Vicente Riva Palacio Collection
Scope and Contents
The Archives subgroup contains correspondence, literary productions, financial documents, official and legal documents, lists, newspaper clippings, and assorted documents pertaining to the history, politics, economics, and arts of Mexico; to the legal, literary, and military activities of Vicente Riva Palacio; and to his private life and that of his family. Many letters and other items reflect Vicente Riva Palacio's activities in support of the arts and sciences, especially in the organization of exhibitions.
Correspondence consists primarily of letters and telegrams to Vicente Riva Palacio but includes correspondence and assorted papers (1831-1880) of Vicente's father, Mariano Riva Palacio, and grandmother, Guadalupe Hernández de Guerrero. At least 180 of the letters to Vicente Riva Palacio are from Porfirio Díaz and date from 1877-1896. Among the many correspondents are Manuel Payno, Matías Romero, and José Vicente Villada. Letter books describe letters, dated 1876-1878, from public figures, family members, and friends.
Literary productions, primarily written by Vicente Riva Palacio, include essays, speechs, poems, research notes, reports on scientific matters, and other writings. Financial documents include records of Vicente Riva Palacio's income and expenses and Mariano Riva Palacio's records of the income and expenses of the municipality of Mexico from December 31, 1867 to July, 1868 and May, 1869. Lists are of military personnel, property, and reference resources.
The Manuscripts subgroup includes “Historia colonial” (G4), “Borradores de los negocios despachados...” (G486.1), “Expediente formado para la continuación de campaña en los pueblos de la demarcación de mi mando...” (G515), “Correspondencia particular: Minutas” (G522), “Libro en que se acientan las cartas particulares del C. General Vicente...” (G532), “Memorandum” (G558), “Cuenta documentada del importe del convite...” (G560), “Discursos al congreso constitucional” (G572), “Ayuda de memoria de la comision. Indice general de lo escrito...” (G575), “Evolución rutaria y apéndices cutáneos de la raza indígena pura” (G582), “The Native races of America” (G583), “Discurso sobre los antecedentes de la conquista de México” (G587), “Historia general de México. Prospecto” (G604), and “Historia general de México” (G605).
Dates
- Creation: 1790-1896
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1814-1896
Language of Materials
Spanish, French, English
Access Restrictions
Unrestricted.
Use Restrictions
Standard copyright restrictions apply.
Biographical Note
Lawyer, general, politician, diplomat, historian, and writer. Vicente Riva Palacio's parents were Mariano Riva Palacio and Dolores Guerrero, who was the daughter of Vicente Guerrero and Guadalupe Hernández. Vicente, who received his law degree in 1854, maintained a legal practice while intermittently holding public office, going to war, and pursuing a literary career. He held offices in the municipality of Mexico City; the constituent and national congresses; the Supreme Court of Justice; the Ministry of Fomento, Colonización, Industria, y Comercio; and Mexico's diplomatic corps in Spain and Portugal. In addition, he participated in the revolution of Ayutla and the French intervention, and directed and wrote for several newspapers. Through his journalism, he contributed to the downfall of the governments of Emperor Maximilian and Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada and to the ascent of Porfirio Díaz.
Vicente Riva Palacio was the author of many literary and historical works, including the following:
- 1832
- born in Mexico City.
- 1845
- entered the Colegio de San Gregorio
- ?
- fought in the war against the U.S.?
- 1854
- received law degree, then participated in the revolution of Ayutla
- 1855
- regidor in the municipality of Mexico City
- 1856
- alternate deputy to the constituent congress
- 1856-1857
- secretary of the ayuntamiento of Mexico City until Comonfort took over the government
- 1858-1860 April
- imprisoned because of his liberal ideas
- 1861
- after the War of the Reform, became diputado to the national congress and wrote for the newspaper La Orquesta
- 1861
- wrote dramas and comedies in collaboration with Juan A. Mateos
- 1862
- organized a guerrilla force and joined General Ignacio Zaragoza to fight against the French intervention
- 1862-1867
- continued to fight against the French intervention
- 1862-1863
- Jefe de la línea de Sur de la carretera between Puebla and Veracruz
- 1862
- designated governor of the state of Mexico
- 1864
- Named general de brigada; named jefe de estado mayor; named second in command of the division and chief of the third brigade. Troops under his command took Zitácuaro from the French.
