Oil and The Mexican Revolution

This is an English translation of Merrill Rippy’s book, which was originally published in Spanish in 1954 by Problemas Agrícolas e Industriales de México, under the title “El petróleo y la Revolución Mexicana.” After a brief account dealing with the laws of the colonial era, the author examines Mexican legislation and decrees pertaining to subsoil rights of the national and revolutionary periods. Two-thirds of the study deals with the relationship between the Mexican Government and foreign oil interests (essentially those of the United States) prior to the expropriation law of 1936. He then examines the debates concerning Article 27 of the 1917 Constitution and governmental policies toward the oil industry during the following decade. The final third of the book focuses on the workers’ strike of 1937, internal and international effects of expropriation, and the problems of negotiating a settlement. Although Rippy thoroughly utilized contemporary published information, he neglected to examine and incorporate other sources (both primary and secondary) that have become available since the original Spanish edition. This omission weakens the study, but it will still be useful in attempting to understand Mexico’s efforts to control one of the nation’s most important resources.