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Mexican Independence Day (Día de la Independencia de México), celebrated on September 16 (with festivities commencing on the evening of September 15), is Mexico's patriotic national holiday. It commemorates the historic moment in 1810 when Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla delivered the fiery Grito de Dolores, igniting the Mexican War of Independence against three centuries of Spanish colonial rule.
In the early hours of 16 September 1810, in the small town of Dolores, Guanajuato, parish priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla—alerted by the heroic conspirator Doña Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez (La Corregidora) that their plot had been betrayed—rang the church bells to summon his parishioners. Raising the banner of the Virgin of Guadalupe, Hidalgo delivered the legendary call to arms, urging indigenous and criollo citizens to rise up against colonial tyranny and fight for self-determination.
Every year on September 15 at 11:00 PM, over 100,000 citizens fill the massive Zócalo plaza in Mexico City. The President of Mexico steps onto the central balcony of the Palacio Nacional, rings the historic Dolores Church bell, and proclaims the stirring Grito: "¡Vivan los héroes que nos dieron patria y libertad! ¡Viva Hidalgo! ¡Viva Morelos! ¡Viva Allende! ¡Viva México!" The crowd roars in response as fireworks illuminate the Metropolitan Cathedral and the tricolor flag waves proudly in the night sky.
Independence celebrations are defined by patriotic culinary masterpieces that mirror the green, white, and red of the Mexican flag. Families feast on Chiles en Nogada—roasted poblano chilis stuffed with picadillo, blanketed in creamy white walnut sauce, and garnished with ruby pomegranate seeds and parsley—alongside steaming bowls of hominy corn Pozole. The celebrations echo to the brass and strings of live Mariachi musicians performing timeless rancheras across plazas nationwide.
Following the midnight Grito in the Zócalo, September 16 is marked by the grand military parade through Mexico City, reviewed by the President along Paseo de la Reforma. Mariachi ensembles fill plazas with traditional ranchera folk anthems, while families enjoy celebratory feasts of pozole, chiles en nogada, and tamales across all 32 Mexican states.
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Mexican Independence Day is scheduled for September 16, 2027. The countdown timer at the top of the page updates the days remaining in real time.
Mexican Independence Day commemorates the dawn of 16 September 1810, when Catholic priest Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla rang the parish church bell in the town of Dolores (now Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato) and delivered the impassioned call to arms known as El Grito de Dolores (The Cry of Dolores), initiating the eleven-year Mexican War of Independence against the Spanish Crown.
At exactly 11:00 PM on the night of September 15, the President of Mexico steps onto the central balcony of the Palacio Nacional (National Palace) overlooking a crowd of over 100,000 citizens in the Zócalo (Plaza de la Constitución) in Mexico City. The President rings the historic Campana de Dolores, shouts the ceremonial patriotic viva to national heroes ('¡Viva Hidalgo! ¡Viva Morelos! ¡Viva Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez! ¡Viva Allende! ¡Viva México!'), and vigorously waves the Mexican tricolor flag amid thunderous fireworks.
On September 16, the Mexican Secretariat of National Defense (SEDENA), Navy (SEMAR), and National Guard stage the grand National Military Parade (Desfile Militar) along Paseo de la Reforma, Avenida Juárez, and across the Zócalo, featuring thousands of troops, cavalry squadrons, motorized units, and flyovers by the Mexican Air Force.
Created in 1821 by Augustinian Recollect nuns at the Santa Mónica Convent in Puebla to celebrate the Treaty of Córdoba and General Agustín de Iturbide, Chiles en Nogada represents the colors of the Mexican flag: green poblano chilis stuffed with pork picadillo and fruit, blanketed in creamy white walnut sauce (nogada), and garnished with ruby red pomegranate seeds and fresh green parsley.
Pozole is an ancient pre-Hispanic stew made from large nixtamalized hominy corn kernels (cacahuazintle) simmered for hours with pork or chicken in a rich chili broth (red guajillo or green tomatillo). Families gather on the night of September 15 (Noche Mexicana) to feast on pozole topped with shredded lettuce, radishes, diced onions, Mexican oregano, lime juice, and crispy corn tostadas spread with crema.
Cinco de Mayo (May 5) is frequently mistaken in the United States for Mexican Independence Day. Cinco de Mayo commemorates the historic 1862 Battle of Puebla, where the Mexican army defeated the invading French forces of Napoleon III. September 16 is Mexico's actual national day marking the 1810 declaration of independence from Spain.
Doña Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez, known as La Corregidora of Querétaro, was a heroic insurgent plotter. When royalist authorities discovered the clandestine independence conspiracy in September 1810, she secretly sent word to Ignacio Allende and Father Hidalgo in Dolores, enabling them to launch the revolution before they could be captured.
Across plazas, cantinas, and home patios, celebrations resonate with live Mariachi ensembles in formal traje de charro, playing legendary rancheras and patriotic anthems like Cielito Lindo, México Lindo y Querido, and El Son de la Negra with vihuelas, guitarróns, trumpets, and violins.
Mexican embassies and consulates worldwide (including major gatherings in Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, San Antonio, and Madrid) hold official civic Grito ceremonies presided over by Consuls General, accompanied by Mexican folklore dance troupes (ballet folklórico), artisan markets, and food fairs.
Yes, September 16 is a mandatory statutory non-working national holiday (día de descanso obligatorio) governed by Article 74 of the Federal Labor Law. All government bureaus, banks, schools, universities, courts, and corporate offices are closed across all 32 Mexican states.