The 100 Sons of the Sun.

[ukron]

Hello everyone, this story I'm about to tell you is inspired by my recent game with Mexico from 1936 to 1954 in the 'Road to 56' mod. This mod extends the basic game's deadline to 1956 and adds many improvements and "national destinies" to the countries in the game.
For a little more logic, I've improved and sometimes modified certain events to maintain a certain form of clarity. I hope you don't mind, and wish you a pleasant reading.

Sincerely Ukron.

[ukron]

Chapter 1: 1936, the year of danger

It's 1936 and you're a Mexican citizen. How do you see the future?
Your concerns are many, and your country, Mexico, is just recovering from the terrible civil war that tore it apart two decades earlier. To make matters worse, the recent stock market crash has seriously affected the Mexican economy, widening inequalities even further.
Your country's politics are dominated by the Maximoto era, a rather disturbing mix of nationalism, republicanism, progressivism and authoritarianism, dominated by the figure of the charismatic President Plutarco Elías Calles (1877-1945), who from 1924 to 1936 ruled the roost in Mexico City.


Calles in 1930, reorganizing the country's political and social life, he introduced far-reaching reforms, including the creation of a national bank, a reform of the role of the army and an all-out attack on the Catholic clergy, However, these reforms, which were supposed to put an end to the practices of the Porfiriat, were accompanied by a very violent quasi-civil war (the Christeros War), the takeover of a large part of the country's land and economy by military leaders ("caudillos") and American investors, and finally by growing authoritarianism.

In 1934, you put an end to the undivided reign of Calles and his straw men of the PNR (National Revolutionary Party) by electing Lázaro Cárdenas (1895-1970), a socialist-inspired politician whose first major reform was a massive redistribution of land and an alliance with the Communist Party; this did not go down well with everyone, especially Calles, who was forcibly exiled.


Lázaro Cárdenas, a former regional governor, set out to continue Calles' reforms, but with a strong social program aimed at redistributing national wealth and nationalizing strange assets. Externally, he was a strong opponent of authoritarian European regimes, notably Mussolini's Italy and Nazi Germany.

If you're Mexican on this day, January 1, 1936, you may be wondering what the future holds, but to do so, you need to look back and consider the forces at work within the United Mexican States:

If you're from Jalisco or the central regions of Mexico, your allegiance may lie with the Christeros, defenders of the Catholic faith in the face of the anti-clerical measures of the 1917 constitution; perhaps you were a gunner against the army during the 26-29 war, and you harbor a hatred for the henchmen of the PNR, responsible for a wholesale purge of opponents and priests.



Christeros soldiers, led by René Capistrán Garza, president of the Mexican Catholic Youth Association, somewhere in 1926. Opposed to the anti-clerical reforms of the '17 constitution and the (atheist) personality of Callés, the Christeros fought a brutal war, responsible for over 100,000 deaths. A very precarious compromise peace, threatened by religious purges, was reached in '29.

If you happen to share with the Golden Shirts a xenophobia allied to a growing anti-Semitism and detestation of communists and trade unionists, then it's a safe bet that you're an admirer of Nicolás Rodríguez Carrasco.



Nicolas Rodríguez Carrasco, leader of the Golden Shirts (Acción Revolucionaria Mexicanista) performing the national revolutionary salute at a meeting in 1935. A former lieutenant of Pancho-Villa, Carrasco led a movement opposing the mass immigration of Asian workers and the development of Marxism in Mexico.


If, however, you're one of the young braves propelled by the reforms of Minister of War Joaquim Amaro, who under Calles attacked the powers and wealth of the Caudillos (Mexican army generals who had carved out fiefdoms for themselves), it's a safe bet that you're commanding an "Agrarista" agrarian company charged with building roads or maintaining aqueducts. Maybe not the idea you had of the army when you were younger?



Joaquim Amaro, Minister of War, who after the failed coup d'état of '29, led a vast reform of the military apparatus, subjecting it to the civilian power of the PNR.

You may be working in Mexico's oilfields for the British company Pearson, unless it's for the Yankees, in which case you may be in favor of article 27 of the 17 constitution stipulating full Mexican sovereignty over their mineral resources....


The Ebano oilfield in 1930, when less than 30 percent of Mexico's oil was owned by Mexico City.

