Key Figures & Policies of Post-Revolutionary Mexico

Porfirio Diaz (The Porfiriato)

• Industrial Development: Promoted industrial development through railways, foreign investment, and protectionist policies.
• Economic Growth: Focused on the exploitation of agricultural products and mining, creating an agro-export economy.
• Outward Growth Model: Favored production for export, often neglecting domestic needs.
• Export-Oriented Economy: Relied on the exploitation of natural resources, cheap labor, and foreign capital and technology to increase production.

Francisco Madero

• Mexican Revolution: Initiated the Mexican Revolution, leading to Diaz's resignation.
• Plan de San Luis: Launched the Plan de San Luis to incite revolution.
• Decena Trágica (Ten Tragic Days): Overthrown during the "Decena Trágica," a ten-day armed conflict.
• Start Date: The "Decena Trágica" began on February 9, 1913, initiated by Bernardo Reyes and Félix Diaz.

Pedro Lascuráin

• Actions in Office: Appointed Victoriano Huerta as Secretary of the Interior, fulfilling legal requirements to transfer power.
• Resignation: Resigned to allow Huerta to assume the presidency.
• Arrangement: Lascuráin's brief presidency was part of a pre-arranged plan to install Huerta.
• Time in Office: Served as president for approximately 45 minutes on February 19, 1913.

Victoriano Huerta

• Alliance and Covenant: Formed an alliance with Félix Diaz and U.S. Ambassador Henry Lane Wilson through the Embassy Pact.
• Presidential Measures: Suppressed press freedom, eliminated revolutionary heroes from public memory, and persecuted labor movements.
• Type of Government: Established a military dictatorship.

Eulalio Gutiérrez

• Key Achievements: Established an 8-hour workday, banned pulquerías (traditional bars), prohibited work on Sundays, and established a minimum wage.
• Positions Held: Served as Supreme Commander, First Captain, Brigadier General, Governor, and Military Commander of San Luis Potosí.
• Actions as Governor: Promoted urban development, trade on ranches and farms, and established a Department of Labor to improve workers' quality of life.

Manuel Ávila Camacho

• Appointed by: Chosen by the Partido de la Revolución Mexicana (PRM).
• Agrarian Counter-Reform: Initiated agrarian counter-reforms, influenced by Germán Valdés Miguel and Ruiz Cortines.
• Institutions Founded: Established the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS), Altos Hornos de México, Mexicana de Cobre, Hospital Infantil de México, and the National Institute of Cardiology.
• Taxes: Implemented taxes on income, industry, and foreign trade.

Germán Valdés Miguel

• Government Characteristics: Laid the foundations for agrarian counter-reform, allowing direct foreign investment and moving away from the ejido sector.
• Institutions Founded: Established the Banco Nacional Monte de Piedad, Ayotla textile industry, Nacional Petroquímica, Patronato del Ahorro Nacional, and inaugurated university campuses.
• Main Characteristics: Supported tourism and education.