After its independence in 1821, Mexico experienced more than fifty years of political chaos until Porfirio Diaz assumed power in 1876. Thirty-five years later, Mexico entered another period of turbulent instability (1910-29), during which the country underwent a revolution, a counter-revolution, a counter-counter-revolution, three civil wars, and four violent coups or attempted coups. In both periods, governments repudiated debts, confiscated cash reserves, demanded forced loans, and engaged in the unrestrained printing of currency. The governments that came to power after these bouts of...
After its independence in 1821, Mexico experienced more than fifty years of political chaos until Porfirio Diaz assumed power in 1876. Thirty-five yea...
On August 15, 1914, the Panama Canal officially opened for business, forever changing the face of global trade and military power, as well as the role of the United States on the world stage. The Canal's creation is often seen as an example of U.S. triumphalism, but Noel Maurer and Carlos Yu reveal a more complex story. Examining the Canal's influence on Panama, the United States, and the world, The Big Ditch deftly chronicles the economic and political history of the Canal, from Spain's earliest proposals in 1529 through the final handover of the Canal to Panama on December 31,...
On August 15, 1914, the Panama Canal officially opened for business, forever changing the face of global trade and military power, as well as the r...