On the other hand, you may be a member of the newly-created Mexican Workers' Confederation (CTM), and an active supporter of Cárdenas' policies, which are threatened by some rather occult forces.

Indeed, many economic interests are in the hands of the country's leading millionaire, an American by the name of Williams O. Jenkins.



Jenkins (center, wearing glasses) inspecting one of his plantations. Jenkins settled in Mexico in 1901, and prospered under all the Mexican regimes of the 20th century, establishing an economic empire from plantations to cinemas. Despite being considered a Yankee plutocrat, Jenkins supported the PNR and some of its social reforms (notably land redistribution).

It's at this point that, as a Mexican citizen, you tell yourself that who's going to decide Mexico's fate is going to be a tough nut to crack, so you let go of that thought and go back to your daily routine, leaving the future in hands more expert than you....

[575]

Ok managed to look up the game - a off shot of Hearts of Iron. Seen it mentioned, never played.
So a TL inspired of the game - lets see how it plays out. I like Your presentation of political parties.

[stevep]

  ukron ,

   You say its an of-shoot of HoI but not what this mod's called?  I know of a few and have played one, Aod [Arsenal of Democracy] although not played much in recent years and the base AoD is undergoing quite a lot of changes in the next version which is due out soon.

  Would be interested to see how you get on and what route you decide to take.  Going to be difficult doing anything drastic given all the vested interests and also the giant to the north as well as the economic problems and the coming world war.

  Do you have specific aims, i.e. building up a politically and economically Mexico, taking a more active role in either the world war or seeking to expand their territory/influence.

  Steve

[ukron]

Hello, thank you for your feedback.
First of all, this is the "Road to 56" mod (link below).
My first objective was to retake Texas and New Mexico by allying myself with the Axis, but in the end that seemed rather conventional and boring, so I decided before the Second World War to take the opposite decision and join the Allies as soon as possible in 1940.
Although my journey through the game won't be very realistic, I'll try to make it a little more historically credible.

spoiler-free, there are going to be big changes in the United States.

steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=820260968 (Road to 56 is a HOIV mod, here's the Steam page).

[stevep]

Feb 7, 2024 16:51:21 GMT ukron said:

Hello, thank you for your feedback.
First of all, this is the "Road to 56" mod (link below).
My first objective was to retake Texas and New Mexico by allying myself with the Axis, but in the end that seemed rather conventional and boring, so I decided before the Second World War to take the opposite decision and join the Allies as soon as possible in 1940.
Although my journey through the game won't be very realistic, I'll try to make it a little more historically credible.

spoiler-free, there are going to be big changes in the United States.

steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=820260968 (Road to 56 is a HOIV mod, here's the Steam page).

  Ah thanks ukron.  I've never played HoI4 as the game I've played is a HoI2 mod.

  Be interested to see what you get up to and what changes occur is Mexico and the rest of the world.  I know in the HoI universe a hell of a lot can happen when a decently experienced player goes against the AS. 

[ukron]

Actually if you want to make a try on HOIV and if your computer isn't really suit for, you can try to play through NvidiaGeForce Now.

[stevep]

Feb 8, 2024 22:42:57 GMT ukron said:

Actually if you want to make a try on HOIV and if your computer isn't really suit for, you can try to play through NvidiaGeForce Now.

  No I tend to be busy with Total War Games when I have time or MOO2 when gaming with my mate.

[ukron]

Total War, that's a collection of game that is huge and required a lot of patience and skils, should give a try one of those days

[ukron]

Chapter 2: Conspiracy (February-June 1936)

To understand the events of June 18, 1936 (or the second "noche triste"), we need to go back a few years to Calles' assassination of the militant José Guadalupe Rodríguez Favela in 1929.

Favela had been one of Mexico's leading Marxist activists in the 20s, and a greater threat to the Maximoto political system than might first appear: his agrarianist message, combined with a desire to create "soviets" of soldiers, threatened the stability of the presidential regime established by Calles and already well undermined by the Cristeros revolt.
At the same time as Favela was preaching his message in favor of communism in Mexico, General José Gonzalo Escobar had launched a revolt on the American border, with the aim of overthrowing Calles, so the president couldn't afford to let a popular opponent stir up the people against him, and opted for his assassination.


