Porifirio Diaz was a mexican general and politician who served as President of Mexico (1870 - 1912). His regime ruled Mexico for over 40 years, and during his term in office the Confederate States became a key mexican ally. However his government curtailed political freedoms, and by the late 1890s abandoned any pretense of democracy. In 1912 he was forced to flee the country after a civil revolt, and lived the rest of his live in exile in Havana.