Who's on the money?

Ever wondered who you're looking at when you count your Mexican bills? Mexican currency celebrates many of Mexico's artists, leaders, and visionaries.

20 peso note: Benito Juárez (1806-1872) - the president of Mexico from 1861-72
He is the only full-blooded indigenous national to serve as President. The years of his rule are known as "La Reforma" as he aimed to improve indigenous rights, liberalize land distribution, and check the power of the Roman Catholic Church. All this, and his resistance to French occupation, have caused him to be called Mexico's greatest leader. Quote: "Between individuals, as between nations, respect for the rights of others is peace."

50 peso note: José María Morelos
(1765-1815) - national hero.
A Catholic Priest, in 1810 he began to raise armies for Miguel Hidalgo's rebellion against Spain, and became the leader of the rebellion after Hidalgo's death. In 1813 he called the first congress of free states, the result of which was Mexico's Declaration of Independence. In 1815 Morelos was captured by Spanish forces and tried by the Viceroy's military court and the Inquisition. He was tried and condemned to be defrocked for heresy and to be executed for treason. In addition to the city of Morelia, the state of Morelos is named after him. Morelos was offered the title of generalissimo and the style of address Your Highness, but he refused these and asked to be called Siervo de la Nación (Servant of the Nation).

100 peso note: Nezahualcoyotl 
(1402-1472) -Texcoco philosopher-king, Aztec poet
Nezahualcoyotl was King of Texcoco, a part of the Aztec empire. At the age of 15, he escaped to Tenochtitlán after the massacre that resulted in his father's murder, and devoted the next decade of his life to study. He then returned to Texcoco to dethrone the usurper that sat on his father's throne.

A true philosopher-king, he encouraged the arts in Texcoco and developed an advanced code of laws that was adopted throughout the Aztec empire. He composed numerous poems, in his native Nahuatl language, which were later translated into Spanish. Written in very tiny print on the 100 peso note is the following poem: 

I love the song of the mockingbird,
Bird of four hundred voices,
I love the color of the jade stone
And the enervating perfume of flowers,
But more than all I love my brother: man.

200 peso note: Juana de Asbaje 
(1651-1695) America's first feminist poet
A self-educated woman, from a poor family, at the age of 19 she joined a convent so that she could dedicate her life to writing and scientific scholarship. She composed plays and poems that questioned the role of women in society, the heartbreaks of love, and the hypocrisy of men. Considered controversial, she was strongly pressured by the Church to stop writing about non-theological issues. After repenting to a Jesuit inquisitor, she stopped writing for the last two years of her life. The Church forced her to sell her extensive library and donate the money to the poor. She died of the plague while caring for the other nuns in her convent, leaving a collection of 26 plays, 13 essays, and 100 poems.

This evening, my love, as I spoke to you
 and saw it in your face and in your acts
 that I was not persuading you with words,
 I longed for you to look upon my heart.

500 peso note: Ignacio Zaragoza
(1829-1862) - general
Best known for his 1862 victory against the French forces in the Battle of Puebla on May 5th, Cinco de Mayo, Zaragoza had extensive military experience. In the 1850's, he joined Mexico's Liberal Party, opposing the dictatorship of Santa Anna. He led an army of volunteers in 1855 that defeated Santa Anna and led to the reestablishment of a constitutional democratic government in Mexico. After serving as Secretary of War under Benito Juárez, he led the Mexican army against the invading European forces. Shortly afterwards, he contracted typhoid fever and died at the age of 33.
"Las armas nacionales se han cubierto de gloria  - The national arms have been covered with glory."