General José Escobar (1892-1969) in 1929, this brilliant officer decided to revolt to overthrow a regime he considered deeply corrupt, and to protest against the appointment of a civilian and Calles puppet, Portes Gil, to the presidency.
Despite a series of victories along the US border, he was finally defeated by federal forces at Jiménez in March 29.
In 1936, his legacy inspired the army to join the putchists.

Favela also wanted to overthrow the Calles regime, but in the name of the Third Communist International. His militancy in Durango province gave him rapid access to cartridges and supplies for the Mexican federal army, which was fighting on two fronts; Favela therefore proclaimed the Mexican Soviet Revolution in April 29.
On May 14, 1929, General Esquivel had Favela arrested and shot, dashing all hopes of a new Mexican revolution.

There is still some doubt as to who really ordered Favela's assassination: Calles or the landowners allied with the mutinous generals? but one thing is clear: the latter will be at the rendezvous in June 36.


May 25, 29 front page of the revolutionary newspaper "El Machete" denouncing the murder of Favela and the reactionary government.
In 1936, with the Cárdenas coalition, the forces of the traditional left and the revolutionary communists ruled the country, much to the dismay of the "reactionary" forces of landowners, American interests and the army.

Cárdenas' policies frightened many of the big landowners and generals, and even Williams Jenkins seemed worried about the current leader's rapprochement with the communists and Favela nostalgics, so action was needed, and only they had the levers to overthrow Cárdenas.
Historians are still debating the role played by Jenkins in the June 36 coup: whether he was simply a fundraiser or the real mastermind? In any case, after the restoration of democracy in 1939, he would not be bothered, leaving a black mark on the history of twentieth-century Mexico.

From February 36 onwards, the dreadful spiral of events was set in motion, bringing together a heterogeneous coalition of Escobar's military supporters, landowners and ARM fascists at meetings held in haciendas in the north of the country, motivated by the desire to prevent Mexico from becoming a Marxist state at any cost.
On February 27, 1936, the expulsion of Carrasco and his forced exile to El Paso were a godsend for the conspirators, who were thus able to play on the resentment of the ARM's big guns while getting rid of a much too troublesome ally.



A horse hit by a car during the Zocalo riot, November 20, 1935.
4 people were killed and hundreds wounded during a riot between communist militants and the Golden Shirts. This incident justified the banning of the ARM and the exile of its leader, but ultimately strengthened the putchists of June 36.




It would take several months to meticulously prepare an operation that would suffer no setbacks; a month during which the precarious international order would begin its long fall into hell with the militarization of the Rhineland by German armed forces following their entry, in defiance of agreements, into the region on March 7, 1936.

[stevep]

Feb 12, 2024 18:57:48 GMT ukron said:

Total War, that's a collection of game that is huge and required a lot of patience and skils, should give a try one of those days

  Well I've dabbled with the original Rome TW, the Medieval II TW and DAC - a mode of Med2 based on Tolkien's ME towards the end of the 3rd age, i.e. the Lord of the Rings period.  Very much a strategy game but very big with about 25 different factions you can play.  Currently trying a Med2 campaign as England on the very hard setting.  Struggled to get starting but after a few goes think I might have it now.  Just landed in Egypt with a crusading army and also liberated Paris from the French;) as they attacked me.  Only problem is having killed their king their excommunicated status has lapsed so an awkward question as to what to do now.  Probably concentrating on defence unless and until they attacked again and get excommunicated hopefully.  [Otherwise the pope gets very unhappy about Catholic factions fighting each other.]

[ukron]

Rome TW, I've played this one around 2008-9, always lost to Pyrrhus ;(

[stevep]

Feb 13, 2024 16:00:52 GMT ukron said:

Rome TW, I've played this one around 2008-9, always lost to Pyrrhus ;(

  Ah was that one of the set battles.  Virtually all my play has been in the campaign settings.  Did struggle for a while until you get the hang of the game but playing against the AI - or AS as I generally call it you can learn the tricks plus also tried playing against a mate.  However since it was set up for single player mod only a multi-player scenario is a player mod that generally struggled when humans players weren't the attacker.  You don't get a chance to actual fight the battle yourself either against your human opponent or the AI.   Its a problem with pretty much all TW games I've tried although I think the current version of D&C [Divide and Conquer] is supposed to have a better system.   Have to try getting reliable results myself in single player mode and then try and persuade my mate to give it a try.

