He was born in Mexico City in 1818. On the death of his father, administrator of the mill and the bakery of Molino del Rey, he was left homeless, so he began to work as a clerk in a clothing store at the age of 13.
Under the tutelage of Andrés Quintana Roo, he obtained a place in the Customs of Mexico and began his studies at the Colegio de San Juan de Letrán. He publishes some poems in the Galván Calendar and begins as editor of the Official Gazette while Anastasio Bustamante is president. He publishes a section of theatrical criticism: Fidel's Monday (his pseudonym, in the newspaper El Siglo XIX). He collaborates with El Monitor Republicano and founded with Ignacio Ramírez the satirical publication Don Simplicio.
He is a deputy of the liberal party on 15 occasions including that of the Constituent Congress of 1857 where he represents the state of Puebla. He serves as Minister of Finance with Presidents Arista, Bustamante and Juárez. With deep liberal convictions, he defends the Ayutla Plan.
His political passion is revealed in the manners chronicles Memories of my Times, a work that spans from 1828 to 1853. He works as a teacher of National History and Political Economy at the Military College. Great figure for his honesty and patriotism, he died in Tacubaya at the age of 79.
