Miguel hidalgo

Miguel Hidalgo was born a Creole on May 8, 1753. His father was the administrator of a hacienda in the Bajío (in the present state of Guanajuato). Miguel was trained briefly in a Jesuit school beforethe order was expelled from the empire in 1767. Later that year he matriculated in the diocesan College of San Nicolás in Valladolid (now Morelia). Hidalgo was intellectually oriented and chose toremain part of the academic community long after he had earned degrees in theology and had been ordained. By 1776 he was a member of the San Nicolás faculty and remained in Valladolid until 1792 as anacademician, an exponent of the Enlightenment, and a Don Juan. In 1790 he became rector of the college, but his advanced ideas and mismanagement of funds soon led to his ouster.
From 1792 until 1810Hidalgo served as parish priest in a succession of curacies. While in San Felipe (1793-1803), he made his house a salon and promoted French theatrical works (which he translated), orchestral music,dances, and literary discussions. The Inquisition investigated his activities (1800-1801) but did not press charges. On his arrival in Dolores near Guanajuato in 1803, Hidalgo turned to moresocioeconomic interests. These he expressed through his development of local craft industries (ceramics, tanning, sericulture) for the benefit of the Indian and caste population.
Start of a Rebellion
With theNapoleonic invasion of Spain in 1808, Mexico's own crisis began. Hidalgo's search for intellectual companionship had brought him into contact with prominent Creoles throughout the Bajío, Michoacán, andadjacent areas. When the Creoles in Querétaro organized a plot to expel the dominant peninsular Spaniards and to substitute themselves in power, Hidalgo joined. Articulate, well informed, andcharismatic, he soon emerged as the uprising's leader, with Ignacio Allende, a militia captain, as second in command.
Exposed in early September 1810, the conspirators were forced to revolt prematurely....