Los Niños Héroes

Today was a day of commemoration here in Mexico for Los Niños Héroes – the Boy or Child Heroes.  They’re especially popular in schools, of course, because they were young heroes and because it’s almost Independence Day.

Hannah and Nathanael both talked about Los Niños Héroes in their classes today – Nathanael had to bring a picture, and Hannah coloured this picture.

So who were they?  On September 13, 1857, the invading US army was just about to enter Mexico City.  The last line of defense was Chapultepec Castle, which was then a military academy.  The child heroes, teenaged cadets (US reports said many were 10 – 16 years old), refused to surrender, but fought bravely until the end (depending on who’s telling the story, they were either killed or committed suicide).  The six heroes were Juan, Francisco, Vincente, Fernando, Juan and Agustín.

Today there is a monument to the heroes (they are now buried there), which incidentally has been honoured by US presidents Truman and Clinton.  (See the monument to Los Niños Héroes here)

Today, Chapultepec Castle is a World Heritage Site.