John Catton

John Robert Catton is a doctoral student in the Department of History whose dissertation examines military and domestic intelligence operations along the U.S.–Mexico border during the 1930s, with a particular focus on the political activities of far-right movements in Mexico and Texas. His recent article, “¡Viva Cristo Rey!: Militant Catholic Devotion and the Creation of the National Votive Sanctuary of Christ the King in Revolutionary Guanajuato, 1914–1928,” explores the role of Catholic devotion to Christ the King in shaping the Cristero Rebellion.

His research has been recognized and supported by grants from the Tinker Foundation and the E. D. Farmer International Fellowship for Texans and Mexican Nationals. He earned his M.A. in History from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in 2023 and his B.A. in History and Communications from Berry College in 2019.