Federales

Federales (singular Federale or, rarely but aligning with Spanish, Federal) is a slang term in English and Spanish that refers to security forces, particularly those of the Mexican federal government. The term gained widespread usage by English speakers due to popularization in such films as The Wild Bunch, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Blue Streak, the television drama series Breaking Bad and its spinoff prequel Better Call Saul, as well as the song Pancho and Lefty by Townes Van Zandt. The term is a cognate and counterpart to the slang "Feds" in the United States.

Law enforcement

The term is traditionally used for certain Mexican federal police agencies such as the Mexican National Guard, and its predecessor, the Mexican Federal Police, as well as the Federal Ministerial Police/Policía Federal Ministerial (PFM) and any of its predecessors:

Military

Historically, "Federales" was also the common term used for the regular Mexican Army (or Federal Army), especially during the 34-year rule of Porfirio Díaz until 1911. In part the expression served the purpose of distinguishing centrally controlled military units from provincial militias, or the rural mounted police (rurales). Following Díaz's overthrow by rebel forces led by Francisco Madero, the Federal Army remained in existence. The Federales were eventually disbanded in July and August 1914, after Madero's successor Victoriano Huerta was in turn defeated by an alliance of revolutionary forces.^[1] The formal dissolution of the Federal Army was decreed by the Teoloyucan Treaties, signed on August 13, 1914.^[2]

References

^ P. Jowett, pp. 32–41 The Mexican Revolution 1910–1920, ISBN 1-84176-989-4
^ "100 Aniversario del Ejército Mexicano". www.cultura.gob.mx. Retrieved 2019-07-22.