The Z

1
The Zócalo Mexico City
2
Tenochtitlan

• Present day Mexico City
• The capital of the Aztec Empire founded in 1325
• Built on Lake Texcoco, divided into four zones
• Aztec legend of the City and the coat of arms
• One of the largest cities in the World

3
Spanish Conquest

• Hernán Cortés arrives on November 8, 1519
• Moctezuma II believed Cortés to be the returning
  god Quetzalcoatl
• Aided by local tribes, Cortés conquers and
  destroys most the city
• Mexico Citys Zócalo is located at the original
  central plaza and market of Tenochtitlan

4
Mexican Independence

• Lasted from 1810 to 1821
• Miguel Hidalgo, a parish priest who wanted a
  peasants rebellion against the wealthy land
  owners
• Mexico marks its independence on September 16,
  1810
• José María Morelos y Pavón takes over for Higalgo
• 1815 to 1821, most the fighting was done by
  guerrilla forces
• Treaty of Córdoba

5
Mexican/American Relations

• Texas fights for independence
• Mexican American War
• Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

6
Templo Mayor

• 60 m high
• Dominated the plaza with duel temples
• Tlaloc (god of water and rain, mainstay of the
  crop cycle),
• Huitzilopochtli (god of war, patron of conquests
  and tributes

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Catedral Metropolitana

• Cathedral at Zócalo
• Oldest and largest cathedral in Latin America
• Baroque facade and 64m Neoclassical-style towers
  18 bells each
• Current cathedral built 1667, finished 1813

8
La Enseñanza Church

• Second oldest cathedral in Mexico City
• Built in late 17th-18th century
• Baroque style built by Francisco Guerrero

9
Palacio Nacional

• Hernán Cortés, built this government palace on
  the site of Moctezuma's palace.
• Palacio Nacional of today dates back to 1693.
• Floor was added in the 1920s.
• Inside murals by Diego Rivera.
• "Epic of the Mexican People in their Struggle for
  Freedom and Independence", two thousand years of
  history are condensed into space of an enormous
  wall.

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The Zócalo
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The Zócalo Surroundings
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Palacio Nacional
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Courtyard of Palacio Nacional
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Diego Rivera Murals
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Murals of Palacio Nacional
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Zócalo Cathedral
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La Enseñanza Church
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Templo Mayor
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Political Significance

• For the Spanish - the plaza is a manifestation
  of local social order, of the between citizens
  and the authority of the state.
• For the Indians representation of Aztec plazas
  at the center of the cities

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The Tiger of the South andthe Centaur of the
North

• Mexican Revolution of 1910
• to overthrow Dictator Dias
• occupied and held Mexico City 3 times (between
  1914-1915)

21
Zapatista 2001

• Lead by Subcomandante Marcos
• More than 100,000 people crowded the Plaza
• Demand Indian Rights
• Secure their place in Modern Mexico

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Question 1

• The plaza has played a significant role in
  Mexican politics in the past, how significant
  will the role be in the 21st century?

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Question 2

• The religious significance of the plaza has been
  great since before the Spanish conquest. How
  important are the religious buildings to the
  governments and people of Mexico?

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Question 3

• The plaza site goes to the beginnings of the
  Aztec tribes settlement of the Mexico Valley.
  How important is the tie between modern Mexican
  history and that of the pre-Colombian natives?

26
Sources

• "Tenochtitlan." 7 Feb. 2006
  lthttp//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenochtitlangt."The
  Mexican-American War." 7 Feb. 2006lthttp//countr
  ystudies.us/mexico/18.htmgt."The Spanish
  Conquest." 7 Feb. 2006 lthttp//countrystudies.us/m
  exico/6.htmgt"Wars of Independence, 1810-21." 7
  Feb. 2006lthttp//countrystudies.us/mexico/11.htmgt
  .

27
Sources

• Low, Setha M. Cultural Meaning of the Plaza The
  History of the Spanish-American Gridplan-Plaza
  Urban Design. In the Cultural Meaning of Urban
  Space. Robert Rotenburg and Gary Mcdonogh, eds.
  CT and London. Bergin Garvey. 1993. 75-83.
• Rebels ride into Mexico City. BBC. 11 Mar. 2001.
  lthttp//news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1213778
  .stmgt.

28
Sources

• "Emiliano Zapata." Wikipedia. 8 Feb. 2006
  lthttp//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emiliano_Zapatagt.
• "Who Was Pancho Villa?" The California Native. 8
  Feb. 2006 lthttp//www.calnative.com/stories/n_vill
  a.htmgt.