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Mexican Independence from Spain in 1821 did nothing to alleviate Mayan suffering and their quiet hatred of the Yucatecan ruling class (blancos or whites) exploded with a fury in the Caste War, a conflict which would last for more than 50 years and decimate the area population. In 1847, a rebellion began in Tepich and spread to other villages such as Tihosuco, Ichmul and Sacalaca along the Yucatán-Quintana Roo border. The rebels showed no mercy to the whites, they were outsiders and had to be swept from the Peninsula so that the Maya could be free once more. By May 1848, all seemed lost for the Yucatecans. The Maya were poised to drive their oppressors into the sea when instead, they laid down their arms and returned home to tend their fields in time for the rains.
The Yucatecans regrouped and with the aid of Mexican troops were able to win back control of many areas. The rebels fled to the remote jungles of central Quintana Roo where they fought a prolonged guerrilla war against the army with arms smuggled in by gunrunners from British Honduras.
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© 2004 Editorial Veras. La guía Oficial del Caribe Mexicano.