According to Thesciencetutor.org, the state of Mexico (often abbreviated to “Edomex” for Estado de México ) is a state in the middle of the country of the same name, Mexico. It is bounded on the north by Hidalgo, on the east by Tlaxcala and Puebla, on the south by Morelos and Guerrero and on the west by Michoacan.
In terms of area, Mexico City covers both the Federal District of Mexico (Spanish México Distrito Federal and México DF, a special administrative unit similar to Washington DC in the United States) and part of the state of Mexico, in the northern part of the federal district. Mexico City has one of the largest populations in the world, estimated at 22 million, and which is surpassed only by Tokyo in Japan.
Mexico is one of the geographical areas where the great American cultures unfolded. Mexico was under Spanish rule for three centuries before independence in the first half of the 19th century.
Tenochtitlán was the capital of the Aztec Empire and was built on an island in Lake Texcoco in what is now central Mexico. The city was destroyed in the 1520s by Spanish conquistadors, Mexico City was built as a replacement, and most of Lake Texcoco was gradually drained. Before the arrival of the Spaniards, Tenochtitlán was one of the largest cities in the world, with up to 200,000 residents.
TIMELINE:
1325 – The town of Tenochtitlán is founded in 1325 on a small islet in the western part of the lake. The Aztecs made a large artificial lake, using a system similar to the manufacture of chinampas. To solve the drinking water problem, the Aztecs built dams that kept the lake’s salt water separate from rainwater outlets. It also gave them control over the water level in the lake. The city also had an internal canal system to help control the water.
1520 – Mexican archaeologists excavate 500 Spanish settlers in a ruined city east of Mexico City, captured, tortured, beheaded, and eaten by the Aztecs. Read more here.
1521 – The Spanish Conquistador Hernán Cortés first arrives in the then Aztec capital Tenochtitlán in 1519, but fails to conquer the city until August 13, 1521, after protracted, fierce fighting that destroyed most of the ancient Aztec city. The rest of the city was either destroyed, demolished or buried as Mexico City was built upstairs.
1968 – Tlatelolco Massacre. Mexico hosts the Olympic Games. This was used by the student movement to organize protests against the growing social inequalities in the country. A few days before the start of the games, October 2, the students organized a demonstration in the Plaza de las Tres Culturas in the working-class district of Tlatelolco, but the regime had decided that the students’ protests should now be stopped. No scratches should be made in the nice facade during the games. The military therefore surrounded the square, occupied all strategic points and attacked the demonstration. The soldiers had been ordered to shoot to kill. Hundreds were killed and even more wounded. The exact loss figure has never been clarified, because the military later drove the bodies away and disposed of them. The regime was given peace to hold its sports games.
QUINTANA ROO
Quintana Roo (abbreviated QR) is the youngest state in Mexico, located on the eastern part of the Yucatán Peninsula. To the north and west it borders the Mexican states of Yucatán and Campeche, to the east the Caribbean Sea and to the south the land of Belize.
The capital of Quintana Roo is called Chetumal, and is located on the east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula. The population of the peninsula is primarily Mayan Indians. The many ruins after the Maya are named: Chacchoben, Chakanbakán, Chamax, Coba, Dzibanché, El Meco, Ichpaatán, Kohunlich, Muyil, Oxtankah, Tankah, Tulum, Tupak, Xel-Há and Xcaret.
Located on the tip of the Yucatán Peninsula, the Riviera Maya attracts year-round warmth, white coral sand and indigo blue sea. In this ancient Mayaland there are several excavations, or rather carvings in the jungle, of ancient cities and shrines. The closest is Xcaret which is both a historical memorial and a nature and entertainment park. A few kilometers to the south, the beautiful temple of the Maya people in Tulúm, and is a beautiful scenario against the chalk-white beach and the sea. The stunning Chichén Itza with its mighty pyramids is located in the middle of the country and is a must for those interested in Mayan culture.
TIMELINE:
3000 BCE – Pre-Mayan cultures inhabited the Yucatán Peninsula.
1970 – The state had only 90,000 residents at this time. It started to grow due to hotel construction and the need for more labor.
2003 – The state has now grown to 1,200,000 citizens, many of whom live in the coastal city of Cancún. In the early 1970s, the town was an underdeveloped coastal island, and home to a few fishing villages and smaller pre-Columbian Mayan ruins. Together with an international group of private investors, the Mexican government decided to make Cancún a tourist destination. A dam was built to the mainland and an international airport was built.
