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General Archive of the Nation (Mexico)

In Mexico, the General Archive of the Nation (AGN) is a decentralized body of the Government Secretary that protects the fundamental documents of the Mexican State and their historical records. The documentation that it protects comes from governmental institutions and private entities from the era of the New Spain administration, as well as the national period that began in 1821. It is organized into collections, containing around 375 million pages that stretch to approximately 52 kilometers in length. Its oldest records date back to the third decade of the 16th century up to 2020.

The AGN also functions as a governing body for archival science in Mexico and seeks to preserve, increase and spread the documented heritage of the country. Additionally, it works to promote the organization of updated administrative archives with the purpose of protecting the national memory in the short, medium, and long term, and contributing to the transparency and accountability of the exercise of public power.​

The director of the AGN also presides over the National Archives Council, a chartered body whose purpose is to establish a national policy for public and private archives, as well as guidelines for the management of documents and the protection of the national documented memory.​

Index [concealed)

1 History

1.1 Beginning

2 The Independence of Mexico

2.1 The American intervention in Mexico

2.2 Secretary of Public Instruction and Fine Arts

2.3 The 20th Century

2.4 Lecumberri Palace

2.5 The 21st Century

3. Heritage

4 Publications

5 Services

6 References

7 External Links

History [edit]

The Beginning [edit]

The archive’s creation was officially requested in a letter dated March 27, 1790 on behalf of the Viceroy to the Minister of Grace and Justice, a motion approved by the King on August 11th of the following year. It was officially created with the name of the General Archives of the New Spain by the second count of Revillagigedo Juan Vicente of Güemes Pacheco and Padilla, with the purpose of classifying and organizing all of the documents of the viceroyalty, and thus to be able to provide security to all of the old documents that existed. It was planned to be constructed in the new castle of Chapultepec, but this goal was not accomplished, and the documentary collections continued to be kept in the Vicerine Palace.

The Independence of Mexico [edit]

In 1823, once Mexico gained its independence, the new government ordered that the archive be reopened under the name of the General and Public National Archive, and that it be prohibited from removing the documents it contained. Its promoters included Lucas Alamán, Ignacio López Rayón and José María Vigil, among others. The archive depended on the Secretary of State and the Office of Foreign and Interior Relations, and was located in the National Palace.

The American intervention in Mexico [edit]

Main article: American intervention in Mexico

The AGN went through various difficulties in the hectic nineteenth century. During the American occupation of Mexico City in 1847, the most important documents were entrusted to the bookseller and publisher José María Andrade, until constitutional order was restored. During the second French intervention in Mexico, in 1864, President Benito Juárez abandoned the capital and handed over the documents to the citizens of Matamoros in the state of Coahuila, who hid and guarded them for three years in the Tabaco Cave.

Secretary of Public Instruction and Fine Arts [edit]

In 1872, the name of the archive was officially changed to the General and Public Archive of the Nation. In that year it already had 18,849 files and around 75,000 various documents in storage. It was dependent on the Secretary of Public Instruction and Fine arts.

The 20th Century [edit]

In 1918 its name was changed to the General Archive of the Nation. By presidential decree it was ordered that the archive would depend economically in its organization and functioning on the Secretary of Governing. At this time, part of the documents were being conserved in the church of Guadalupe, in Tacubaya, also known as Amarilla House.

In the beginning of the 1950s, the archive suffered from drastic changes. Its infrastructure was completely renovated, and thus it obtained a state-of-the-art preservation system for its collections. In 1954, a library opened. Between 1973 and 1977, the main part of the collection was moved to the Communications Palace, in the Historic Center of the city, which soon turned out to be insufficient.

Lecumberri Palace [edit]

In 1977, it was decided that the headquarters were going to be relocated to the Lecumberri Palace, which had been one of the most dismal prisons in America. The total transfer of the collection was delayed until 1982, due to multiple remodelings and necessary adjustments.

The 21st Century [edit]

Very soon there were criticisms about the unsuitability of the structure of the building for archival tasks, as well as the risk of flooding due to the difference in level with respect to the street and the proximity of the Great Drainage Canal, which favored the development of fungi and other harmful pollutants to the archives. After several projects that failed to be completed, it was decided that a new building would be built on the same property, in the offices that were occupied before by the National Population Registry, which would be demolished. It was determined that the old building would become a site museum and a cultural center. The works are still in process.​

The functions and operation of the General Archive of the Nation are governed by the Federal Law of Archives​ and by the Organic Statute of the General Archive of the Nation.​

The director, from September 1st of 2013 to 2018 was María of Mercedes of Vega Armijo.​ Carlos Enrique Ruiz Abreu has been in charge since 2018 and will continue to be until 2024.​

Heritage [edit]

The General Archive of the Nacion is home to, among others, the following notable documents.

• The Declaration of Independence of the Mexican Empire
• Documents signed by Hernán Cortés (16th century)
• The Codex of the Marquesado del Valle (16th century)
• The Techialoyan Codex of Cuajimalpa (17th century)
• The Constitution of Cádiz (1812)
• The Constitution of Apatzingán (1814)
• The Constitution of 1824
• The Constitution of 1836
• The Constitution of 1857
• The Constitution of 1917
• The Sentiments of the Nation, by José María Morelos y Pavón (1813)
• The Correspondence between Emiliano Zapata and Francisco Villa
• The Presidential Archives (from Francisco I. Madero to Enrique Peña Nieto)
• Various documents of historical importance for the country
• Microfilms, transcriptions, and videos of all original archives
• A collection of maps and two cartographic collections
• Administrative documentation corresponding to the colonial era