46 Facts About Mariano Arista

Jose Mariano Martin Buenaventura Ignacio Nepomuceno Garcia de Arista Nuez was a Mexican soldier and politician who became president of Mexico.

Mariano Arista was in command of the Mexican forces at the opening battles of the Mexican American War: the Battle of Palo Alto and the Battle of Resaca de la Palma, which were disastrous losses for Mexico and resulted in Arista being court martialled though eventually acquitted.

Mariano Arista continued to play a notable role in government and was Minister of War under President Jose Joaquin Herrera.

The Herrera and Mariano Arista administrations occurring immediately after the end of the Mexican American War were eras of stability, moderate rule, and economic growth.

Mariano Arista was exiled by Santa Anna, and died in Lisbon in 1855.

Mariano Arista was born on 26 July 1802 and in 1813 enlisted as a cadet in the regiment of provincials of Puebla.

Mariano Arista belonged to the Veracruz Lancers, and to the Mexico Dragoons.

The Mexican War of Independence had already broken out when Mariano Arista joined the military and he initially fought as a Royalist, distinguishing himself so well that in 1818 he was made an officer for the Mexican Dragoons.

Mariano Arista was promoted to ensign in September 1820 and to lieutenant in May 1821.

Mariano Arista was assigned with all of them to the Libertad Regiment.

Mariano Arista was present at the siege of Puebla by the insurgents in July 1821.

Mariano Arista fulfilled his orders of advancing with several dragoons up to the sentry-box of Cholula which had been repulsing all attempted attacks, and entered with his small forces close to the fortified point of San Javier.

Mariano Arista belonged to the regiment of grenadiers that joined the command of General Echevarri and proclaimed against the First Mexican Empire in February 1823, and was so passionate about the cause that he halted soldiers who wished to join the Emperor, and Arista followed the liberating army until it captured the capital.

Mariano Arista was present in June 1824 at a battle near the Hacienda of Coamancingo not far from Apam, and having reached a partisan of Vicente Gomez, he executed him after having come into conflict with various guerilla leaders.

Mariano Arista took the city in spite of four thousand members of the militia who had opposed the Plan de Jalapa.

Mariano Arista gained the favor of President Bustamante and was promoted to effective colonel on 12 February 1831 and in August of that same year, Brigadier General, in spite of being opposed to the government's annulment of the law which had expelled all Spaniards from the country.

Mariano Arista fought uprisings against the government of Bustamante, in April 1832, under the command of General Inclan, defeating the forces which had risen up in Lerma as part of the Plan of Veracruz.

Mariano Arista fought at Casas Blancas, but at this point the rebels won, and Arista was commissioned to arrange a ceasefire and sign the Convention of Zavaleta, transferring power over to Manuel Gomez Pedraza who had returned from an exile in order to assume the final months of the term he had first won in 1828, which was now being recognized.

Mariano Arista now sent agents to the capital to work against Gomez Farias.

Mariano Arista departed from Veracruz in November and left for the United States, and he returned once the triumphant Plan of Cuernavaca overthrew Gomez Farias in 1834.

Mariano Arista arrived at Veracruz at the beginning of June 1835 although he initially found himself arrested, he was permitted later to continue on to the capital.

Mariano Arista was stopped at Jalapa and returned to Veracruz on suspicions on having joined a mutiny at San Juan de Ulua, but was absolved.

Mariano Arista was attending to his various military posts when the Pastry War broke out in 1838 and the government of Anastasio Bustamante placed Arista in charge of a brigade tasked with defending Veracruz and subject to the orders of Manuel Rincon, which ordered Arista's brigade to stay at the Paso de Ovejas where Arista learned of the French capture of San Juan de Ulua and received orders from Santa Anna to advance upon Veracruz.

Mariano Arista entered the port on 4 December, at nine in the evening and met with Santa Anna whom he had not seen since 1833.

Mariano Arista remained a prisoner of war aboard a French ship until 28 January 1839.

Mariano Arista was named to head the brigade that left from San Luis to attack the dissidents that had fortified themselves at Tampico.

Mariano Arista left the capital with rapidity organized the brigade and under the immediate orders of commander in chief Bustamante passed to Tamaulipas where the federalist forces were ensconced under the command of Jose Urrea.

Mariano Arista pursued him as far as Ciudad Victoria and near Tampico, obtained a surrender of Urrea's forces.

Mariano Arista was named commandant general of Tamaulipas, and afterwards commander in chief of the armies of the north at the end of 1839.

Mariano Arista returned to Tampico where he helped prevent a riot, and later passed to Matamoros.

Mariano Arista then obeyed an order from President Mariano Paredes to step down from his command, retiring to an hacienda which Arista owned close to Monterey.

Mariano Arista requested a court-martial and was absolved of guilt for the defeats at Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma.

Mariano Arista spent the rest of the war as a functionary, seeing little combat.

War Minister Mariano Arista, known for playing a guiding role in the Herrera Administration, found himself a front runner alongside men such as ex presidents Manuel Gomez Pedraza, Valentin Gomez Farias, Nicholas Bravo, and Santa Anna.

The opposition attacked Mariano Arista for having interfered in the election procedure for the Mexico City ayuntamiento, but ultimately the presidential election, decided by the states went in favor of Mariano Arista.

Mariano Arista obtained thirteen out of nineteen total possible votes.

Mariano Arista took office on 15 January 1851, and attracted ridicule by at once passing minor regulations for visitors to the National Palace.

Mariano Arista decided to adopt many of Herrera's policies, which he had already played a significant hand in enacting, but made some changes in the cabinet: Mariano Yanez was made Minister of Relations.

Mariano Arista proposed a light series of taxes to meet the deficit, but it was met with a barrage of opposition by the states, and congress refrained from pressing the matter.

Mariano Arista created a scandal when he arrested a hatmaker named Jose Maria Blancarte who was arrested for assaulting a police officer and expelled from the state militia, despite having been elected to the rank of colonel.

Former President Mariano Arista left the Palace at half past thirty in the morning, leaving his official resignation with the Minister of Relations Arroyo to be handed over to congress.

Mariano Arista carriage was escorted by fifty dragoons belonging to the fifth brigade, and he headed towards the Hacienda of Nanacampilpa, one of his properties.

When Santa Anna came back to power, Mariano Arista was expelled from the country.

Mariano Arista wished to return to Mexico, and finally got on board a ship to Lisbon, but as his health deteriorated he sought to go to Paris for medical help.

Mariano Arista died on board the steamer Tagus on 7 August 1855, at half past ten in the evening.

Mariano Arista was buried in the cemetery of San Juan in Lisbon, and his burial was accompanied by members of the Lisbon diplomatic corp including those of England, the United States, and Mexico.