This early 19th-century oil on canvas portrait is of Mexican Independence leader Father José María Morelos y Pavón, and is part of the Alamo Collection. Father Morelos joined Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla’s insurrection against Spain in 1810 and would soon become its leader following Hidalgo’s execution. He convened a National Congress at Chilpancingo to help establish a government. During this Congress, he set forth his plan, Sentimientos de la Nación. Declaring Mexico’s independence, putting the state religion as Catholicism, prohibiting slavery forever, and abolishing the caste system were just some of the twenty-three articles included in his plan. Morelos was executed on December 22, 1815.
Donors: Mr. and Mrs. James L. Britton
