In Tlatelolco

 

To the north of downtown Mexico City is the district of Tlatelolco.  It is a place that has certainly seen its share of history.  It was originally a city-state occupying the northern portion of the island where the Aztecs had founded their capital of Tenochtitlan.  It was at first an enemy, and then an allied sister-city to Tenochtitlan.  It was here that the Aztecs finally surrendered to the Spanish in 1521 after a three-month siege.  After the Spanish conquest, the first European school of higher learning in the Americas was established here. In modern times Tlateloco was the site of the infamous massacre of student protestors in 1968.  The area suffered heavy damage and casualties in the catastrophic earthquake of 1985.

Today Tlatelolco is not the best of neighborhoods, but it is of touristic interest for the so-called "Plaza of Three Cultures".

Here are located the pre-Hispanic ruins of Tlatelolco, a Spanish colonial church, and a 20th century housing project.

I have been to Tlatelolco and the Plaza of Three Cultures a number of times, but after doing some research, I learned that there were a couple of places there that I had not seen.  So, last week I took the Metrobus up the Paseo de la Reforma, beyond the elegant portion of the tree-lined boulevard with its monuments and skyscrapers, to the "Tres Culturas" stop.

A short distance from the bus stop is a building known as the "Tecpan de Tlatelolco".  "Tecpan" in the Aztec language of Nahuatl means "noble house" or "government building".

Immediately after the Spanish Conquest, Hernán Cortés declared that Tlatelolco was to be an autonomous, indigenous town governed by Cuauhtémoc, the last of the Aztec emperors.  This building served as the town hall for the native community of Tlatelolco. 

On the opposite side of the building a new facade was added in the 18th century.  That facade was later dismantled and attached to another building, as you will read below.

The only remaining part of the original building is the arcade of seven arches. It is one of the oldest architecture features of colonial Mexico City, nearly 500 years old.

Located in a small room at one end of the building, is a mural painting by David Alfaro Siqueiros entitled "Cuauhtémoc Against the Myth¨.  

To the left, the Spanish conqueror is portrayed on a rearing horse, wielding a crucifix and firearms.  Cuauhtémoc, to the right, attempts to defend himself from the attack.  In the background, the former Aztec emperor Moctezuma (Montezuma) implores the gods to explain how this has come to pass.

(It should be noted that Cuauhtémoc ruled Tlatelolco from the "Tecpan" for only a few years.  He was accused, perhaps unjustly, of plotting against Cortés and was executed.)

A short walk from the "Tecpan de Tlatelolco" is the equally venerable College of Santa Cruz, the oldest European school of higher education in the New World.  

The school was established by Franciscan monks in 1535 with the purpose of training young men of Aztec noble families for the priesthood.  The building has been altered many times throughout the centuries.  The present facade was moved piece by piece from the "Tecpan de Tlatelolco" and attached to the former college in the 1960s.  The goal was to beautify the building, but in fact the structure's historic value was lost due to the renovation.

The school only lasted for about fifty years, but during that time it was one of the leading educational institutions in the Americas.  It was a center for languages, with young Aztec students learning Greek and Latin, and the Franciscan friars learning Nahautl.  Here in 1564, one of the friars, Bernardino de Sahagún, wrote "The General History of the Things of New Spain".  It is one of the most important books documenting the culture of the Aztecs, and Sahagún today is referred to as "the first anthropologist".

Over the centuries the former school has served as a monastery, a military prison and a barracks.  Today it serves as the archive and library of the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs.  Visitors are allowed to enter and walk around the attractive courtyard.

The tower in the background is that of the adjoining Church of Santiago.  The original structure was built in 1524, constructed from stones of Aztec temple.