Colonia Coyoacán in Ciudad de México, Mexico — The Valley of Mexico (The Central Highlands)
House of Hernán Cortés
Photographed By J. Makali Bruton, August 6, 2017
1. House of Hernán Cortés Marker
de
Hernan Cortes.
El Ayuntamiento
en
1892.
The City Hall of 1892.
Erected 1892 by Ayuntamiento de la Ciudad de México.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Colonial Era • Government & Politics • Hispanic Americans • Native Americans. A significant historical year for this entry is 1892.
Location. 19° 21.013′ N, 99° 9.732′ W. Marker is in Ciudad de México. It is in Colonia Coyoacán. Marker can be reached from Calle Ignacio Allende, on the right when traveling south. The marker is along the facade of the Old Palace of the City Hall (el Antiguo Palacio del Ayuntamiento) in Coyoacán, on the northern portion of the Hidalgo Garden (el Jardín Hidalgo). Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Ciudad de México 04000, Mexico. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Agustín Lara (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); Leon Trotsky’s Funeral Column (approx. 0.9 kilometers away); Octavio Nicolás Fernández Vilchis
this page online
Regarding House of Hernán Cortés. This marker is notable for being in error as the conqueror of Mexico Hernán Cortés never lived in this building. After the fall of Mexico-Tenochtitlán in 1521, Hernán Cortés ordered the city to be rebuilt. In the meantime, he came to live in this area known as Coyoacán, where he established the first government of New Spain. So, Coyoacán was something like the first Spanish capital of Mexico, whose main headquarters was installed in this place that is now occupied by the Old Palace of the City Hall, near the Hidalgo Garden. It is likely that some time around the marker's placement in 1892 there was confusion over the
Photographed By J. Makali Bruton, August 6, 2017
2. The additional marker on the building dedicated to Cuauhtémoc, the "last Aztec king"
Rey Azteca
la Sociedad “Cuauhtemoc”
the Cuauhtémoc Society
The building that is still here today is not from 1521, but from 1756, so it is historically impossible that Cortés lived here.
There are also claims that in this same place the famous torture of Cuauhtémoc took place. Cuauhtémoc, the last Aztec emperor, and Tetlepanquetzaltzin, lord of Tlacopan, were forced to "confess" to the Spaniards where the supposed treasure of the Mexicas had been hidden. Supposedly their feet were burned until they gave up the location of the gold and other treasure. On the facade of the building there is a plaque that pays tribute "to the last Aztec king".
Since 1928 the building has been the headquarters of the Coyoacán Delegation and is a Historical Monument, declared so by the Colonial Monuments Department of the National Institute of Anthropology and History.
Photographed By J. Makali Bruton, August 6, 2017
3. House of Hernán Cortés Marker
The markers are underneath the entrance corridor of the Old Palace of the City Hall of Coyoacán.
Photographed By J. Makali Bruton, August 6, 2017
4. House of Hernán Cortés Marker
The area is heavily visited on weekends by tourists.
Photographed By J. Makali Bruton, August 6, 2017
5. The nearby church of Saint John the Baptist (Templo de San Juan Bautista)
6. House of Hernán Cortés
In this undated photo the markers have already been placed. (Courtesy Mediateca INAH).
Credits. This page was last revised on January 4, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 12, 2017, by J. Makali Bruton of Accra, Ghana. This page has been viewed 401 times since then and 71 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on August 12, 2017, by J. Makali Bruton of Accra, Ghana.
