He had previously served as Governor of Veracruz, and gained national fame for the capture of the Fortress of San Juan de Ulúa in 1824, through which Spanish military presence was finally expelled from Mexico.

He attended school in the provincial capital and entered the military, and was as member of the Trigarantine Army upholding Agustin de Iturbide's Plan of Iguala.

[1] The Provisional Government of Mexico named him commandant-general of Veracruz in June 1824, and in September he was elected by the Veracruzan congress [es] to be governor of the province.

[2] He was a staunch supporter of the constitution, and when the State of Veracruz asked its civil servants to swear an oath to the new Constitution of 1824, he addressed the public assuring them that their rights and prosperity were now secured in the code they were about to swear an oath to, calling it ‘the dignified result of the patriotic efforts of our founding fathers.’[3] During his governorship, he passed notable regulations regarding the police, and he attended to his duties without losing focus on the ongoing situation with San Juan de Ulúa.

His name and that of the commanders who had played a key role in the capture of San Juan de Ulúa were inscribed in gold in the hall of sessions, and the term ‘heroic’ was added to the state of Veracruz.

Barragán was received with celebrations in Jalapa, and the ayuntamiento of that town placed his portrait in the main hall, considering him to be the man who had finally completed Mexican independence.

He asked the Ayuntamientos for information about idle lands, with the object of setting them aside for colonization, and he published the British recognition of Mexican independence.

He was a critic of the Bustamante government and proposed a junta of eighteen notable citizens who could reform the country, leading to Barragán being attacked in the official newspaper.

[8] Barragán sought to raise funds for the war effort against rebellious Texas, towards which Santa Anna was headed, and he also had to deal with insurrections fighting for the reestablishment of the federal system, led by Jose Antonio Mejia.

The following day three vessels bearing mercenaries that set out from New Orleans overpowered the fort of La Barra through the betrayal of Commander Ortega, but they were defeated.