The Cry of Dolores (Spanish: Grito de Dolores) occurred in Dolores, Mexico, on 16 September 1810, when Roman Catholic priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla rang his church bell and gave the call to arms that triggered the Mexican War of Independence. A statue of Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla in front of the church in Dolores Hidalgo, GuanajuatoĬommemorates the start of the Mexican War of Independence, by repeating the words of Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla in the early morning of 16 September 1810