Chapultepec
Chapultepec (Chapoltepēc "at the grasshopper hill" in the Nahuatl language; c.f. Mexican Spanish chapulin (grasshopper)) is a large hill on the outskirts of central Mexico City. It has been a special place for Mexicans throughout Mexican history, and it was on this hill that the Aztecs made a temporary home after arriving from northern Mexico in the 1200s.
Chapultepec Park, which consists of the hill and 1,600 acres (6.5 km2) of surrounding land, has many attractions, including Chapultepec Castle, where Maximilian I of Mexico and Empress Carlota of Mexico once lived. The castle's sumptuous interior now houses the National History Museum.
History
Ritual and domestic objects including funerary urns in the Teotihuacan style from about the 4th century have been discovered by archaeologists on Chapultepec.
The last Emperor of the Toltecs, Huemac was said to have spent his last days in a cave at Chapultepec after the fall of Tula. In the 13th century, it was settled by the Mexica, until a Tepanec alliance including Culhuacan, Xochimilco, and Azcapotzalco drove them out.
In the days when Tenochtitlán was the island capital of the Aztecs, the city was linked to Chapultepec by a causeway. Aztec chiefs turned the hill and the surrounding forest into a royal retreat. The poet-king Nezahualcóyotl built a palace there in the 1400s, along with an aqueduct to carry spring water to the Aztec capital. A sculpture of Moctezuma I can still be seen (in unfortunately damaged condition) carved into the rock of Chapultepec, not far from Huemac's cave.
Spanish King Carlos V (Charles V) declared the zone a nature reserve in 1537. During the Spanish colonial era, the Viceroys of New Spain had their palace atop Chapultepec, demolishing Pre-Columbian structures in the process. A larger Viceregal castle was constructed on the spot in 1784.
After Mexico won its independence, the old viceregal palace was turned into a military academy in 1833. During the Mexican-American War in 1847, six military cadets, ages 14-20, fought to their deaths against the invading United States Marine Corps (USMC); One of them, Juan Escutia, wrapped himself in the Mexican flag and jumped to his death rather than be captured. They are today remembered as Mexico's Niños Héroes – the "Child Heroes" or "Heroic Cadets" (see: Battle of Chapultepec) and are honored with a white marble monument at the entrance to the park. The USMC Non-Commissioned Officers (NCOs: E4-E5) and Staff NCOs (E6-E9) have the red stripe running down the side of their blue pants in their Dress Blue uniform because during the battle of Chapultepec the NCOs and SNCOs sustained the heaviest casualties on the American side. The single red stripe is called the Blood Stripe to remember all the fallen Marines.
When Napoleon III launched the French intervention in Mexico and imposed a monarchy in the 1860s, Emperor Maximilian of Mexico and Empress Carlota of Mexico set up their residence in the existing Castillo de Chapultepec atop Chapultepec Hill, expanding the Spanish colonial structure.
Chapultepec Park Today
The hill of Chapultepec and surrounding land are now Chapultepec Park, a popular spot both for locals and tourists. Chapultepec is at one end of Paseo de la Reforma.
The park covers 1,800 acres (7.3 km2) of land, centuries old forest, several small lakes, and landscaped areas with outdoor cafes. Chapultepec Zoo is located here, as well as an amusement park, La Feria Chapultepec Mágico, and the official residence of the President of Mexico, Los Pinos.
Chapultepec Castle atop the hill is the National Museum of History. The park also includes the National Auditorium, along with several other museums, including the Modern Art Museum, the Tamayo Contemporary Art Museum, the Natural History Museum, the Papalote Children's Museum and the large National Museum of Anthropology and History with perhaps the world's finest collection of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican art and artifacts.
