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The Baths of Chapultepec are a series of pools used from the pre-Columbian period until the beginning of the 20th century, to house the water from the springs of Chapultepec Hill. The springs provided drinking water to Mexico City. Among the remains are the Baths of Moctezuma and the remains of colonial-era structures in Well 5, or Manantial Chico, of Chapultepec. [1]
When Tenochtitlan began to grow and look for alternatives to supply water to its inhabitants, the Huey Tlatoani Chimalpopoca, in 1381, requested his grandfather Huey Tlatoani of Azcapotzalco Tezozomoc to allow him to take advantage of the springs of Chapultepec. Permission was granted and the Tenochcas began to build the aqueduct. [2]
This aqueduct was not well performed by the Tenochcas and was one of the reasons for the war in which Tenochtitlan joined Texcoco to gain hegemony in the Valley of Mexico and then form the Aztec Triple Alliance (also known as the Aztec Empire). [2] Chapultepec Hill had several springs, mostly located on the south side of the hill, the Texcocans led by their Huey Tlatoani Nezahualcoyotl in 1466 carried out a series of works, including canals and reservoirs to feed the aqueduct of Chapultepec. They built the baths to increase the water level and water pressure in the aqueduct pipeline, in addition to allowing irrigation of the Chapultepec Forest. [2]
During the siege of Mexico City by the Spanish and their Indigenous allies Hernán Cortés ordered the destruction of part of the baths and taking of a site that had a small town on the west side of Chapultepec Hill. This left the city without drinking water. [2]
Having taken the city, and determined to use it as the seat of the capital of New Spain, Hernán Cortés ordered the baths rebuilt. Over time these baths underwent a series of modifications, tending to increase their level, which did not always mean to increase their volume. Since 1740 a decrease of water from the springs was noticed until the baths had to close in 1929. [2]
At present one of them was reconstructed and only presents an exhibition of sculptures and alusional maps, this one is popularly called The Baths of Moctezuma, on the eastern side of the hemicycle dedicated to the 201 Squadron are the remains of some of the colonial baths, where you can see pre-Columbian remains, inside it is Well Five of Chapultepec, dependent of the Comisión Nacional del Agua. [2] At its height the baths were not only used for drinking water, since concessions to private individuals allowed the construction of private baths for irrigation and even public baths (in reality it was a public bath open in exchange for a payment for use). [2]
The baths were made of masonry and lime. Only information available for three of them, which had the following names: [2]
The Alberca Grande (Large Bath) located in what would now be the boundary fence between the forest and the Avenue of los Constituyentes was rectangular in shape, 17.47 m long and 1.39 m wide with a depth of 2.67 m or 12 m deep, this was used for irrigation in the Tacubaya area and belonged to the Count of Peñasco. [2]
The Alberca de los Nadadores ( the Swimmer's Bath) was even more extensive but of less depth, it was located more to the east and was the first public swimming bath or spa (as it is told in Mexico City) in Mexico City. [2]
The Alberca Chica or Alberca de Moctezuma (Small Bath or the Moctezuma's Bath) was the highest height with respect to Mexico City and it is very likely that the oldest, from this goes the pipes for aqueducts, for it was the only one of which we know the years of its renovation, (1548, 1571, 1714, and 1870), thanks to a series of lap of which were in a quarter of a pump situated at its side to provide service to the Castle of Chapultepec, these reconstructions made the bath out each time smaller and more high, this bath was studied in 1974 by archaeologists Ruben Cabrera, María Antonieta Cervantes and Felipe Solís, who found six boxes inside each other, which were reducing in size, the oldest one, which was very destroyed, was about 15 m long and was square with rounded corners, until the fourth there are traces of baked brick, dated in 1870, with the fifth and sixth there is the use of cement, this last one that could be seen before its reconstruction in 2010, had 5.70 m by side concrete ceiling and glass, a staircase of iron, at its entrance towards south was the room of bombs. [2] [3]
There is a popular belief that these baths were the Baths of Moctezuma, in which he personally swam and cbathed, or that other rulers like Emperor Maximilian used them for swimming. Because the baths were a source of drinking water this would have been unhygienic. Several rulers imposed prohibitions on the use of those waters for bathing. It's possible baths used for irrigation were also used for swimming and bathing. [1]
Ahuitzotl was the eighth Aztec ruler, the Huey Tlatoani of the city of Tenochtitlan, son of princess Atotoztli II. His name literally means "Water Thorny" and was also applied to the otter. It is also theorized that more likely, the animal called ahuitzotl is actually the water opossum, the hand symbolizing its prehensile tail, which otters notably lack.
