During Mexico’s Independence Day ceremony, the president traditionally rings the Bell of Dolores at the National Palace.
The ritual recreates the call to revolt made by Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla in the town of Dolores on 16 September 1810. Hidalgo rang the parish church bell and urged people to join the struggle against Spanish colonial rule. The event is remembered as the Grito de Dolores, or Cry of Dolores.
The original bell was moved from Dolores Hidalgo to Mexico City in 1896. Since then, Mexico’s president has rung it from the balcony of the National Palace just before midnight on 15 September, followed by the national cry and the anthem. The public holiday itself is 16 September.
A common mix-up is calling the object the “Grito de Dolores.” That is the name of the historic call, while the bell is known as the Bell of Dolores.