Porfirio Diaz

Porfirio Diaz, President of Mexico (1876-1880, 1884-1911) dominated his country during a crucial phase in its development as a modern nation. His regime has mostly been viewed from the perspective of the Mexican Revolution (1910-20) which finally forced him into exile - the abuse of power is seen as the principal cause of his downfall. Diaz has more recently come to be seen in a rather less damning light. This profile places the regime in its more appropriate nineteenth-century context, highlighting the difficulty of implementing liberal policies in societies with strong colonial traditions, and of balancing material development with order and stability. In Mexico, Diaz oversaw real material achievements, and successfully avoided serious domestic conflict, but sank into repressive tactics as his regime became progressively undermined by its own internal contradictions. This book is an account of political survival and demise, this is the first biography in English for decades of a central figure in the history of Latin America. Paul Garner is Professor of Spanish and Latin American Studies at Goldsmiths, University of London.

Paul Garner