Justo Sierra

For the school system, seeSistema Educativo Justo Sierra.

In thisSpanish name,the first or paternalsurnameisSierraand the second or maternal family name isMéndez.

Justo Sierra Méndez
Secretary of Public Instruction and Fine Arts
In office April 25, 1905 – March 24, 1911
President	Porfirio Díaz
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Jorge Vera Estañol
Associate Justice of theSupreme Court of Justice of the Nation
In office October 1, 1894 – September 30, 1900
Deputy of theCongress of the Union forSinaloa's 1st district
In office September 16, 1884 – September 15, 1994
Preceded by	Bernardo Reyes
Succeeded by	Federico Vicente Riva Palacio
Deputy of theCongress of the Union forSinaloa's 2nd district
In office September 16, 1882 – September 15, 1884
Preceded by	Bernardo Reyes
Succeeded by	Marcos Carrillo
Personal details
Born	(1848-01-26)January 26, 1848 Campeche,Mexico
Died	September 13, 1912(1912-09-13)(aged 64) Madrid,Spain
Resting place	Panteón de Dolores
Alma mater	National Autonomous University of Mexico(LLB)

Justo Sierra Méndez(January 26, 1848 – September 13, 1912), was aMexicanprominentliberalwriter, historian, journalist,poet and political figure during thePorfiriato,in the second half of the nineteenth century and early twentieth century. He was a leading voice of theCientíficos,"the scientists" who were the intellectual leaders during the regime ofPorfirio Díaz.

Life and career

Sierra married Luz Mayora in 1874.

He was the son of Mexican novelistJusto Sierra O'Reilly,who is credited with inspiring his son with the spirit of literature. Sierra moved toMexico Cityat the age of 13 in 1861, the year of his father's death, and also, coincidentally, the year of theFrench intervention in Mexico.Together with his fellow young students, Sierra responded with patriotic fervor to the invasion of his country, and became a lifelong militant liberal.

His most enduring works are sociopolitical histories (at times verging on memoirs)of the era ofBenito JuárezandPorfirio Díaz,particularly his political biography of Juárez and hisEvolución política del pueblo mexicano.Antonio Casois considered the definitive statement of the age of the Reform in Mexico. Sierra was elected a member of theMexican Academy of Languagein 1887, and served as the Academy's sixth director from 1910 until his death in 1912.

Public service

Elected to several terms as a representative in the federal Chamber of Deputies, Sierra also served the government in various posts. From 1905 to 1911, he agreed to serve as theSecretary of Public Educationunder the Díaz regime. However, he never made a secret of his liberal sympathies and his distaste for the politics of the authoritarian regime. After the overthrow of Díaz in May 1911 and the election ofFrancisco I. Maderoat the outset of theMexican Revolution,Madero chose Sierra to serve as the Mexican ambassador toSpain.Sierra died from an aneurysm in Madrid in 1912 while serving in his post.His remains were returned to Mexico, where president Madero presided over his magnificent funeral.

Historian

Justo Sierra made significant contributions to the writing of Mexican history. His texts on pre-revolutionary Mexico continued to be used in Mexican public schools even after theMexican Revolution.PresidentÁlvaro Obregón's Minister of Public Education,José Vasconcelosrepublished Sierra'sHistoria Patriafor use in schools.

Selected works

Birthplace in San Francisco de Campeche

Monument erected in memory of Justo Sierra in Campeche

• Compendio de historia general,México, 1878
• Compendio de la historia de la antigüedad,México, 1880
• Confesiones de un pianista,México, 1882
• Historia general,México, 1891
• Cuentos románticos,México, 1896, 1934, 1946
• Juárez. Su obra y su tiempo,México, 1905–1906
• Historia de México. La Conquista. La Nueva España,Madrid, 1917
• Prosas,México, 1917
• Poemas,México, 1917
• Discursos,México, 1918
• Poesías, 1842-1912,México, 1938
• Evolución política del pueblo mexicano,México, 1941
• Justo Sierra. Prosas,México, 1939
• Obras completas,XV vols., México, 1948-1949.

See also

• Mexican literature

Further reading

• Garciadiego Dantan, Javier. "De Justo Sierra a Vasconcelos. La Universidad Nacional durante la revolución mexicana."Historia Mexicana,vol. 46. No. 4. Homenaje a don Edmundo O'Gorman (April–June 1997), pp. 769–819.
• Hale, Charles A.Justo Sierra. Un liberal del Porfiriato.Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Económica 1997.

• This article draws on thebiography of Sierraby the Academia Mexicana de la Lengua (in Spanish), and on Sierra's works.
• TheNational Autonomous University of Mexicopublished his complete works with the direction ofAgustín Yáñezin the 1940s.