Opinion ID: 2812230
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Spain and Mexican Independence (1821)

Text: In 1821, the Mexican revolutionary government adopted the Plan of Iguala, a revolutionary proclamation, in the final stage of the Mexican War of Independence from Spain. It declared that “[a]ll inhabitants of New Spain, without any distinction between Europeans, Africans, or Indians, are citizens of this Monarchy . . . and that the person and property of every citizen will be respected and protected by the government.” United States v. Ritchie, 58 U.S. 525, 538 (1854) (quoting Plan of Iguala) (internal quotation marks omitted); see also Susan Scafidi, Native Americans and Civic Identity in Alta California, 75 N.D. L. Rev. 423, 432 (1999). The Treaty of Cordova between Spain and Mexico, ratified on August 24, 1821, adopted the principles set forth in the Plan of Iguala and established -18- Mexican Independence. See Ritchie, 58 U.S. at 538; Placido Gomez, The History and Adjudication of the Common Lands of Spanish and Mexican Land Grants, 25 Nat. Resources J. 1039, 1059 (1985). Specifically, sections six, seven, and twelve created a provisional government which was to govern according to existing laws, so long as they were not contrary to the Plan of Iguala. See Ritchie, 58 U.S. at 538; Zia I, 11 Ind. Cl. Comm. at 133. The Mexican declaration of independence, issued on September 28, 1821, reaffirmed the principles of the Plan of Iguala. Zia I, 11 Ind. Cl. Comm. at 133. Three laws passed by the first Mexican congress in 1822 and 1823 also reaffirmed the principles of the Plan of Iguala, including independence, the Catholic religion, and equality of all Mexicans regardless of race. Ritchie, 58 U.S. at 538-39.