San Patricio, Patron Saint of San Patricio Melaque, Jalisco
March 17
St Patrick’s Day in Mexico
In Mexico City a plaque reads “In memory of the Irish soldiers of the heroic St. Patrick’s Battalion, martyrs who gave their lives to the Mexican cause in the United States’ unjust invasion of 1847.”
Mexico celebrates Saint Patrick’s Day with a slight twist. They celebrate and commemorate the Irish heroes, the “San Patricios.” of the Mexiccan American War in 1846 to 1848.
Several hundred immigrants deserted from the American Army. The immigrants were primarily Irish but also included Catholic English, French, Canadians, Italians, Poles, Scots, Spaniards and Swiss and together with a few native Mexican formed the Saint Patrick’s Battalion. Even escaped slaves and other disenfranchised Americans joined the Mexican Army that was promising citizenship, land grants and higher wages than the American Government.
There are various reasons they joined the Mexican Army. As primarily new immigrants to the US, they did not hold a particular allegiance to that country. Often they were recruited right off the boat by the US Army and mistreated and marginalized by the rest of the men. A major reason was that they were not allowed to practice their faith freely or attend Sunday Mass.
The San Patricios were very successful fighters and eventually grew to over 700 men. However the American side proved too powerful and the defeated the Mexicans in the War. They took approximately 1/3 of then Mexico lands in a “negotiated” settlement with President Santa Ana.