Photo, above: Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón (21 February 1794 – 21 June 1876), and sometimes called "the Napoleon of the West," was a Mexican politician and general who greatly influenced early Mexican politics and government. Santa Anna first opposed the movement for Mexican independence from Spain, but then fought in support of it. Though not the first caudillo (military leader) of modern Mexico, he was among the earliest.

Santa Anna had great power in the independent country; he served as general and president multiple times during a turbulent 40-year career; he served as president for eleven non-consecutive terms occasions over a period of 22 years. A wealthy landowner, he built a firm political base in the major port city of Veracruz. He was the hero of the Army; he sought glory for himself and his army, and repeatedly rebuilt it after major losses. A brave soldier and a cunning politician, he dominated his era so much that historians often call it the "Age of Santa Anna."

But historians also rank him as "perhaps the principal inhabitant even today of Mexico's pantheon of 'those who failed the nation.'" His centralist rhetoric and military failures resulted in Mexico losing just over half its territory, beginning with the Texas Revolution of 1836, and culminating with the Mexican Cession of 1848 following its defeat by the United States in the Mexican-American War.

JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW

Hour One

Engraving, below: "An Available Candidate: The One Qualification for a Whig President." Political cartoon about the 1848 presidential election, referring to Zachary Taylor.   . . . The election of 1844 of President James K. Polk, a Democrat who believed in expansion, set in train the annexation and an offer to purchase California, which Mexico rejected. In July 1845, President Polk sent General Zachary Taylor to Texas, and by October 3,500 Americans were on the Nueces River, ready to take over by force the disputed land. Polk wanted to protect the border and also coveted the continent clear to the Pacific Ocean. At the same time Polk wrote to Thomas Larkin, the American consul in Alta California, disclaiming American ambitions in California but offering to support independence from Mexico or voluntary accession to the U.S., and warning that a British or French takeover would be opposed.

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 1, Block A: A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg (1 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 1, Block B: A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg (2 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 1, Block C: A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg (3 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 1, Block D: A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg (4 of 4)

Hour Two

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 2, Block A: The Blood of Heroes: The 13-Day Struggle for the Alamo--and the Sacrifice That Forged a Nation, by James Donovan  (1 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 2, Block B: The Blood of Heroes: The 13-Day Struggle for the Alamo--and the Sacrifice That Forged a Nation, by James Donovan  (2 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 2, Block C: The Blood of Heroes: The 13-Day Struggle for the Alamo--and the Sacrifice That Forged a Nation, by James Donovan  (3 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 2, Block D: The Blood of Heroes: The 13-Day Struggle for the Alamo--and the Sacrifice That Forged a Nation, by James Donovan  (4 of 4)

Hour Three

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 3, Block A: The Heathen School: A Story of Hope and Betrayal in the Age of the Early Republic, by John Demos  (1 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 3, Block B: The Heathen School: A Story of Hope and Betrayal in the Age of the Early Republic, by John Demos  (2 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 3, Block C: The Heathen School: A Story of Hope and Betrayal in the Age of the Early Republic, by John Demos  (3 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 3, Block D: The Heathen School: A Story of Hope and Betrayal in the Age of the Early Republic, by John Demos  (4 of 4)

Hour Four

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 4, Block A: The Swamp Fox: Lessons in Leadership from the Partisan Campaigns of Francis Marion, by Scott D. Aiken (1 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 4, Block B: The Swamp Fox: Lessons in Leadership from the Partisan Campaigns of Francis Marion, by Scott D. Aiken (2 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 4, Block C: The Swamp Fox: Lessons in Leadership from the Partisan Campaigns of Francis Marion, by Scott D. Aiken (3 of 4)

Friday  28 November  2014 / Hour 4, Block D: The Swamp Fox: Lessons in Leadership from the Partisan Campaigns of Francis Marion, by Scott D. Aiken (4 of 4)