Explore the José María Armenta (1775-1810) and Miguel López de Lima (?- 1810) about the 1. The War of Independence (1810–21) of the Independence, Reform, Revolution Panel in this artwork, Oaxaca en la historia y en el mito.
= José María Armenta (1775-1810) and Miguel López de Lima (?- 1810) Two insurgents, apparently the two at the back wearing hats typical of mule drivers, are celebrated in Oaxaca in the street Armenta y López, located near the Palacio de Gobierno. José María Armenta was a mulero, (a mule skinner or mule driver) when Miguel Hidalgo gave him the rank of colonel and sent him to Antequera (Oaxaca) to foment rebellion. López took Miguel Armenta de Lima as his lieutenant. Their story illustrates some of the complexities and tragedy of one of the five civil wars fought in Oaxaca.
When they arrived in Antequera, locals were suspicious of the two men, but the two were able to convince Antequera authorities that they were selling firewood. One story is that they had learned that the mayor was a Creole and they assumed that he, like many other Creoles, including themselves, was a supporter of the rebellion. When the insurgents told the mayor their intentions to start a revolution, he threw them in jail.
After a trial, they were hung in the quarries of Jalatlaco. Their bodies were dismembered and strewn on the road to Etla as a warning to other potential insurgents that the colonial authorities who were in control of Antequera in 1811, meant business. After José Morelos captured the city in 1812, he ordered that the remains of insurgents who had been martyred,  Miguel López de Lima, José María Armenta, Felipe Tinoco y José María Palacios, be exhumed. Subsequently, they were celebrated in the cathedral as heroes.
Oaxaca civil war Palacio de Gobierno insurgents colonial Antequera Morelos Miguel Hidalgo José Morelos