Mexican War of Independence (Guanajuato), who were called to action by the secular Catholic priest Miguel Hidalgo, former rector of the Colegio de San Nicolás Obispo. After 1810 the independence movement went through several stages, as leaders were imprisoned or executed by forces loyal to Spain. At first the rebels disputed the legitimacy of the French-installed Joseph Bonaparte while recognizing the sovereignty of Ferdinand VII over Spain and its colonies, but later the leaders took more radical positions, rejecting the Spanish claim and espousing a new social order including the abolition of slavery. Secular priest José María Morelos called the separatist provinces to form
Afro-Mexicans in the Mexican War of Independence Afro-Mexicans in the Mexican War of Independence The history of Africans in Mexico has not been well documented or recognized by the government and society. The Spanish relied upon slavery to expand their empire and to increase their wealth, and during the 16th and 17th centuries, African slaves were brought to Mexico to toil in sugar fields and work in underground mines. Estimates vary, but somewhere between 200,000 and 500,000 slaves were brought to Mexico during the colonial expansion. Over the years this bloodline has been absorbed into the population and the contribution of Afro-Mexicans has largely been forgotten. During