Malcontents, Rebels, and Pronunciados - (Mexican Experience) by Will Fowler (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Behind every pronunciamiento, a formal list of grievances designed to spark political change in nineteenth-century Mexico, was a disgruntled individual, rebel, or pronunciado. Initially a role undertaken by soldiers, a pronunciado rallied military communities to petition for local, regional, and even national interests. As the popularity of these petitions grew, however, they evolved from a military-led practice to one endorsed and engaged by civilians, priests, indigenous communities, and politicians.
The second in a series of books exploring the phenomenon of the pronunciamiento, this volume examines case studies of individual and collective pronunciados in regions across Mexico. Top scholars examine the motivations of individual pronunciados and the reasons they succeeded or failed; why garrisons, town councils, and communities adopted the pronunciamiento as a political tool and form of representation and used it to address local and national grievances; and whether institutions upheld corporate aims in endorsing, supporting, or launching pronunciamientos. The essays provide a better understanding of the rebel leaders behind these public acts of defiance and reveal how an insurrectionary repertoire became part of a national political culture.

Review Quotes

"[Malcontents, Rebels, and Pronunciados] is a highly welcome contribution to the historiography of nineteenth century Mexico. It sheds light on an important characteristic of political culture in this period."--Silke Hensel, Hispanic American Historical Review

About the Author

Will Fowler is a professor of Latin American Studies at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. His many books include Forceful Negotiations: The Origins of the Pronunciamiento in Nineteenth-Century Mexico (Nebraska, 2010) and Santa Anna of Mexico (available in a Bison Books edition). Contributors include Catherine Andrews, Linda Arnold, Raymond Buve, Sergio Cañedo Gamboa, Eduardo Flores Clair, Juan Ortiz Escamilla, Erika Pani, Terry Rugeley, Anne Staples, Guy P.C. Thomson, and Josefina Zoraida Vazquez.