Mexico City has a history of development that feels less like the result of a plan and more like a collection of events occurring against the backdrop of time and nature what once existed in this region.
One of the most interesting things about Mexico City is that it and its surrounding metropolises are actually built upon what was once the lake of Texcoco. Prior to the construction of highways, metro stations, and neighbourhoods, this valley was filled with large numbers of lakes along with volcanoes.
Some of the lakes within this region contained fresh water while others contained salt water. Civilizations existed in Mexico for thousands of years before the Aztec civilization arrived.
The people who were later to be known as the Aztecs or Mexica made their way to this valley after a long journey that involved many mythical legends and stories.
According to some legends, their god instructed them to look for a sign of an eagle standing on top of a cactus that had a snake in its mouth and go there in search of their new home. They claim that they found that sign in Lake Texcoco.
According to legend, Tenochtitlan was established on this site in 1325; its history can be traced back to modern-day Mexico City. So significant was its image that it appears on the Mexican flag.
The Mexica built chinampas (man-made islands) to create agricultural land (floating gardens) and to increase land area for living. The rectangular farming platforms produced a large quantity of crops including vegetables, herbs, maize and flowers; the canals surrounding these platforms were the transport routes throughout Tenochtitlan (i.e. rather than using cars to move from one location to the next, people used boats and waterways).
By the early 1500’s, Tenochtitlan was amongst the world’s largest and most technologically advanced cities. It encompassed enormous causeways, linking different areas of the island with the mainland; monumental religious structures dominating ceremonial plazas; and, busy commercial markets.
Many believe that Tenochtitlan’s population was on par with some of the largest European cities of the time period, but so much would change so quickly.
In the early 16th century, Spanish Conquistador Hernán Cortés and his forces arrived at Tenochtitlan. Using a combination of alliances with rival Indigenous peoples, military strength, and exceptionally high rates of illnesses (disease), the Spanish conquered Tenochtitlan.
Although the city suffered extensive devastation as a result of war, Spanish re-settled their territory and continued building upon it. All of the temples had been demolished and replaced by larger than life cathedrals. Instead of using indigenous roads, they used colonial roads as they spread outwards from the centre of the Spanish architecture.
This underneath foundation has continued to affect how Mexico City looks today, through maps of the city you can still see the remains of the original Aztec city plan.
The Zócalo, that is where the Templo Mayor was built, is located near the ruins of the former Aztec city. Archaeologists today are still finding Aztec artifacts near the bases of modern buildings.
With the growth of the Spanish empire, Mexico City became the political and cultural hub of New Spain. Many new universities and cathedrals were constructed. Huge palaces and homes were created throughout the city. As prosperity continued to grow in the new colony, Mexico City became one of the most important commercial centres in all of the Americas.
Lake Texcoco is located at the lowest point of the Valley of Mexico and the threat of water inundating the city was always a danger for the residents living there. The Aztecs were able to develop methods to deal with this problem using the resources available from Lake Texcoco, but with the arrival of colonisation many were disrupted.
During the Spanish Colonisation a huge amount of water was drained from Lake Texcoco to try and manage the floodwaters of the lakes and to create more land to allow urban expansion. This massive and permanent alteration of the environment of the region, would cause irreversible changes to the Valley of Mexico.
By the early 1800s, Mexico had been through revolutions, foreign invasions, political reform, and political power struggles.
After the brutal War of Independence from Spain, Mexico was faced with years of instability. France even temporarily installed Archduke Maximilian I of Austria as emperor of Mexico.
Maximilian’s rule was very short, but he left a lasting mark on the city. He expanded the Palace of Chapultepec and built a new grand avenue between the Palace and the City Centre, now named Paseo de la Reforma, one of the most famous Avenues in Mexico City. Today this Boulevard is home to many grand monuments, modern skyscrapers, luxury hotels, and cultural institutions and is one of the most important arteries in the Mexican Capital.
Dramatic changes to the fabric of Mexico City occurred again during the long reign of Porfirio Díaz. The impact of the European influence was particularly prominent, with French-inspired architecture and design being the most highly sought-after elements.
Many elegant theaters, government buildings, and large mansions were constructed throughout the city, and most of the city’s most well-known historic landmarks were constructed during this period, including the stunning Palacio de Bellas Artes.
Modern Mexico City eventually expands far beyond the confines of the historic core. Today, the greater Mexico City area consists of a huge metropolitan area with a wide variety of boroughs, neighborhoods, highways, museums, parks, universities, markets, and the constant flow of thousands of visitors to the city on an everyday basis. However, despite the tremendous size and expansion of the city, there are still many opportunities to see pieces from the past.
Xochimilco is an excellent example of this: colorful trajineras still float on the Canal de Xochimilco (part of the historic chinampa system) in southern Mexico City.
It is one of the very last remnants of the once dominant lake region of the valley. Meanwhile, neighborhoods such as Coyoacán maintain the slower development of artistic character through colonial-era streets, local markets, and the former home of Frida Kahlo.
The layered history of a city is most clearly exhibited by the transportation within it. The Metro of Mexico City serves as both a means of transport as well as an experience of travelling through time, as important events and places around the world are commemorated at each station by pictographs containing symbols that represent something in that station.
In fact, there are lines that follow the route of the ancient Aztec causeways leading to the original city centre. The depth of the metro system represents a buried history that stretches back centuries, but in the end, it is this history that makes Mexico City unique and ever-changing. Mexico City is nothing like a city that has remained stagnant; it has continued to develop through time and combines elements of every other form of history together into one city.
With all of the elements that have influenced Mexico City throughout history – ancient indigenous engineering, colonial architecture, revolutionary politics, present-day skyscrapers, busy street markets, international-calibre museums, and many music and food filled neighbourhoods – Mexico City presents a city found within a city with all of these elements interacting and colliding to create another layer of experience within the metropolitan region.
Spend your morning looking at Aztec ruins, having lunch at a little street stand serving tacos, take an afternoon walk along a European-style boulevard, and end your night in a neighbourhood filled with murals and colonial-style homes by listening to live music. Rarely will you find a city that combines ancient civilizations with the mayhem of today as well as this one.
Mexico City is not just enormous; it is multi-layered as well. Each street has been built up over hundreds of years. Once you see that, you will look at the city as something more than a place to travel to. You will see it as a living chronological record that keeps growing and going over time.
