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1400 BCE
The Olmec civilization begins to develop.
Best known today for their carved colossal heads, the Olmecs were an important early Mesoamerican civilization which had much influence on later cultures such as the Aztecs and the Maya. -
1000 BCE
The Mayan Civilization starts to form.
The Maya civilization developed in an area that encompasses southeastern Mexico, all of Guatemala and Belize, and the western portions of Honduras and El Salvador. This region consists of the northern lowlands encompassing the Yucatán Peninsula, and the highlands of the Sierra Madre, running from the Mexican state of Chiapas, across southern Guatemala and onwards into El Salvador, and the southern lowlands of the Pacific littoral plain. -
1000
The southern cities of the Mayan culture begin to collapse.
Mysterious Decline of the Maya. From the late eighth through the end of the ninth century, something unknown happened to shake the Maya civilization to its foundations. -
1200
The Aztecs arrive in the Valley of Mexico
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1325
The Aztecs found the city of Tenochtitlan.
México-Tenochtitlan o México-Tenochtitlán fue la capital del Imperio mexica. La fundación de la ciudad fue un acontecimiento cuya historia se mezcla con la leyenda. No hay consenso científico sobre su fecha de fundación, pero pudo ocurrir a inicios del siglo XIV. -
1440
Montezuma I becomes leader of the Aztecs and expands the Aztec Empire.
In 1502 Montezuma succeeded his uncle Ahuitzotl as the leader of an empire that had reached its greatest extent, stretching to what is now Honduras and Nicaragua, but that was weakened by the resentment of the subject tribes to the increasing demands for tribute and victims for the religious sacrifices. Montezuma was commander of the army and organized extensive expeditions of conquest in deference to Huitzilopochtli, the god of war and of the sun. -
1517
Spanish explorer Hernandez de Cordoba explores the shores of southern Mexico
Hernán Cortés, marqués del Valle de Oaxaca, was a Spanish conquistador who overthrew the Aztec empire and won Mexico for the crown of Spain. -
1521
Cortez defeats the Aztecs and claims the land for Spain. Mexico City will be built on the same spot as Tenochtitlan.
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Spain conquers the rest of Mexico and Spanish settlers arrive. Mexico is part of the colony of New Spain.
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The Mexican War of Independence begins led by Catholic priest Miguel Hidalgo.
The Mexican War of Independence was an armed conflict, and the culmination of a political and social process which ended the rule of Spain in 1821 in the territory of New Spain. -
The War of Independence ends and Mexico declares its independence on September 27th.
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Agustin de Iturbide is declared the first Emperor of Mexico.
After the secession of Mexico was secured, he was proclaimed President of the Regency in 1821. A year later, he was announced as the Constitutional Emperor of Mexico, reigning briefly from 19 May 1822 to 19 March 1823. He is credited as the original designer of the first Mexican flag. -
- Guadalupe Victoria takes office as the first President of Mexico. Mexico becomes a republic.
Guadalupe excelled in the takings of Oaxaca and Veracruz, where he joined the ranks of Nicolas Bravo who was under the command of Jose Maria Morelos. Seeing how important the military journey was through the Puente del Rey, he devoted himself to halting them and due to his successful assaults on military convoys he was recognized as a leader and strategist of independence. -
The Texas Revolution begins.
The Texas revolution occurred as a result of a series of events that began long before the first shots fired in Gonzales on October 2, 1835, and finally ending at the battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836. The actual battle of San Jacinto lasted less than twenty minutes, but it was in the making for six years. -
The Mexican army led by Santa Anna is defeated by the Texans led by Sam Houston at the Battle of San Jacinto. Texas declares its independence from Mexico as the Republic of Texas.
The republic's southern and western boundary with Mexico was disputed throughout the republic's existence. Texas claimed the Rio Grande as its southern boundary, while Mexico insisted that the Nueces River was the boundary. Texas was annexed by the United States on December 29, 1845 -
The Mexican-American War begins.
The Mexican-American War, waged between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848, helped to fulfill America's "manifest destiny" to expand its territory across the entire North American continent. -
- The Mexican-American War ends with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The U.S. gains territory including California, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Nevada.
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Mexico sells portions of New Mexico and Arizona to the United States as part of the Gasden Purchase.
DescriptionThe Gadsden Purchase, known in Mexico as Spanish: Venta de La Mesilla, is a 29,670-square-mile region of present-day southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico that the United States acquired from Mexico by the Treaty of Mesilla, which took effect on June 8, 1854 -
The French invade Mexico and install Maximilian of Austria as president in 1864
French Intervention in Mexico and the American Civil War, 1862–1867. In 1862, French Emperor Napoleon III maneuvered to establish a French client state in Mexico, and eventually installed Maximilian of Habsburg, Archduke of Austria, as Emperor of Mexico. -
Batalla de puebla
Cinco de Mayo, (Spanish: “Fifth of May”), also called Anniversary of the Battle of Puebla, holiday celebrated in parts of Mexico and the United States in honour of a military victory in 1862 over the French forces of Napoleon III. -
Benito Jaurez becomes president
The period of Juárez’s leadership is known as La Reforma del Norte (The Reform of the North). During this time, large tracts of Church land was redistributed to the poor, the army was put under civilian control, church was separated from state, and civil rights were expanded. As progressive as these reforms were, Mexico suffered from inadequate democratic and institutional stability. After Juárez’s death Mexico returned to a centralized autocracy under the regime of Porfirio Diaz. -
The Mexican Revolution begins led by Emiliano Zapata.
