Today Mexico pays a rather subdued homage to the heroic St. Patrick’s Battalion, Irish immigrants drafted into the U.S. Army who went over to the Mexican side during the Mexican-American War (1846–1848). Religion led to the switch, Catholic immigrants preferring Catholic Mexico to the then Protestant USA. Changing sides, however, was a mistake for many, who were executed as deserters when the war ended. A plaque honoring the battalion can be seen at San Jacinto Plaza, which is better known today as the address of the Bazar Sabado, a Saturdays-only upscale handicrafts market that is a favorite with tourists.
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Jimm Budd
Reporting from Mexico City
Member of the Society of American Travel Writers
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