Chapultepec (chə-pūl'tə-pĕk') Castle (or, Castillo de Chapultepec) sits atop Chapultepec Hill in Mexico City. The word Chapultepec is a Náhuatl (the language spoken by the Aztecs) word meaning “grasshopper’s hill” (in Mexico, the common word for “grasshopper” is “chapulín”). The name refers to the hill’s shape, which resembles a grasshopper. The area surrounding the castle is known as the Bosque de Chapultepec (literally “Chapultepec Forest,” but better known as “Chapultepec Park” in English). It is Latin America’s largest urban park (about 2.5 square miles) (Cano).

Chapultepec Hill shows anthropological evidence of the presence of different peoples, including the Toltec and the Aztecs (Zavala). After the Aztecs founded the city of Tenochtitlan (modern-day Mexico City) in 1325, Chapultepec Hill was considered to be a sacred place. Throughout the following years, Aztec rulers ordered several changes to the hill and forest (Cano).

Figure 2: "Montezuma's Tree" on Chapultepec Hill

Árbol de Montezuma

In 1428, the Aztec king of Texcoco, Netzahualcóyotl, built a retreat and improved the forest’s flora and fauna. Then, in 1465, Montezuma Ilhuicamina ordered that his image be carved in rock at the bottom of the hill and the construction of the Tlaxpana aqueduct (Cano). In 1507, Moctezuma Xocoyotzin had pools created to raise exotic fish and serve as water storage; he ordered that plants and trees from across the empire be planted in the Chapultepec forest. In 1521, Cuauhtémoc1 defended Chapultepec against the Spaniards. Hernán Cortés then took possession of Chapultepec, giving Captain Julián Jaramillo the northern section. In 1530, a royal decree ruled that the Bosque de Chapultepec belonged to Mexico City (Cano).

During the Spanish Colonial period, Chapultepec Hill was still considered to be one of the area's most beautiful places, suitable for retreats. In 1785, under the rule of New Spain’s Viceroy Bernardo de Gálvez, construction began on a country house at the top of Chapultepec Hill. The architect in charge was Lieutenant Colonel of the Spanish Army and engineer Francisco Bambitelli. When Bambitelli had to depart to Havana, Cuba, the Captain of the infantry and engineer Manuel Agustín Mascaró took over the project (Museo). Despite rapid progress on the project, Viceroy Bernardo de Gálvez died in 1786 before its completion; it was speculated that he was poisoned for actually designing a fortress, rather than a country house, from where he could lead a revolt against the Spanish Crown (Zavala).

As a result, the Crown ordered a halt to the construction and attempted to auction it off at the price of 60 thousand pesos (even though they had already spent over 300 thousand pesos on its construction up to that point) (Zavala). Due to a lack of interest in the building, Viceroy Juan Vicente de Güemes Pacheco y Padilla, the 2nd Count of Revillagigedo, ordered that the building be used to house the Kingdom of New Spain’s General Archive. This project also failed (Zavala).

In 1806, Mexico City’s municipal government finally purchased the building and surrounding forest (Zavala). The building remained abandoned, however, during Mexico’s War of Independence. In 1833, it became the Military Academy.

Due to the strategic location and fortress-like surroundings of the building, Chapultepec Castle served as a military post during the Mexican American War (1846-1848) and stood as Mexico City’s last line of defense against the US American army. The Battle of Chapultepec (Sept. 12-13, 1847) was the last battle before the US captured Mexico City, ending the war (for more on significant battles and battle plan maps of the Mexican American War, including the Battle of Chapultepec, see the module: Maps of the Mexican American War).

Mexican legend holds that during the Battle of Chapultepec, six brave teenage cadets refused to abandon their posts and died defending their country. Their names were: Juan de la Barrera, Juan Escutia, Francisco Marquez, Agustin Melgar, Fernando Montes de Oca, and Vicente Suarez (Tuck). The final survivor, Juan Escutia, is said to have wrapped himself in the Mexican flag and jumped from the castle roof to prevent the flag from falling into enemy hands.

Figure 3: Mural in Chapultepec Castle museum by Gabriel Flores (1970).

Sacrificio de los niños heroes (Sacrifice by the Boy Heroes)

In 1864, during the Franco Mexican War (also known as the French Intervention), the French-imposed sovereigns, Emperor Maximilian (Maximiliano) and Empress Charlotte (Carlota), chose to live in the castle. They hired several Austrian, French, Belgian, and Mexican architects to improve the castle’s living conditions (Museo). In order to connect Chapultepec to Mexico City, Emperor Maximilian commissioned the creation of a boulevard named Paseo de la Emperatriz (the Empress’ Promenade). Today, this boulevard is named Paseo de la Reforma (Reform Promenade). Maximilian and Carlota also had vast improvements made to the castle’s rooftop garden (Museo).

Figure 4: Maximilian's and Charlotte's dining room inside Chapultepec Castle

Chapultepec dining room

After the fall of the Second Empire of Mexico in 1867, the castle remained abandoned for almost ten years. In 1876, it was designated as the Astronomical, Meteorological, and Magnetic Observatory ("Antecedentes Históricas"). The Observatory, however, was moved to a different site in 1883 and the Military College once again had access to the grounds. The castle then underwent renovations in order to serve as a presidential palace for years to come ("Antecedentes Históricas").

Chapultepec Castle’s last designation occurred in February 1939, when President Lázaro Cárdenas ordered the creation of the National Institute for Anthropology and History, naming the castle as the location of the Museo Nacional de Historia (National History Museum) ("Antecedentes Históricas"). Today, a part of the castle houses various museum collections and part (known as the Alcázar shows off the elegant European decor and furniture of the castle's heyday.

Figure 5: West wing facade and balcony of Chapultepec Castle

Chapultepec Castle West wing

“Antecedentes Históricas” Museo Nacional de Historia. http://www.mnh.inah.gob.mx/historia/hist_historicos.html

Cano, Olga. “Historia.” Bosque de Chapultepec. http://www.chapultepec.org.mx/web2010/chapultepec/historia/historia.php

“Los niños héroes.” http://www.mexonline.com/history-ninosheroes.htm

Tuck, Jim. “Mexico's Niños Heroes ("heroic children"): reality or myth...” October 9, 2008. Mexconnect. http://www.mexconnect.com/articles/313-mexico-s-ni%C3%B1os-heroes-heroic-children-reality-or-myth

Zavala y Alonso, Manuel (ed). “Bosque, cerro y castillo de Chapultepec” Artes e Historia México. INAH. http://www.arts-history.mx/banco/?id_nota=22062004105616