The
Mexican Valley was already a vital centre for trade long before Christopher
Columbus set off on his voyage to the New World. Different peoples had occupied
the central area of the Mexican plateau for some 20,000 years, settling
along the fertile lakeshores. To facilitate communication and transportation,
they built an elaborate system of chinampas (canals), remnants of
which exist today in the area south of the city known as Xochimilco.
By the beginning of the 16th century Tenochtitlán was the capital of a military
empire stretching from Texas to Honduras. Hernán Cortés conquered the Aztec
territory in 1521 for Spain but it wasn't until 1821 that Mexico regained
its sovereignty, after the bloody War of Independence of 1810.
Mexico
City, now the capital of the country, is its economic and cultural epicentre.
The Centro Histórico is a centuries old neighbourhood surrounding the main
square, Zócalo Plaza de la Constitución.
Once a site of ceremonies in the former Gran Tenochitlán, it is now where
the seats of national power are to be found and has been witness to untold
generations of change and development as well as a public gathering spot
for both protests and celebrations.
The Catedral
Metropolitana also situated here, reflects the colonial architecture
of New Spain, with its baroque and neo-classical façade, five naves and
an invaluable collection of paintings. Next to the cathedral, the Palacio
Nacional, from the era of the Viceroyalty is the seat of civil government,
comprised of beautiful patios and halls decorated with the Diego Rivera's
murals, portraying Mexican history and culture. Close to the city centre,
in the Bosques de Chapultepec (Chapultepec Woods), the Alcazár
of the Castillo de Chapultepec can be found. A castle built on the former
foundations of the Palacio de A
