Although Mexico began its national life in 1821 as one of the most liberal democracies in the world, it ended the century with an authoritarian regime. Examining this defining process, distinguished historians focus on the evolution of Mexican liberalism from the perspectives of politics, the military, the Church, and the economy. Based on extensive archival research, the chapters demonstrate that_despite widely held assumptions_liberalism was not an alien ideology unsuited to Mexico's traditional, conservative, and multiethnic society. As the first systematic exploration of the country's liberal tradition, this volume provides a nuanced and comprehensive analysis of the transformation of liberalism in Mexico.

Introduction: The Origins of Constitutionalism and Liberalism in Mexico
Part I: Politics
Chapter 1: From res publicae to Republic: The Evolution of Republicanism in Early Mexico
Chapter 2: "Ningún pueblo es superior a otro": Oaxaca and Mexican Federalism
Chapter 3: Masonic Connections, Pecuniary Interests, and Institutional Development Along Mexico's Far North
Chapter 4: Maximilian and the Construction of the Liberal State, 1863-1866
Chapter 5: Kaleidoscopic Views of Liberalism Triumphant, 1862-1895
Part II: The Church
Chapter 6: The Enemy Within: Catholics and Liberalism in Independent Mexico, 1821-1860
Part III: The Military
Chapter 7: The Militarization of Politics or the Politicization of the Military? The Novohispano and Mexican Officer Corps, 1810-1830
Chapter 8: Armed Citizens: The Civic Militia in the Origins of the Mexican National State, 1812-1827
Part IV: The Economy
Chapter 9: Cádiz Liberalism and Public Finances: The Direct Contributions in Mexico, 1810-1835
Chapter 10: Vectors of Liberal Economic Culture in Mexico
Chapter 11: The Import Trade Policy of the Liberal Regime in Mexico, 1870-1900
Conclusion: Legitimacy, Sequencing, and Credibility: Challenges of Mexico's Liberal Reforms in the Nineteenth Century

Jaime E. Rodríguez O. is professor of history and director of Latin American studies at the University of California, Irvine.