Travel & Geography > The Regions of the United States. Travel to the United States | The States & Territories |. The Regions of the United States | Facts & Statistics. New England | The Mid-Atlantic | The South.
The Mexican Revolution began on November 20, 1910 as an attempt to overthrow the rule of Mexican President Porfirio Diaz, who had been in power since 1877. Diaz stepped down and submitted to exile in 1911.
There, he made a speech known as the Grito de Dolores (Cry of Dolores), where he called for a rebellion so that Mexicans, rather than Spaniards, could govern Mexico. Although Mexico did not officially become independent from Spain until 1821, Mexicans celebrate September 16 as Independence Day because this is the day that the movement towards independence began. Every year, late on September 15, Mexico's president rings a bell and repeats the Grito de Dolores.