Why Mexicans Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day

By Jim Estrada

AUSTIN, TX — St. Patrick’s Day has special significance in Mexico and among generations of families who can trace their history to the old Southwest, particularly among those of Mexican heritage. This reverence is due to the actions of unsung heroes known as the San Patricios.

While their bravery and military skills are not particularly well chronicled outside of Mexico and the Southwest, their hero status among Mexicans almost makes up for the absence of their role in the Mexican American War (1846-1848). They remain fondly remembered and admired as Los Colorados — the redheaded Irishmen who fought in support of the Mexican forces.

The San Patricios became a respected part of the Mexican Army during the war. Their relatively unknown story (according to whose version you believe) is one of angry, bewildered, naive, or principled young men — from various nationalities and ethnic backgrounds — who deserted the U.S. Army for many reasons and paid the ultimate price for their acts. Displeased with ethnic and immigrant bias on the part of Anglo-Protestant officers — and unconvinced about the reasons they were given for fighting Mexican Catholics — hundreds of Irish, German and other immigrant soldiers deserted from the U.S. Army to join the Mexican forces.

“The San Patricios were alienated both from [U.S.] American society as well as the U.S. Army,” says Professor Kirby Miller of the University of Missouri, an expert on Irish immigration. “They realized that the army was not fighting a war of liberty, but one of conquest against fellow Catholics such as themselves.”

The mostly Irish defectors were led by Captain John Riley of Clifden in County Galway — and in deference to Ireland referred to themselves as the St. Patrick’s Battalion. They fought against the U.S. forces in all the war’s major campaigns and according to their Mexican comrades “deserved the highest praise, because they fought with daring bravery.”

Although their hero status is based on their exemplary performance in battle, the San Patricios suffered major casualties at the battle of Churubusco, considered by military historians as the Waterloo for the Mexican Army. Yet, Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, who commanded the Mexican forces at Churubusco, is reported to have said that if there had been a few hundred more men like the San Patricios under his command Mexico would have been victorious.

Despite the assistance from the San Patricios, Mexico was no match for the U.S. Army and eventually surrendered — ceding the modern Southwest to the USA as a condition of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848. Subsequently, the San Patricios were jailed and court-martialed. Many were set free; but the Irish paid dearly, accounting for approximately half of those executed.

September 12th is the anniversary of those executions and ceremonies are held across Mexico to honor the San Patricios and celebrate the contributions of immigrants like the Irish, Scots and Germans in the war. It is not uncommon for an Irish person to hear about the famous “Irish Martyrs” who sacrificed their lives to fight with a people whose principles they shared.

Respect for the Irish remains high in Mexico, as well as among those of Mexican heritage. In 1959, the Mexican government dedicated a commemorative plaque to the San Patricios in San Angel, a Mexico City suburb. The plaque lists all the names of the battalion of immigrants who lost their lives in battle and execution. During the celebration a special mass was followed by school children placing floral wreaths at the site of the plaque, the Mexico City Symphony orchestra played the national anthems of Mexico and Ireland, and Mexican and Irish officials eulogized the “Irish Martyrs.”

In 1983, the Mexican government authorized a special commemorative medallion in their honor and in 1993, the Irish began their own annual ceremony honoring the San Patricios in John Riley’s hometown of Clifden.

On this St. Patrick’s Day (and future ones) raise your glass of green beer and toast to the San Patricios, who understood the plight of immigrants and chose to cast their fate with Mexico.

¡Viva los San Patricios! Éirinn go brách!

This article was first published in MyLatinoVoice.