  Anyway sorry I better stop now as derailing the thread rather.  If you want to know any more please sent me a mail.

[ukron]

Feb 13, 2024 22:20:23 GMT stevep said:

Feb 13, 2024 16:00:52 GMT ukron said:

Rome TW, I've played this one around 2008-9, always lost to Pyrrhus ;(

  Ah was that one of the set battles.  Virtually all my play has been in the campaign settings.  Did struggle for a while until you get the hang of the game but playing against the AI - or AS as I generally call it you can learn the tricks plus also tried playing against a mate.  However since it was set up for single player mod only a multi-player scenario is a player mod that generally struggled when humans players weren't the attacker.  You don't get a chance to actual fight the battle yourself either against your human opponent or the AI.   Its a problem with pretty much all TW games I've tried although I think the current version of D&C [Divide and Conquer] is supposed to have a better system.   Have to try getting reliable results myself in single player mode and then try and persuade my mate to give it a try.

  Anyway sorry I better stop now as derailing the thread rather.  If you want to know any more please sent me a mail.

Sorry for this very late reply, thanks for explainning.

[ukron]

Chapter 3: Who will be the first to strike the piñata?

The date of June 18, 1936 had been set arbitrarily by the putschists, with disastrous consequences. Less well known, however, was the factional struggle within the putschists themselves to seize and retain power, once Cárdenas had been eliminated.
This intestine war involved at least three factions, which would collaborate as long as the PNR remained in power, but as soon as the putsch was over, they would go for each other's throats in a Mexican re-enactment of the "Night of the Long Knives". {1}

What were its factions and who represented them?


Saturnino Cedillo was the last of the "caciques" but the first to support the idea of a coup against his own political party, after all his experience acquired during the civil war of 1912 (he had been one of the first to usurp Huerta's power) had enabled him to build up an imposing network of influence and consolidate his fiefdom in San Lui Potosi.



In the early '30s, the American press dubbed Cedillo the "Mexican Goering", due to his passion for aviation and the major political role he played both under Cárdenas and the "Estado Nuevo".

Cedillo had personal reasons to dislike Cárdenas, due to his adherence to the theses of the agraristas and his sympathy for his former enemies Cristeros.
By early 1933, Cedillo was constantly challenging Mexican power, building up a veritable personal army, often under the favorable eye of many senior officers, including Escobar.



Mexican soldiers in 1935 wore a wide variety of equipment (French Adrien helmets, Danish Madsen rifles), often at a very high price, forcing the army to choose its "sponsors" carefully.

Salvador Abascal was the most complex figure in this "troika": a Catholic mystic and notorious admirer of Hitler's regime, Abascal represented the legal current of the Cristeros within the UNS (Unión Nacional Sinarquista), a political party that could easily be compared to the Spanish Phalangists, more widespread but more elitist than the "golden shirts". An advocate of spiritual reform and diplomatic rapprochement with the Axis, Abascal was probably the best choice to seize power and keep it...


Abascal in 1936, agrarianism and extreme Catholicism were the order of the day.


The sinarchist flag, which became the official flag of the Mexican "Estado Nuevo" from 1937 to 1940.
The Sinarchist Manifesto states: ""an organization that works for the restoration of the fundamental rights of every citizen and the salvation of the Homeland. Unlike utopians who dream of a society without governors or laws, Sinarchism supports a society governed by legitimate authority, emanating from the free democratic activity of the people, which truly guarantees the social order in which all will find true happiness." (Source: fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_nationale_sinarchiste)


The last candidate, and the most fragile, was Cristeros general Jesús Degollado Guízar, who lived underground with a thousand of his fighters, and would strike a blow against the PNR councillors, enabling Cedillo and Abascal to take power in Mexico City.


Cristeros General Jesús Degollado Guízar



The Mexican army organizes "great maneuvers" in June 1936....



{1} A film on the same subject, "Tiempo de morir", was made in 1965 by director Arturo Ripstein, in the form of a cold, cruel western, about the repression of the "golden shirts" by UNS militiamen.