- 1865-1866
- founded and published the newspaper El Pito Real
- 1865
- Designated governor of Michocán; upon the death of General José María Arteaga, Riva Palacio was named General en Jefe del Ejército del Centro.
- 1865
- negotiated an exchange of prisoners with the French
- 1866?
- turned over the Ejército del Centro to Nicolás de Régules, then organized other bands of fighters
- 1867
- was involved in founding and writing for the newspaper El Radical, which remained active until 1873
- 1867
- participated in the sieges of Toluca, Querétaro, and Mexico City
- 1867-1870
- magistrate of the Supreme Court of Justice
- traveled and studied in Europe
- 1873
- unsuccessful candidate for president of the Supreme Court of Justice
- December 1874
- founded the newspaper El Ahuizote, which was published until at least 1876
- 1876
- Minister of Fomento, Colonización, Industria y Comercio; resigned the same year
- 1876
- dedicated himself to writing
- 1882
- collaborated in the foundation of the Ateneo Mexicano de Ciencias y Artes and served as its president
- 1884
- diputado in the government of President Manuel González
- 1884
- Accused of conspiracy and imprisioned; while in the military prison of Santiago, he wrote the second volume of México a través de los siglos. Retired from the military after his release from prison.
- 1886
- Ministro Plenipotenciario of Mexico in Spain and Portugal. While in Madrid, he developed significant relations with Spanish artists, intellectuals, and politicians.
- 1896
- died in Madrid, Spain
Full Extent
10.25 linear feet
Abstract
Literary productions, correspondence, literary productions, legal and financial documents pertaining to literary, legal, and military activities of Vicente Riva Palacio and to the history, politics, economics, and arts of Mexico.
Other Finding Aids
The following guides are available in the Benson Latin American Collection Rare Books Reference:
Dabbs, Jack Autrey. "Guide to the Vicente Riva Palacio Collection" (unpublished) 198?
Castañeda, Carlos Eduardo, 1896-1958. "Guide to the Latin American Manuscripts in the University of Texas Library." Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1939
Acquisitions Information
The Vicente Riva Palacio Collection forms part of the Genaro García Collection, which was purchased by the University of Texas in 1921 from the heirs of Genaro García.
Alternate Form Available
The collection is also available on microfilm.
Processing Information
The Vicente Riva Palacio Collection was arranged into Archives and Manuscripts subgroups by earlier library staff. Existing wallets were numbered as received.
The collection was described by the Benson's Mexican Archives Project in February 1995.
The Mexican Archives Project staff completed the processing of the collection in March 1995.
- Title
- Vicente Riva Palacio Collection
- Status
- Edited Full Draft
- Author
- Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection
- Date
- 1995 February
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Revision Statements
- September 10, 2002: Edited with XMetaL3 by Bob Stewart according to instructions in Editing TARO EAD XML Finding Aids with XMetaL.
- Tue Jul 22 14:57:58 CDT 2003: urn:taro:utexas.blac.00031 converted from EAD 1.0 to 2002 by v1to02.xsl (20030505).
- April 2021: Edited by Rachel E. Winston to fix compliance check errors to prepare for the migration to new TARO website.
- 2021 November: Edited by Devon Murphy to update control access terms and formatting based on the TARO Control Access List.
- 2024 August: Edited by Dylan Joy to emphasize best practices on how to effectively navigate the collection's numbering system.
- 2025 July: Revised by Ryan Sullivant to fix validation errors prior to ingestion into ArchivesSpace.
Repository Details
Part of the Benson Latin American Collection, The University of Texas at Austin Repository
2300 Red River Street
Austin Texas 78712 United States
(512) 495-4578
bensonspecialcollections@austin.utexas.edu