Scarcity, corruption, disloyalty, and discrepancies: Containment and defense preparation against the French Intervention in Michoacán, 1861–1863

Abstract

This article explains the conditions, circumstances, and means in which the liberal-republican faction – identified with the Benito Juárez government – became involved in the containment and defense strategy against the Franco-Mexican troops in state of Michoacán. The period studied extends from the end of the Reform War to the beginning of the French Intervention – i.e., the Franco-Mexican War. As a hypothesis, I assume that the liberal-republican faction was conditioned in its performance by the scarcity of material resources, widespread corruption, disloyalty to institutions and internal discrepancies, which limited its room for maneuver and action. This research is based on documentary interpretation from the perspective of political history and war. I conclude that the Army, the National Guard, and civil society privileged their interests and expectations over the priority represented by the effective organization and defense of the country against the foreign invasion.