Lecture Eight: The Politics of Anti-Politics (1844-'48)
"Do a little and do it slowly"
Antonio de Mendoza
Victory over the United States saw Santa Anna return to Mexico at the apex of his power and ready to enter his most productive period of government. Wild celebrations greeted his return to the capital on 2 January 1844 and for the first time in decades a hint of optimism began to seep into Mexican politics. By settling the 'Texas Question' Don Antonio had fulfilled one of the major initial objectives of the
santanista government and fuelled high expectations of further triumphs in reforming both the political and economic spheres. Still ruling with extra-constitutional powers, Santa Anna set about the task of reform with his typical vigour and the rapid introduction of a new centralist constitution*, accompanied by the dismissal of a radical Congress, allowed Don Antonio to renounce his 'dictatorship' within a matter of months and rule as elected president. He even succeeded in resisting the temptation of returning to his estates and, for the first years at least, remained in the National Palace in order to oversee governance of the nation. His previous, and later, premierships would generally last a matter of months, yet from 1844 to 1846 Santa Anna remained in office almost continuously. This makes the period one of great interest to historians and merits a closer examination of the policies that defined this presidential administration
Perhaps the most obvious feature of this government was its militaristic composition and orientation. The four most prominent ministers - José María Tornel (War and Navy), Haro y Tamariz (Treasury), Ignacio Trigueros (Hacienda), Lucas Alamán (Internal and External Relations) - had served in uniform prior to, or while, engaging in politics and the President was far more a soldier than a politician. Indeed throughout his career Santa Anna would, in the vein of contemporary South American strongmen, scorn divisive party politics and portray himself as a simple soldier devoted to curing the nation's ills. This attitude and background was reflected in the role envisioned for the military as a unifying institution standing guard over Mexican society. To this end Minister of War Tornel, who remained a full general of the National Army, ensured that vast sums of money were lavished on the military. The programme of recruiting to the army reserves (the
rurales) begun prior to the war was accelerated yet again and the ravaged divisions of the standing army (which had suffered heavy losses during the previous year's fighting) were replenished with fresh recruits. 1845 also saw the foundation of the infamous
National Fund for Invalid Officers and Martyrs to the Mother Country, a secret non-government fund held in the name of Santa Anna and Finance Minister Haro y Tamariz. Through this account staggering amounts of money were channelled from the Treasury and granted to senior army commanders in a network of bribes breathtaking in its scale. Such hidden dealings complemented official patronage of the military, an example of which being the galaxy of promotions and medals awarded to favoured officers each Christmas, and served to secure the loyalty of this vital institution
Picture of a young José María Tornel
If the
santanistas spared no expense in placating the military or enriching themselves then they had no qualms in extending the same treatment to the public. A frankly populist programme of governance saw a range of measures introduced that were intended to firmly establish Santa Anna in the hearts of the general population. The network of public schools was greatly extended throughout many parts of the country, an impressive new bullring constructed in Mexico's Plaza del Paseo Nuevo and efforts (largely futile) were made to encourage migration to and settling of the vast northern frontier. In the economic sphere the tax system was overhauled, albeit to no great effect, while tariffs on foreign trade were strengthened to encourage native industry. Government subsidies also bore fruit in the beginning of construction on the
Mexico City - Veracruz railway and the opening of the impressively large Carpas y Lonas fabric factory in Mexico City. The government made no move to reform the great inequalities of the colonial era estate (Hacienda) system but then it would be decades before this relic of the Conquistadores was forcefully dismantled. In a sop to conservatives, Roman Catholicism was officially enshrined as the state religion but the
santanistas owed little loyalty to the hierarchy - forced loans from the Church continued to be a favoured mechanism of financing many public projects
None of the above policies were unique to the
santanista government but it was worship of their leader that truly set them apart in Mexican politics. All
santanistas were defined by their conviction that Santa Anna, and he alone, was the man capable of providing the energetic leadership required to reform the country. No other faction in Mexico possessed the same devotion to, and reliance on, their leader. A personality cult rapidly developed and it was during these years that the pomp and grandiose gestures associated with Santa Anna reached their peak. When his wife tragically died young in 1844 there was an outburst of state-sponsored national mourning... although his remarriage to a teenage girl less than a month later was not so widely trumpeted. Perhaps the most astonishing demonstration of this growing cult was the treatment of the leg that Santa Anna had lost at the Battle of New Orleans - on his return to Mexico City, accompanied by the severed limb, a state funeral was staged for the presidential leg. The poet Fernando Calderon (1809-'49) memorably recorded his impressions of the dignitaries and notables of Mexican society sombrely parading through the city and singing hymns as the leg was solemnly interred in an imposing marble mausoleum known as the
