Mexican Imperial Coinage

Mexican Imperial coinage tracks the imperial history of Mexico and it's fruitful, dramatic incidents.

Background
From the conquest almost to the present time the history of Mexico has been replete with events of an intensely interesting character. Among the most notable of these from a Republican standpoint, may be mentioned the two attempts made to establish Imperial rule in the country: the first under Don Augustin Iturbide, in 1822 and 823; the second under Maximilian of Austria, in 1864 to 1867; each of which, after a turbulent and precarious existence, was brought suddenly to an inglorious and tragical end. The Imperial authority was in each case exercised for a brief period only, yet each was prolific of medallic memorials.

Augustine Iturbide, 1822-1823
Augustine Iturbide (name pronounced E-toor'-bi-da, accent on second syllable), was born at Valladolid, Mexico, in 1784 (one account says 1790), and was "the master spirit in a successful plot for freeing Mexico from Spanish rule." He was proclaimed Emperor by the army and people at the city of Mexico 18 May, 1822, and duly inaugurated at that city 21 July, following. On 19 March, 1823, as a consequence of the adoption of the Act of Casas Matas, by which a republican form of government was guaranteed, he abdicated the throne, and with his family went to Leghorn; returning from exile in defiance of the decree of Congress, he was, on his arrival at Soto la Marina 8 July, 1824, promptly arrested, and summarily executed on the 19th of that month at Padilla.

Maximilian of Austria, 1864-1867
More than forty years elapsed after the fall of Augustine before a second attempt was made to establish Imperialism in Mexico. For this the civil war in the United States furnished the opportunity. Benito Juárez who had become President in 1858, had at last been able, after many vicissitudes, to establish himself at the capital. His hostility to the Church was so great that in 1859 he had issued a decree at Vera Cruz, practically confiscating all Church property. This was soon followed by another decree, suspending payment on all foreign debts for two years. As a consequence of this decree, diplomatic relations with the creditor nations were at once severed; and at the instance of Napoleon III a convention was held at London on the 31st of October, 1861. The representatives of England, France and Spain (the three Governments most interested), finally concluded a treaty providing for the sending of naval and military forces to Mexico, to seize and hold the ports of entry on the Gulf coast, the revenues from which were to be appropriated to the payment of the foreign debt of Mexico. "No territory was to be appropriated, nor were the rights of the people to choose their own form of government to be interfered with." In accordance with this arrangement the forces of the three Governments were duly equipped and sent forward, arriving at Vera Cruz in December, 1861.

The allied armies were placed under the command of the Spanish General Prim, and preparations were promptly made to carry out the scheme; but at a preliminary convention held at Soledad, near Vera Cruz, in February, 1862, it was soon discovered that the projects of the allied powers were so much at variance that an agreement was impossible. The English and Spanish Commissioners immediately withdrew from the undertaking; the "Joint Commission" was dissolved, and as a consequence the French army was left to carry out alone the plans of the Emperor Napoleon III. What these plans were soon became manifest; heavy reinforcements arrived from France, and united with an army of Mexican monarchists. A movement against the capital was at once begun. These forces were badly defeated before the gates of Puebla on the 5th of May, and compelled to retire to Orizaba to await reinforcements from France. These arrived the following September and raised the invading force to about 12,000 men, who were placed under the command of General Forey, and the advance against the capital was immediately resumed.

"Circumstances seemed especially favorable for the establishment of an Empire in Mexico." "The United States was engaged in civil war, and the success of the Confederate States seemed imminent. When the Confederacy was firmly established, it was to be the ally of France and the Mexican Empire as against the attempts of the United States to enforce the 'Monroe Doctrine' which was designed to prevent the establishment of European  colonies or other political systems of Europe in the Western Hemisphere."

This was a most promising scheme certainly; nevertheless one important factor in the calculation (the possible success of the United States) appears to have been entirely overlooked. Yet this is what happened; the Confederacy collapsed at Appomattox in April, 1865; and the protests of the United States, which had been persistently urged against the unwarranted interference in the political affairs of this continent, but which had been hitherto utterly ignored, now assumed a power no longer to be resisted.

