With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever. Help keep the LAist newsroom strong, become a monthly member or increase your support today.
How Mexico's Victory Over The French On Cinco de Mayo Aided The Union In The Civil War
A Cinco de Mayo celebration at El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument in 2017. It's one of the few cultural institutions with a proposed increase in its budget.
(
Frederic J. Brown
/
AFP via Getty Images
)
Cinco de Mayo. It's not Mexican Independence Day, and it's not a widespread holiday in Mexico either. It marks the day the Mexican army defeated the French in the Battle of Puebla in 1862.
The backstory
After the Mexican–American War, Mexico was in debt to the many countries who had contributed to their unsuccessful effort, France included.
Marissa López, a UCLA professor of Chicano and Central American studies, said France was looking for any reason to invade Mexico. The French hoped, she said, to establish a military base in the Western Hemisphere during the U.S. Civil War to back the South.
Sponsored message
"Supporting the South would mean potentially breaking up this increasingly powerful country," López said.
Miraculously, the unheralded Mexican Army defeated the French army. But if things had gone differently?
"The French could very well have set up a base of operations in Mexico and been able to aid the South, and the U.S. Civil War could have ended very differently," Lopez said.
So why isn't the holiday celebrated in Mexico?
López said the Victory in Puebla was a hollow one. The French came back a few years later and briefly established an empire. So no, Mexico does not celebrate Cinco De Mayo.
So why do Americans celebrate? Lopez says it's advantageous to drink and forget the actual history. "Because forgetting that history means forgetting our deep indebtedness to Mexico."
Sponsored message
But if you want to enjoy a drink or two, keep in mind you're toasting to Mexico's brief victory over the French empire in 1862.
Trending on LAist
-
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass suspended a state law allowing duplexes, calling more housing unsafe. But in Altadena, L.A. County leaders say these projects could be key for rebuilding. -
This measure on the Nov. 4, 2025, California ballot is part of a larger battle for control of the U.S. House of Representatives next year. -
After rising for years, the number of residential installations in the city of Los Angeles began to drop in 2023. The city isn’t subject to recent changes in state incentives, but other factors may be contributing to the decline. -
The L.A. City Council approved the venue change Wednesday, which organizers say will save $12 million in infrastructure costs. -
Taxes on the sale of some newer apartment buildings would be lowered under a plan by Sacramento lawmakers to partially rein in city Measure ULA. -
The union representing the restaurant's workers announced Tuesday that The Pantry will welcome back patrons after suddenly shutting down six months ago.
Best of LAist
