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Founding
Founding of Huamantla
municipal seat of Huamantla, State of Tlaxcala, Mexico
- 1534
- Mesoamerica and the Caribbean
Founding
municipal seat of Huamantla, State of Tlaxcala, Mexico
Fetching the article from Wikipedia…
Huamantla (Spanish: [waˈmantla] ⓘ) is a small city in the municipality of the same name in the eastern half of the Mexican state of Tlaxcala. The area has a long indigenous history, but the city itself was not founded until the early colonial period, in the 1530s. It is mostly agricultural but it is best known for its annual homage to an image of the Virgin Mary called Our Lady of Charity. This includes a month of festivities, the best known of which are the "night no one sleeps" when residents create six km of "carpets" on the streets made from colored sawdust, flowers and other materials. The other is the "Huamantlada" a running of the bulls similar to that in Pamplona.
The name comes from various Nahuatl words (cuahuitl (tree), man (next or in line) and tla (abundance)), which together are interpreted as place of aligned trees.
The city of Huamantla is in the east of the state of Tlaxcala, about 45 km from the state capital. The main entrance to the city is marked by the Monumento al Toro (Bull Monument), a bronze sculpture by architect Diódoro Rodríguez Anaya. It is dedicated to the regions' bull raising and fighting tradition.
The city is centered on its main plaza, called Parque Juárez (Juarez Park), which contains gardens and a kiosk from the beginning of the 20th century. The blocks around it conserve many historic buildings from the colonial period up through the Porfirio Diáz era, with simple facades and iron-railed balconies. For this reason and the celebrations related to Our Lady of Charity in August, the city has been named a “Pueblo Mágico.”
The main colonial era constructions are the parish of San Luis Obispo and the former monastery of the same name, both of which were begun in the 16th century and named after Huamantla's patron saint, Louis of Toulouse. The monastery complex was built between 1567 and 1585 and has a number of elements, focused on a main church with a simple facade. Above the door there is a niche containing an image of Saint Anthony and on either side of this, there are the coats of arms of the order. The bell tower has two levels and Solomonic columns. Inside the church, there is a chapel dedicated to a Christ figure called the Señor del Desposo. The main altar of this church is Churrigueresque with Neoclassical altars on the sides. To the side, there is a large open chapel with five arches supported by Tuscan columns with Doric capitals. The cloister area has been remodeled various times but original elements such as Tuscan columns remain. The Third Order chapel contains the complexes oldest oil paintings and a Baroque main altar.
The San Luis Obispo Parish church is built of light stone, with a contrasting dark grey main portal. In this portal there are six niches filled with the same number of statues made from alabaster. It has a single bell tower and a small bell-gable. Inside, the main altar is Baroque with an image of Louise of Toulouse. There is also Salomonic altar dedicated to the Virgin Mary and one to Jesus the Nazarene and oil paintings from the colonial period, including one of the Virgin of Guadalupe by Miguel Cabrera. Also facing the park is the municipal palace, it is in Neoclassical style with two floors, both with balconies, framed by cornices, a style common to Huamantla. It has a simple main entrance above which are a decorative element including the Mexican coat of arms, a clock and a small bell. Inside, there is a mural by Desiderio Hernández Xochitiotzin, a reproduction of the Huamantla Codex and a photographic collection.
Modern Mexican puppetry is traced to Huamantla, especially to the Rosete Aranda family which began their traveling puppet show in 1850, which lasted over a century. Today, the city is home to the Rosete Aranda National Puppet Museum, the only one of its kind in Latin America, located in a former mansion facing the main square. It contains eight main halls containing puppets, sets and other paraphernalia from this family, other puppeteers from Mexico and puppets from other countries such as Germany, Spain, France, Italy, India and Indonesia. It also has a collection of pre Hispanic dolls/puppets with movable parts, including some from nearby Cacaxtla.
The Huamantla Cultural Center is located next to the puppet museum, occupying the former priest's residence constructed between the 18th and 19th centuries. It has eight halls dedicated to various temporary exhibits and workshops.
The Museo Taurino (Bullfighting Museum) is located in a building from the 18th century, next the city's bullring. The museum opened in 1981 after remodeling and today it hosts a collection of event posters from the 20th century, models of various bullrings in Mexico, matador outfits and photographs.
