Rare printed circular documenting the first significant armed resistance to Emperor Agustín de Iturbide (1783-1824), the inaugural ruler of independent Mexico. The uprising occurred on September 26, 1822, in Nuevo Santander (present-day Tamaulipas), led by Colonel Felipe de la Garza (before 1798-1832), the regions most prominent military leader at the time. A month prior, Iturbide had ordered the arrest of 66 individuals accused of plotting against his regime. De la Garza was named among the conspirators, prompting authorities to dispatch a force to apprehend him. De la Garza, threatening to use force, demanded the release of the detained deputies, the relocation of Congress to a secure location, and that Iturbide honour his promises to respect the constitution. Lacking broader support beyond his province, De la Garza was eventually compelled to negotiate a surrender. He was taken to Mexico City, where Iturbide pardoned him and reinstated him to his former position in Nuevo Santander.
The present circular, signed by military commander José Antonio de Echávarri (1789-1834), announces De la Garzas surrender. It portrays him as a coward, and presents the event as a victory for the imperial regime. Yet the document reveals the deeper tensions that afflicted the short-lived First Mexican Empire (1822-1823). De la Garzas defiance, which was among the earliest regional revolts, reflected the growing dissatisfaction with Iturbides authoritarian and centralist governance. The necessity for the imperial government to publicise the suppression of this dissent indicates a profound instability within the regime. Indeed, within months of this circulars appearance, the Empire would collapse under widespread federalist revolt.
With contemporary Spanish annotations and signatures in four different hands in the margins of page [1], [3], and [4]. A vertical fold line in the middle, small holes in the inner margin from a former binding, the edges are slightly frayed. Otherwise in good condition. Not in Catalogue of Mexican pamphlets in the Sutro Collection (1623-1888); Steele, C. and Costeloe, M. (eds.), Independent Mexico: a collection of Mexican pamphlets in the Bodleian library; WorldCat.