DescriptionThe Mexican Revolution, also known as the Mexican Civil War, was a major armed struggle, lasting roughly from 1910 to 1920, that radically transformed Mexican culture and government. -
President Porfirio Diaz, who ruled as dictator for 35 years, is overthrown and replaced with revolutionary Francisco Madero
His period of rule, referred to as the Porfiriato, was marked by great progress and modernization and the Mexican economy boomed. The benefits were felt by very few, however, as millions of peons labored in virtual slavery. He lost power in 1910-1911 after rigging an election against Francisco Madero, which brought about the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920) -
The Mexican Constitution is adopted.
It was drafted in Santiago de Querétaro, in the State of Querétaro, by a constitutional convention, during the Mexican Revolution. It was approved by the Constitutional Congress on 5 February 1917. It is the successor to the Constitution of 1857, and earlier Mexican constitutions. -
Revolutionary hero and military leader Pancho Villa is assassinated.
Pancho Villa - Death and Legacy. In 1920, Villa reached an agreement with Mexican leader Adolfo de la Huerta pardoning him for his actions in return for Villa's promise to put an end to his independent military activities. Three years later, on July 20, 1923, Pancho Villa was assassinated. -
The National Mexican Party is formed. It will later be named the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). The PRI will rule the Mexican government until the year 2000.
The PNR was founded in 1929 by Plutarco Elías Calles, Mexico's paramount leader at the time and self-proclaimed Jefe Máximo (Supreme Chief) of the Mexican Revolution. The party was created with the intent of providing a political space in which all the surviving leaders and combatants of the Mexican Revolution could participate and to solve the grave political crisis caused by the assassination of President-elect Álvaro Obregón in 1928. -
Mexico experiences a long period of economic growth.
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Mexico joins the Allies in World War II declaring war on Germany and Japan.
México did contribute to the Allied victory in important ways. Despite long standing tensions with the United States, Mexico would become a valuable ally to its northern neighbor, ramping up its industrial production and contributing vital resources to the Allied war effort.
In addition, thousands of Mexican nationals living in the United States registered for military service during World War II. Mexico’s own elite air squadron, known as the Aztec Eagles. -
México held the olimpics
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Tlaltelolco massacre
Government forces in Mexico fired on thousands of student protesters gathered in a public square in the capital. Scores, and possibly hundreds, died. Like many other worldwide movements of the 1960s, Mexico's students were demanding greater freedom and democracy. -
8.1 level earthquake hits Mexico City.
A huge 8.1 level earthquake hits Mexico City. Much of the city is destroyed and over 10,000 people are killed. -
The North American Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Canada and the United States is ratified.
Negotiations began in 1986 and it was signed 1988. It went into effect on January 1, 1989, and remained in force until NAFTA replaced it. In 1990, Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari requested a free trade agreement with the U.S. ... In 1992, NAFTA was signed by outgoing President George H.W. -
Vicente Fox is elected president.
He is the first president not from the PRI party in 71 years. -
Conservative candidate Felipe Calderon is declared the winner of presidential elections
During his term Calderón oversaw the passage of legislation to reform Mexico’s judicial system, and he worked to strengthen the energy sector, increase the number of jobs, and fight crime and drug cartels. But by 2009 Mexico was still suffering from a recession, high unemployment, and escalating drug-related violence and cartel warfare. Calderón’s PAN lost to the opposition PRI in the legislative elections held in July 2009. -
Enrique Peña Nieto is elected for president
President Enrique Peña Nieto was born on July 20, 1966, in Atlacomulco, Mexico. Interested in politics from the time he was a boy, Peña Nieto quickly climbed the ranks of power and at the age of 39 was elected governor of the State of Mexico. In 2012, Peña Nieto won the Mexican presidency with 38 percent of the vote. However, his administration was marked by various scandals and an inability to stem the country's violent drug trade, resulting in diminished approval ratings over his six-year term -
Oil sector was opened again
to private and foreign investment with changes in the Constitution during 2013 as the state seeks to share the costs and risks of finding new oil in more difficult deposits, such as those in deep water. The importance of oil to the overall economy and to budgets has dwindled, however, and it now accounts for less than 20% of revenue and 10% of exports. -
7,1 earthquake hits Mexico
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Andrés Manuel López Obrador is elected for president
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The US, Canada and Mexico reach a new trade deal - the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) - to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta).
Dubbed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), the deal is intended to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and creates a modernized free-trade system between the three parties that addresses critical issues, such as the harmonization of regulatory systems, e-commerce and the protection of intellectual property.