Cuitláhuac or Cuitláhuac was the 10th Huey Tlatoani (emperor) of the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan for 80 days during the year Two Flint (1520). He is credited with leading the resistance to the Spanish and Tlaxcalteca conquest of the Mexica Empire, following the death of his kinsman Moctezuma II.
Cuauhtémoc, also known as Cuauhtemotzín, Guatimozín, or Guatémoc, was the Aztec ruler (tlatoani) of Tenochtitlan from 1520 to 1521, making him the last Aztec Emperor. The name Cuauhtemōc means "one who has descended like an eagle", and is commonly rendered in English as "Descending Eagle", as in the moment when an eagle folds its wings and plummets down to strike its prey. This is a name that implies aggressiveness and determination.
Moctezuma I, also known as Moteuczomatzin Ilhuicamina, Huehuemoteuczoma or Montezuma I, was the second Aztec emperor and fifth king of Tenochtitlan. During his reign, the Aztec Empire was consolidated, major expansion was undertaken, and Tenochtitlan started becoming the dominant partner of the Aztec Triple Alliance. Often mistaken for his popular descendant, Moctezuma II, Moctezuma I greatly contributed to the famed Aztec Empire that thrived until Spanish arrival, and he ruled over a period of peace from 1440 to 1453. Moctezuma brought social, economical, and political reform to strengthen Aztec rule, and Tenochtitlan benefited from relations with other cities.
Motecuhzoma Xocoyotzin, variant spellings include Moctezuma, Motewksomah, Motecuhzomatzin, Montezuma, Moteuczoma, Motecuhzoma, Motēuczōmah, Muteczuma, and referred to retroactively in European sources as Moctezuma II, was the ninth Emperor of the Aztec Empire, reigning from 1502 or 1503 to 1520. Through his marriage with queen Tlapalizquixochtzin of Ecatepec, one of his two wives, he was also king consort of that altepetl.
Tenochtitlan, also known as Mexico-Tenochtitlan, was a large Mexican altepetl in what is now the historic center of Mexico City. The exact date of the founding of the city is unclear, but the date 13 March 1325 was chosen in 1925 to celebrate the 600th anniversary of the city. The city was built on an island in what was then Lake Texcoco in the Valley of Mexico. The city was the capital of the expanding Aztec Empire in the 15th century until it was captured by the Spanish in 1521.
Chapultepec, more commonly called the "Bosque de Chapultepec" in Mexico City, is one of the largest city parks in Mexico, measuring in total just over 686 hectares. Centered on a rock formation called Chapultepec Hill, one of the park's main functions is as an ecological space in Greater Mexico City. It is considered the first and most important of Mexico City's "lungs".
Tetzcoco was a major Acolhua altepetl (city-state) in the central Mexican plateau region of Mesoamerica during the Late Postclassic period of pre-Columbian Mesoamerican chronology. It was situated on the eastern bank of Lake Texcoco in the Valley of Mexico, to the northeast of the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlan. The site of pre-Columbian Tetzcoco is now subsumed by the modern Mexican municipio of Texcoco and its major settlement, the city formally known as Texcoco de Mora. It also lies within the greater metropolitan area of Mexico City.
Cacamatzin (1483–1520) was the tlatoani (ruler) of Texcoco, the second most important city of the Aztec Empire.
