Porfirio Díaz ruled as dictator in Mexico for 35 years; this time is called the Porfiriato. During this time, a small group of Mexicans, the científicos, enjoyed access to power; railroads expanded in Mexico and the urban middle class expanded. However, foreign companies, including Spanish, British, French, and US firms, penetrated the Mexican economy and came to dominate many industries. Many Mexicans suffered extreme poverty and many indigenous people lost their land.

As Díaz grew old, some began to consider Mexico with a new type of leadership. In the election of 1910, Francisco Madero challenged Díaz. Madero’s challenge was unsuccessful due to Díaz’s corrupt use of power. Taking refuge in San Antonio, Texas, Madero called Mexicans to arms, beginning the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920). The rebels won a quick victory, and by October 1911, Díaz was in exile and Madero had been elected president.

Madero also attracted support from other revolutionaries; including Pancho Villa and Emiliano Zapata. The revolutionaries of the Mexican Revolution had disparate goals. Madero sought moderate democratic reform, resistance against foreign economic exploitation, and economic justice for the poor. Zapata, a leader from the state of Morelos, demanded agrarian reform and redistribution of land. Villa, a leader from the northern state of Chihuahua, was hostile to foreign exploitation of Mexico and an advocate for land redistribution.

By March, 1912, the new government of Madero was losing control. In February, 1913, in the Tragic Ten Days, Madero was assassinated. Victoriano Huerta seized power, but the revolution continued; Venustiano Carranza, declared himself interim President. In 1915, Huerta fled to Spain. Under Carranza, the 1917 Constitution was adopted.

The constitution weakened the power of foreign companies to control huge chunks of the Mexican economy; Article 27 claimed all resources on and under the land to be Mexican national property. Article 27 also addressed land reform. The constitution included protections for workers such as an eight hour day, and it weakened the power of the Catholic Church. The constitution has been recognized for its progressive social agenda.

Villa and Zapata wanted to see rapid social reform and were unhappy with what they perceived as Carranza’s slow progress in implementing reform. In response, supporters of Carranza assassinated Zapata in 1919. Pancho Villa was also assassinated in 1923. Carranza himself had already been killed by this time, assassinated in 1920 as he tried to escape a group of rebels from Sonora who resented Carranza’s efforts to control them. The “Sonoran Triangle” was composed of Adolfo de la Huerta, Plutarco Elías Calles, and Álvaro Obregón.

De la Huerta and Obregón held the presidency first, then Calles. A main challenge they faced was the refusal of the United States to recognize the new Mexican government; the US objected to the loss of business for US companies resulting from the Revolution as well as Article 27 in the constitution. The recognition came at a cost; the Bucareli Treaty established that Article 27 was not retroactive, so foreign companies retained their oil rights.

Calles took office and faced challenges from the Catholic Church, which he strove to weaken, leading to the Cristero Rebellion (1926-1929). Calles is also known for establishing the PNR, the National Revolutionary Party, in 1929. Calles prolonged his power, ruling through puppet leaders; this period is called the Maximato. In this time, Calles created the idea of the “revolutionary family” to which revolutionary heroes like Madero, Zapata, and Villa belonged as fighters for the creation of a democratic and just Mexico.

In 1934, Lázaro Cárdenas became president and threw off Calles’ control. Calles retired into exile in San Diego. In 1938, Cárdenas took control of Mexico’s oil from the foreign oil companies then controlling the resource; they were replaced by PEMEX, the Mexican national oil company. Cárdenas also promoted industrialization and supported the creation of national Mexican industries.

Under Calles and Cardenas, improvements were made in education. Rural education, in particular, expanded. In the wake of the revolution, muralism became a major art movement in Mexico. This type of public art was used to portray revolutionary themes. Diego Rivera, for instance, portrayed Zapata’s leadership. José Clemente Orozco created murals related to the struggle of workers for justice. David Alfaro Siqueiros also focused on the exploitation of workers. Music, film, and literature also flourished. Mexican women had sometimes fought among the revolutionaries as soldaderas. However, they did not gain the right to vote until 1953.