The approach of peace had freed from other duties an army of at least 100,000 men, armed and equipped and ready for any service. An army corps under Sheridan was sent to the Rio Grande. This was a weighty argument that called for a prompt response to the demand of the United States that France should desist from the attempt to establish any system of European government upon this Continent. War would have promptly followed a refusal. France perforce submitted, and the French army was to be immediately withdrawn. In March, 1867, the last of the French troops embarked for home. Napoleon III had treacherously broken every pledge, and Maximilian, who had been selected as the Emperor of Mexico, cheated at every turn, was abandoned to his fate, powerless to advance or retreat, and entirely at the mercy of his Republican foes.

The First Empire Medals Series Gallery
Of the following-described medals, three bear dates prior to the inauguration of Iturbide as Emperor. They refer probably to the independence of the Empire as provided by the Plan of Iguala, presented by Iturbide, Feb. 24, 1821. 1822 Augustine Medal (Chiapa), 1822 Augustine Medal (Guatemala), 1822 Augustine Medal (Nicaragua) and 1822 Augustine Medal (Quesaltenango), were most probably used as coins, all of them being about the size of the One Real piece, and all engrailed on edge. 1823 Augustine Medal (Aguyla) I have never seen, my description being from a rubbing kindly furnished me by Mr. Geo. S. Skilton, who owns the piece; with this exception all were described from specimens in my own collection.

The First Empire Coins Series Gallery
The coins of Iturbide are not rare. They were all struck in the City of Mexico (as shown by the mint-mark Ṁ) in the years 1822 and 1823; and consist of the gold Onza, or Ounce; the silver Peso, or dollar; the Peseta, or quarter of a dollar; the Real, or eighth of a dollar; and the Medio-Real, or sixteenth of a dollar. No other denominations in the above metals are known to me ; and there appears to have been no copper coinage whatever. Of the gold Onza I know of but one type for each year, with no varieties; of the silver Peso there are several marked varieties, six of which are described below as being those most noticeable; of the smaller denominations many varieties are known, but as they are only slight die variations, I have described but one of each year.

There are probably several varieties of each of the denominations in silver. Of the Peso, the Fonrobert Catalogue describes three varieties of 1822 Augustine Iturbide Peso (Small Head), two of 1822 Augustine Iturbide Peso (Large Head), four of 1822 Augustine Iturbide Peso (No Whiskers), and one only of 1822 Augustine Iturbide Peso (9 Leaves). Of these only one very slight variety is found on an obverse (the 1822 Small Head); the remainder, being confined to the reverses, are such as lead to the belief that the latter were used interchangeably with the different obverses. An inspection of the plates will show four of the large eagle varieties of reverses.

The Second Empire Series Gallery
In arranging the matter pertaining to the series of Medals and Coins of the Second Empire, it has been found convenient to divide the subject into three parts, 1) Medals of the French Intervention, 2) Medals and Coins of Maximilian, 3) Medals of the Republic.

Napoleon III, 1862-1863
The medals comprised in this division, while not strictly belonging to the Second Empire series, as under Maximilian, are yet germane to the subject, in the sense that had there been no Intervention, there would have been no Empire. They were forerunners, and bear upon their reverses the names of battles fought by the French army and their Mexican allies, against the forces of the Republic during their progress from the coast to the Capital. It seems to me, therefore, that any paper dealing with the medallic memorials of the Second Empire, would be very incomplete if those relating to the Intervention period should be omitted. They are all War Medals, of various sizes, and have for obverses the head of Napoleon III, laureated and in profile to left, the borders adorned with a heavy closed wreath of laurel, bound with ribbons (crossed) at top, bottom and sides; the legends are the same on all. The reverses also are alike in legends and inscriptions, with borders the same as on the obverses; all are provided with eyes and rings for ribbons, which are of white silk of suitable widths, on which the Mexican eagle on a cross of red and green is embroidered. The edges of all are plain.

Maximilian, 1864-1867
Ferdinand Maximilian, "Archduke of Austria, Prince of Hungary. Bohemia and Lorrena, and Count of Hapsburg, was born in the palace of Schönbrunn in Austria, July 6th, 1832." He was consequently about thirty-two years of age at the time of his accession to the Imperial throne of Mexico. His elevation to this high honor was brought about through the agency of a committee empowered by the Assembly of Notables' in the city of Mexico, to proceed to Maximilian's palace and there offer for his acceptance the Imperial crown. In compliance with this mandate a formal proffer of the crown was made to him at Miramar on the 3d of October, 1863.

