Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla

Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla was the parish priest of the town of Dolores, in Guanajuato, who launched Mexico’s War of Independence with the Grito de Dolores in the early hours of September 16, 1810. Because he began the movement, he is honored as the Padre de la Patria, the Father of the Nation.

Hidalgo was captured and executed in 1811; leadership of the insurgency then passed to José María Morelos, another priest, so take care not to mix the two up.