[Ravensfort] Cinco de Mayo

[byzytym]

Cinco de Mayo salutations, y'all.
This celebration has always seemed a little strange to me.
It is a celebration of Mexico's victory over the French at the battle of Puebla on the 5th of May 1862.
The dirty little secret about this is the fact that on May 17th 1863 the French retook the city. 
The French had invaded Mexico because it was not making payments on debts to its European lenders.
Not wanting to be cheated on good faith loans France did not discourage easily.
They went on to capture the Capital and on May 28th 1864 Maximilian was formally crowned Emperor of Mexico.
So May turned out to be a pretty good month for the French after all.
Unfortunately for France, the American Civil War came to an end the next year.
Had it not been for the U.S. freebees to the Mexican rebels most people in south Texas would now hear les sons du francais.
Being from Louisiana, I would not mind that at all.
Perhaps Mexico should pick another month and day to celebrate since the May 5th victory was so short lived.
As for me, today I will adorn myself with the fleur de lis and seek a sassy French beer.

I include wikipedia sites not so much for the accuracy of their facts, but rather for the cool art work they usually use.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_intervention_in_Mexico

Paix,
MARIVS

"what shall it profit a man,
if he shall gain the whole world,
and lose his own soul ?"

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