Background
- Porfirio Díaz ruled Mexico almost continuously from 1876 to 1911, with only a brief interruption (1880–1884).
- His regime, known as the Porfiriato, brought stability and modernization after decades of civil war, but at the cost of authoritarian control and social inequality.
- Díaz’s policies attracted foreign investment, built railroads, and encouraged industrial growth, yet his exclusionary rule and concentration of land ownership sowed the seeds of revolution.
Methods of Political Control
- Centralization of Power
- Díaz built a highly centralized regime, ensuring that local and regional authorities were loyal through a network of political patronage. He eliminated federal autonomy, placing all key offices under presidential oversight.
- Manipulated Democracy
- Elections were held but heavily rigged; Díaz justified re-election by claiming that Mexico needed stability over political experimentation.
- Control through Patronage and Repression
- The rural police force (Rurales) enforced order in the countryside through intimidation and violence. Opposition leaders were imprisoned, exiled, or co-opted through political favors.
- Censorship and Co-optation
- Díaz suppressed the free press, restricted public dissent, and bought off influential journalists and regional elites (caciques) to maintain loyalty.
- Peace through Dictatorship
- His motto “Order and Progress” reflected a belief that authoritarianism was necessary for modernization.
Definition
Rurales
A national rural police force created under Díaz to maintain order, often through coercion and brutality in rural Mexico.
The Científicos and the Ideology of Order
- Díaz relied on a circle of technocratic advisers known as the Científicos (“scientists”), who were influenced by Positivism, the belief that scientific and economic progress justified authoritarian rule.
- The Científicos promoted policies favoring foreign investment, railway expansion, and land privatization, arguing these would modernize Mexico.
- Their policies disproportionately benefited elites and foreign investors while deepening social inequality.
- They also shaped Díaz’s paternalistic approach, portraying political control as a prerequisite for economic progress.
- Over time, this technocratic elitism alienated the working class and Indigenous peasantry, creating a growing divide between the ruling elite and the rest of society.
Economic Modernization and Social Costs
- Rapid Growth
- Under Díaz, Mexico experienced major industrialization. Railroads expanded from 640 km (1876) to over 19,000 km (1910). Mining, textiles, and agriculture flourished, fueled by foreign capital from the U.S., Britain, and France.
- Land Concentration
- The Ley de Deslinde (Land Survey Law, 1894) allowed survey companies to claim “vacant” lands, displacing Indigenous and peasant communities. By 1910, over 90% of rural families were landless laborers (peones).
- Urban Inequality