The ceremony of the formal acceptance of the throne and the coronation did not, however, take place until the l0th of April, 1864, at Miramar, at which time and place the oath was taken " to procure by every means in his power the well-being and prosperity of the Mexican nation, to defend its independence, and preserve the integrity of its territory." The Mexican flag was raised upon the palace tower of Miramar, salutes were fired, and Maximilian was declared Emperor of Mexico.

Maximilian Medals Gallery
The medals assigned to this division, appear to me to possess unusual interest. They are of varying degrees of excellence, and of greatly varying sizes, and present us with examples of the work of artists on both sides of the Atlantic.

Among them are to be found those commemorating the meeting of the Notables at the city of Mexico, and of the acceptance of the throne and the coronation at Miramar. There are also medals issued as awards for military and civic merit, for the encouragement of the arts and sciences, and for proficiency in school exercises ; others are of a religious and personal character, and finally there are the mortuary memorials of the closing tragedy at Queretaro on the 19th of June, 1867 ; these last, let us hope, will serve as a warning to all Old World potentates, that Imperialism can never be tolerated on this side of the Atlantic.

The rims and edges of all are plain unless otherwise described.

Maximilian Coins Gallery
The coins of Maximilian, although issued from various mints during the years 1864 to 1867, are with few exceptions not plentiful, while several are of especial rarity; they consist of the Twenty Pesos in gold; the Peso, or dollar; the Fifty Centavos, or half dollar; the Ten and Five Centavos in silver; and the Centavo, or cent in copper.

There are some trifling varieties to be found among the common dollars and the small silver, but as they are unimportant only one of each denomination will be noticed.

The Republican coinage was resumed in the latter part of 1867, and I have seen examples from the mints of Chihuahua, Guanaxuato, Mexico and Zacatecas.

Benito Juárez, President, 1858-1872
Closely connected with the coinage of the unfortunate Maximilian were those issues of the Republic designed to commemorate the battles which were fought against the Imperial forces, or to decorate the soldiers who aided in the defence of their father-land. During this period the Republic continued to strike dollars at certain points, as we have already stated; but while these pieces were contemporaneous with the coins and medals of Maximilian and minted in territory which he claimed as a part of the Empire, although not controlling it, the coins cannot properly be included here; the medals require mention. The President of the Republic during this critical period was Juárez, who may be briefly noticed.

Benito Juárez was a pure Indian of the Zapoteca tribe. He was born, says Mr. Arthur Howard Noll, of very poor parents in the mountains of Oaxaca, in 1806, and until twelve years of age spoke not a word of Spanish, but only the Indian dialect in use in his native village. Then, being given a start in life, he was educated for the bar, and rose rapidly, both in the profession and in the politics of his country. He experienced all the vicissitudes of political life, including arrest, imprisonment, sentence of death, escape, exile and amnesty; and he held the offices of legislator, judge, senator, governor, cabinet minister, president of the Supreme Court of Justice, and finally President of the Republic.

His hostility to the Church soon impelled him to issue a decree practically confiscating for the National use all Church property. Naturally the adherents of the Church became at once his most bitter opponents, ready to unite with Monarchists or Imperialists, just as soon as either of these parties showed signs of activity.

Juárez died in office in 1872, and was most highly honored by the Mexican people; he has by some been styled "the Lincoln of Mexico." His tomb stands in the Pantheon of San Fernando, in the City of Mexico, about midway of those of Mejia and Miramon, typical perhaps of the friendly relations existing between the surviving representatives of the Empire and their Republican conquerors.

It will be noticed that nearly all of the medals assigned to this division refer to the repulse of the French at Puebla on the 5th of May, 1862. As this was about the only success of the Republican forces, the day has become in its observance a sort of Mexican 4th of July. Its hero, Gen. Zaragoza, was proclaimed "conqueror of conquerors," because it was asserted with the exaggeration characteristic of Spanish blood, that the French had measured themselves with and conquered all the nations of the world, and Zaragoza had conquered the French!