Lost in all the noise about food and drink specials is the history of Cinco de Mayo, a day that—remarkably—doesn’t get the attention in Mexico (save for the area where the battle took place) that it does in Chicago and the rest of the United States, says Cesareo Moreno, chief curator at the National Museum of Mexican Art in Pilsen.
May 5 marks the 1862 Battle of Puebla, when a small Mexican army beat back the invading French army roughly 100 miles southeast of Mexico City. What was the fight over? Like every bad reality TV show plot: money and power.
“It was an incredible battle that Mexico won, but they didn’t win the war,” at that time, Moreno said.
So beyond the tacos and margarita specials, here are five things to know about Cinco de Mayo:
1. First off, it shouldn’t be mistaken for Mexico’s Independence Day– that’s Sept. 16.
2. The battle came on the heels of then-President Benito Juarez’s decision to stop paying interest on money owed to France and other countries. So French troops moved in to take over the country, according to smithsonian.com.
3. “It was a David vs. Goliath” battle, with 4,000 Mexican soldiers battling with roughly 8,000 in the French army, says Raul Luna, outreach coordinator at Office of Latino Affairs at Chicago State University.
4. Though Mexico’s president declared it a national holiday days after the victory, today it’s not really observed there. “In the United States, the Mexican-American community embraced it and [in the U.S.] it became a point of pride,” he said, noting there are roughly 1.6 million people who claim Mexican ancestry in Chicago and the suburbs. “It’s [the] pride of being of Mexican ancestry, and it’s a great time of year to have a celebration to kick off the picnic and barbecues.”
5. If all this talk about Puebla is making your stomach grumble, there’s a reason. It’s not just the area where the battle was fought, it’s also where beloved Chicago eatery Cemitas Puebla gets its name; owner Tony Anteliz’s parents emigrated from Puebla and he can remember taking an interest in the history as a teen. “There’s a lot of pride because the Mexican army was made up of a lot of indigenous warriors and Napoleon III was in charge of the French army.” Anteliz’s signature cemita sandwiches and tacos arabes are a nod to Puebla’s street foods that came decades after the battle. Still Anteliz jokes: “Maybe Napolean was searching for some of that great food.”