Miguel Hidalgo is a borough (alcaldía) in western Mexico City, it encompasses the historic areas of Tacuba, Chapultepec and Tacubaya along with a number of notable neighborhoods such as Polanco and Lomas de Chapultepec. With landmarks such as Chapultepec Park and the Museo Nacional de Antropología, it is the second most visited borough in Mexico City after Cuauhtémoc where the historic center of Mexico City is located. Tacubaya and Tacuba both have long histories as independent settlements and were designated as “Barrios Mágicos” by the city for tourism purposes.
Chimalpopoca or Chīmalpopōcatzin (1397–1427) was the third Emperor of Tenochtitlan (1417–1427).
The fall of Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztec Empire, was an important event in the Spanish conquest of the empire. It occurred in 1521 following extensive manipulation of local factions and exploitation of pre-existing political divisions by Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés. He was aided by La Malinche, his interpreter and companion, and by other indigenous allies.
The Aztec Empire or the Triple Alliance was an alliance of three Nahua city-states: Mexico-Tenochtitlan, Tetzcoco, and Tlacopan. These three city-states ruled that area in and around the Valley of Mexico from 1428 until the combined forces of the Spanish conquistadores and their native allies who ruled under Hernán Cortés defeated them in 1521.
The Aztecs were a Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican people of central Mexico in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries. They called themselves Mēxihcah.
The Battle of Tlatelolco was fought between the two pre-Hispanic altepetls Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco, two independent polities which inhabited the island of Lake Texcoco in the Basin of Mexico.
Tlatelolco was a pre-Columbian altepetl, or city-state, in the Valley of Mexico. Its inhabitants, known as the Tlatelolca, were part of the Mexica, a Nahuatl-speaking people who arrived in what is now central Mexico in the 13th century. The Mexica settled on an island in Lake Texcoco and founded the altepetl of Mexico-Tenochtitlan on the southern portion of the island. In 1337, a group of dissident Mexica broke away from the Tenochca leadership in Tenochtitlan and founded Mexico-Tlatelolco on the northern portion of the island. Tenochtitlan was closely tied with its sister city, which was largely dependent on the market of Tlatelolco, the most important site of commerce in the area.
The Chapultepec aqueduct was built to provide potable water to Tenochtitlan, now known as Mexico City. This fresh water was transported from the Chapultepec springs. Two aqueducts following the same route from the springs were built by the Aztecs during the 15th century, the first destroyed by flooding and the second by the Spanish. After the Spanish conquest a colonial aqueduct was built, the ruins of which are located near Metro Sevilla.
Los Remedios National Park is a national park in Mexico, located in the far west of the municipality of Naucalpan in Mexico State, just northwest of Mexico City. The park was established by federal decree in 1938 with an area of 400 hectares. Within its borders is the Sanctuary of the Virgin of Los Remedios, a colonial-era aqueduct and a pre-Hispanic archaeological zone with a Chichimeca temple. All of these are located in and around the mountain called Cerro Moctezuma. The site was an Aztec observatory and is also believed to be where Hernán Cortés and his men rested after fleeing Tenochtitlan.
An aqueduct is a watercourse constructed to carry water from a source to a distribution point far away. In modern engineering, the term aqueduct is used for any system of pipes, ditches, canals, tunnels, and other structures used for this purpose. The term aqueduct also often refers specifically to a bridge carrying an artificial watercourse. Aqueducts were used in ancient Greece, ancient Near East, and ancient Rome. The simplest aqueducts are small ditches cut into the earth. Much larger channels may be used in modern aqueducts. Aqueducts sometimes run for some or all of their path through tunnels constructed underground. Modern aqueducts may also use pipelines. Historically, agricultural societies have constructed aqueducts to irrigate crops and supply large cities with drinking water.
Statues of Tlatoque Ahuitzotl and Itzcoatl are installed in Mexico City. They are collectively known as the Monumento a los Indios Verdes. The statues are verdigris due to the effects of weather. They are around 3 meters (9.8 ft) to 4 meters (13 ft) tall and their plinths have inscriptions in Nahuatl. The statues were created by Alejandro Casarín to represent Mexico at the 1889 Paris Exposition.
