Porfirio Díaz

The president who ruled Mexico for more than thirty years under the slogan "Order and Progress" and was finally overthrown by revolution.

Life

Republican general

Díaz was a mestizo from Oaxaca who fought in the Reform War and the war against the French intervention. He distinguished himself at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, and was a renowned republican general.

Order and Progress

In 1876 he seized power in a coup under the banner of opposing presidential reelection, and thereafter, except for 1880–1884, he kept being reelected until 1911. He maintained order through the army and the rural police and used foreign capital to build railways and develop mining and oil; the economy grew markedly, and Mexico City was transformed.

Exile in Paris

But great haciendas swallowed up village communal lands, the vast majority of peasants lost their land, and there were no free elections. After he was "elected" yet again in 1910, revolution broke out; in 1911 he resigned and went into exile in Paris, dying in 1915.

Legacy

The economic modernization and social inequality of the Porfiriato are key to understanding the Mexican Revolution.

Did you know? A famous saying is attributed to him: "Poor Mexico, so far from God, so close to the United States." (The attribution is disputed.)

Key dates

• 1862Distinguishes himself at the Battle of Puebla
• 1876Seizes power in a coup
• 1884President again, then repeatedly reelected
• 1910Revolution breaks out
• 1911Resigns and goes into exile
• 1915Died in Paris