant motivation during my graduate journey. At the University of Houston, members of La Colectiva, a group of Latin@ students and faculty – including Luis Álvarez, Jessica Borboa, Alberto Rodríguez, Trinidad Gonzales, Raúl Ramos, and Sonia Hernández – welcomed me during my initial years in graduate school. Together, we attempted to build a non-hierarchical space for intellectual debate. During the final stages of my doctoral journey, a cohort of young scholars generously read parts of my dissertations and provided valuable critical insight. For that and much more, I am forever grateful to Lydia French, Alejandra Jaramillo, Felipe Hinojosa, Jesse Esparza, Natalie Garza, Carlos Cantú, Samantha Rodríguez, Stephanie John-Schafer, and Ivan Arteaga. This dissertation would not have been completed without the support of the staff at the M. D. Anderson Library at the University of Houston. I am especially indebted to Alex Simons, our History library liaison, who secured countless new books necessary for this study. Likewise, the interlibrary loan and circulation staff, who always assisted me with a smile, aided me in securing literature unavailable at the university at the time. I am deeply indebted to a generous group of people. To Monica Perales, who trusted as her research assistant for more than one semester. To Tyler Priest, who kept me as his teaching assistant for many years, and treated me as a brother and a colleague. To Andrew Chesnut, then at the University of Houston, who guided me through my first two 7 years of graduate training. To Guadalupe San Miguel, who often invited me to join him and his family for dinner; Lupe, you are a big brother and an inspiration to many of us. Members of a Houston-based non-profit organization, the Center for the Healing of Racism, knowing me as a construction and agriculture worker many years ago, convinced me to enroll in community classes and allowed to dream of one day earning a graduate degree. Among them, I dedicate this dissertation especially to Lisa Brehm, Cherry Steinweinder, Barbara Hacker, Russel Spinks, Jackie Newberry, Robert Newberry, and Chris Beam, who saw a potential in me at a time when all the formal education I had was a G.E.D. diploma. Likewise, I hold warm memories of the gentle souls who welcomed me as a student at Houston Community College (HCC) years ago. At HCC, Saundra Boyd, José Claudio Salazar, and Grisel Gómez-Cano, will always have a special place in my heart. I am likewise indebted to many of my former Houston area students, especially to Staffian Massey, Turki Alsabhan, Tee Smith, and Regina Blanks. You graciously and patiently sat on my classes while I was an adjunct instructor, and constantly inspire me with your wit, resilience, and courage. In Mexico City, I wish to thank Roberto Beristáin Rocha and Linda Arnold, whose unmatched knowledge of the Archivo General de la Nación in Mexico City enriched my research; Roberto, you were there every time I visited the archive. While in Houston on a research trip, and always with a smile, Manuel Alejandro Hernández Ponce assisted me in consulting the online tools of the Archivo General de las Indians. In Córdoba, Veracrúz, Rubén Ramírez Monteclaro generously shared with me his knowledge and passion about the history of maroon societies in colonial Mexico. In Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato, I acknowledge my childhood friend and now cronista 8 oficial (official local historian), Cesar Fernando Aguayo Juárez, who generously shared his expertise and sense of humor about local, regional, and national history. There are also numerous friends and family members who have been there for me over the years. I am deeply grateful and I dedicate this dissertation to you all. 9 PREFACE My fascination with history dates from my childhood. A native of El Refugio de Trancas, a ranchería (village) near Dolores, Guanajuato, I grew up listening to maternal stories. My mother spoke to me and my siblings about how the old aqueducts and irrigation canals near our village dated from ancient, pre-Hispanic times. According to her, they had been built by “los indios” who used to live in the area. These aqueducts, however, were actually built under the direction of the Spanish during colonial times. By stating that those magnificent pieces of engineering originated in the pre-Columbian era, my mother was expressing a devotion to the land of her birth and asserting her Mesoamerican roots; she was rewriting her history not how it happened, but “as it should have occurred[;]” she was empowering herself while claiming a primordial link to her land.1 My mother frequently told us how Padre Miguel Hidalgo came to Dolores at the dawn of the nineteenth century and taught Dolorenses how to make ceramics, how to tend to beehives and collect their honey, and how to tend to grapevines.