Cinco de Mayo: The History of the Battle of Puebla and the Famous Holiday

*Includes pictures*Includes a bibliography for further reading “We are so superior to the Mexicans in the race, in the organization, in discipline, in morality, and an elevation of feeling, that I beg your Excellency to be so good as to inform the emperor that I am already master of Mexico.” - French General Charles de Lorencez before the Battle of PueblaThere are two great misconceptions about Cinco de Mayo in the United States, despite the fact it has become one of the country’s most beloved days. The first misconception is that the date marks the Independence of Mexico, and the second is that the celebration was imported in relatively recent times by Mexican immigrants. In fact, May 5 does not mark Mexico's independence (which is celebrated on September 16), but the day of the most important battle in the history of the country, fought against the French. Furthermore, the celebration of Cinco de Mayo did not originate in Mexico but in America in the 1860s, shortly after the Battle o