Pantheon de Santa Paula. Historians, both modern and contemporary, have tended to regard such extravagance with disdain but this personality cult is central to explaining Santa Anna's political longevity as his various defeats and failures were repeatedly buried under the weight of official propaganda
Constructing the Plaza del Paseo Nuevo did much to endear Santa Anna to the masses of Mexico City
Unsurprisingly all the above policies placed the national budget under severe strain. Efforts to increase tax revenues were successful to a degree but were always constrained by the very real limits of state power in the unruly and bandit-ridden provinces. There was an economic recovery of sorts as the relative peace allowed for increased prosperity but this was not enough to prevent the national treasury plunging further into debt. The government's answer was further borrowing and the introduction of a raft of heavy new taxes** but by 1848 that surplus which was not appropriated by foreign banks was being siphoned off by Santa Anna through his network of secret accounts. Even more galling for many was that these government programmes were almost uniformly used to forward the centralist agenda of the government. As late as 1841 Santa Anna, the former federalist hero, can be said to have been somewhat ambivalent towards the idea of centralism but within a few years he had apparently been convinced by his ministers, particularly Tornel, that a strong central government was essential in ruling such a large country. This gradual political reorientation was undoubtedly hastened by continuing tensions with the United States and the perception that only a strong executive and unified nation could resist northern aggression. This led to increasing friction in the more independent-minded provinces and there were further minor revolts in Yucatan, California, and Texas. Never fond of life in the capital, Santa Anna left the presidency to Pedro María de Anaya (1794-1854) in May 1846 as he set about quashing these disturbances
This would be the crucial point in what had been Santa Anna's most successful presidency to date. On his return to Mexico City in November 1846 he reimmersed himself in national politics for a few weeks before retiring to Verzcruz pleading ill health. His next stint in the Presidency, after several months tending to his estates, was even briefer and he had again abandoned national office within weeks. These constant withdrawals from politics are characteristic of the portrayal of Don Antonio as primarily a landowner and solider with little appetite for governance, but they were deeply frustrating for his government†. Any administration will find it difficult to function with instability at the top - and there was a marked decrease in government performance following 1846 - but for the
santanistas it must have been maddening. They dogmatically believed that Santa Anna was the man to save Mexico... yet he refused to provide the required leadership! Tensions building within the government finally came to a head in March 1848 when the cabinet effectively disintegrated over the course of the month. After Santa Anna withdrew once again from government his leading ministers objected vigorously and petitioned him to return. The exact details of what occurred have been lost to history - either Santa Anna ordered his cabinet to resign in a fit of pique or they did so of their own accord in protest - but the government effectively imploded with the departure of half a dozen senior minsters. Too proud to repair relations with his old comrades and too stubborn to relinquish office, Santa Anna's presidency limped on in the face of increasing public discontent. This marked the effective end of the
santanista project and set the stage for a dramatic downturn in the caudillo's fortunes. Less than a year after the departure of Tornel
et al the President would find himself confined to a prison cell and pleading for his life
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* The primary feature of the Constitution of 1845 was in greatly strengthening the office of president after it was deemed that the previous constitution (1836) had, for all its centralist tendencies, overly tilted the balance of power towards Congress. While the Presidency remained a bastion of conservatism, with relatively few liberals commanding personal fiefdoms of the scale required to challenge for this office, the independent-minded state legislatures repeatedly returned radically liberal Congress'. The Constitution of 1845 did not alter these trends but it did grant the President the power to dismiss Congress, sack government bureaucracies, declare war, impose fines, grant licences and pensions, and expel selected foreigners. See, 'Warren. R.A., (2007), Vagrants and Citizens: Politics and the Masses in Mexico City from Colony to Republic'
** The new taxes introduced under Santa Anna included those on "urban properties, rural properties, industrial establishments, salaries, professions, luxury items,,.. and a monthly direct tax of half of a real". Other taxes included, but were hardly limited to, those on the sale of cart wheels, drainpipes, using postal services, and a particularly hated head (poll) tax. See, 'Fowler. W., (2008), Santa Anna of Mexico'
† These bouts of ill health may have been caused by his injury and lengthy recuperation in the swamps of the Mississippi Delta during the siege of New Orleans. Alternatively they may simply be excuses to return to his estates, as the the malaria ridden environs of Veracruz were not being particularly conductive to a swift recovery. As with many aspects of Santa Anna, we simply do not know
