Madame (Frances Erskine Inglis) Calderón de la Barca

Life in Mexico

"Life in Mexico" by Madame Calderón de la Barca is a travel account published in 1843, compiled from 54 letters written during her stay in Mexico from 1839 to 1842. As the wife of a Spanish diplomat, Calderón offers intimate observations of Mexican society, politics, and culture during a turbulent period following independence. She witnesses two revolutions, critiques the treatment of women in convents and society, and provides vivid descriptions of the landscape while navigating her role as a female observer in a male-dominated political world.