He was a Catholic priest who started the revolt that eventuallybecame the war of independence of Mexico against Spain. He isregarded as the 'father of the nation' in Mexico.People liked and followed him because at the village of Dolores,where he started the uprising, he was considered a community leaderand contributor. He however, was profoundly human: he had 8children with 4 different women; he liked to gamble and dance andalso pursued business activities -- he owned three haciendas. Thisof course, put him at odds with the conservative and religiouscastes at the time.