Shortly after the conquest. The village of Santo Tomas Ajusco is being established. The indigenous population is in a vulnerable state and is fighting to survive
Napoleon had forced the abdication of King Charles IV, as well as the renunciation of the throne by Ferdinand VII (Charles's successor). This resulted in the key factor of "legitimacy and cohesion" of the Spanish Colonial system; the Spanish monarchy then went into mass confusion and resulted in violence that would last for more than a decade.
El Periquillo Sarniento is considered the "first genuine Spanish-American novel." Lizardi publishes this and political papers criticizing the Spanish colonial system.