Grito de Dolores — Hidalgo Launches Independence Uprising

At dawn on September 16, 1810, Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla rang the bell of his parish church in Dolores, Guanajuato, and delivered his famous cry for insurrection — exact words unrecorded, but legend holds it included 'Death to bad government!' and 'Long live Our Lady of Guadalupe!' Within days Hidalgo commanded an army of 80,000 poorly armed insurgents. September 16 is Mexico's national independence day, commemorated annually by the President's Grito from the Palacio Nacional balcony.