A Fighting Woman

You may recall that a few weeks ago I showed you a tile plaque at the entrance to a subway station honoring Miguel Hidalgo, the Father of Mexican Independence.  The other day, I saw a similar plaque at a different station honoring another hero of the war for independence, Juana Arcos Barragán.  Even though I am a history buff, I had never heard of her.  I had to do some research.

 Juana Arcos Barragán was born in a small town in the southern state of Guerrero in 1780.  In 1810 the War for Independence from Spain broke out.  Members of her family were involved in the insurgency, and the story goes that she joined the rebellion when she found the bodies of several relatives hung from a tree by the Spanish.  She gathered a small army of peasants and joined forces with José María Morelos, who was Hidalgo's commander in the south.  After Hidalgo was captured and executed by the Spanish, Morelos led the insurgency.  Barragán fought with Morelos in numerous battles, and he gave her command of her own batallion.  Morelos was also captured and executed by the Spanish, but Barragán continued fighting in the mountains of southern Mexico.  She evaded capture by the Spanish for five years, but died before a firing squad in 1820 shortly before the nation finally achieved its independence.