The main cultural event of the year in Huamantla is the Feria de Huamantla (Huamantla Fair) which runs from 31 July to 21 August. Its origin is likely due to the worship of the goddess Xochiquetzal, goddess of love, flowers and arts. After the Conquest, the Spanish encouraged the veneration of the Virgin Mary instead. In the 17th century, the Franciscans built a hermitage to Our Lady of the Assumption. The image found here today has unknown origins but has since become associated with miracles. The feria attracts thousands of visitors from both Mexico and abroad.
This image is better known as Our Lady of Charity (Virgen de la Caridad). There are two main events during the months, creation of "carpets" from colored sawdust, flowers and other materials and a running of the bulls called the Huamantlada. The carpets are made constantly in the atrium of this image's basilica and other churches from the 31 to the 15; however, 6 km of carpets are created on "the night no one sleeps," that of August 14, working all night in preparation for the main procession with the image on August 15. Before the procession begins, the image is dressed in new robes and the image is followed by an entourage with candles and fireworks.
The Huamantlada is held on August 19. The first event occurred in 1954 and has since grown in popularity. It is based on the running of the bulls in Pamplona and was originally called the "Pamplonada". The first run had seven bulls which has since grown in number to about twenty five. The running of the bulls is more dangerous as the animals are released into the streets from two directions. This event is the most famous of its kind in Mexico.
During the month there are also donkey and car races, a children's version of running with the bulls, a parade with floats, a feria queen, a paella festival, cockfights, a chess tournament and the Festival International de Títeres Rosete Aranda.
During this month and other traditional festivals one can see traditional dances such as Ketzalines, Vaqueros, Vasarios and Matlachines danced to bands playing wind instruments, and traditional dress, which is of Otomi origin. For men, it consists of white pants and a shirt, which is embroidered with figures and fretwork. For women it consists of a heavily embroidered colorful skirt, embroidered blouse and rebozo. Typical foods include mixiotes, barbacoa, mole with turkey, Tocatlán style chicken along with crystallized fruit and a dessert item called "muégano."
The city of Huamantla is the local governing authorities for surrounding communities, creating a municipality with a territory of 340.33 km2. This entity borders municipalities of Terrenate, Altzayanca, Ixtenco, Cuapiaxtla, Xaloztoc, San José Teacalco, Tetlanohcan, Tocatlán and Tzompantepec. The government consists of a president, a syndic and seven representatives called regidors.
Outside of the city there are three main communities: Benito Juárez with 3,150 inhabitants, Ignacio Zaragoza with 4,523 and San José Xicohténcatl with 3,899. All of these are rural communities with economies based on agriculture and livestock.
In addition the municipality contains multiple haciendas, most of which have been broken up but some still in operation as private property. They include San Cristóbal Lagunas (established 18th century), El Balcón (19th century), Santa Barbara (18th century), La Compañía (17th century), Guadalupe (late 19th century), San Francisco Soltepec (18th century), San Diego Notario (18th century), San Martín Notario (18th century), El Molino (19th century), La Natividad (18th century), San Francisco Tecoac (19th century), San Miguel Báez (19th century), Santa Ana Ríos (18th century), Santiago Brito (19th century), Santo Domingo (19th century), Xalpatlahuaya (18th century), San Antonio Atenco (late 19th century), Xonecuila (late 19th century) and San Pedro El Batán (18th century). In the municipality, there are twenty one archeological sites. In the Santa Anita neighborhood of the city, there are pre Hispanic columns on private property.
The municipality is located in the eastern half of the state of Tlaxcala, in the Central Mexican Highlands. It has an average altitude of 2,500 meters above sea level. The geography of the municipality has three types of relief. About twenty percent is rugged mountain (located in the far north and far south), about thirty percent is semi-flat (located I the north and south and over half which is flat, in the center. Its far south is part of the Malinche Volcano.
The surface water of the area consists of small streams, most of which run only during the rainy season, running south to north. These have created ravines such as those called Tecoac, Xonemila, San Luca and Los Plares. Most of the water supply is from underground, accessed through 62 wells.
The climate is semi dry and temperate. Most rain falls during the rainy season from May to September with an average annual rainfall of 119.3 mm. The warmest months are from March to May and the coldest in December and January. The average annual minimum is 5.4 °C and the average annual maximum is 23.2 °C.
About thirty five percent of the municipality has wild vegetation, mostly near La Malinche. This vegetation varies by altitude with holm oak species prevalent in the lower elevations along with some pines and bushes. Above 2,800 meters, oyamel fir (Abies religiosa) and pines (Pinus hartwegii) can be found. Above 4,300 meters alpine grasslands and a juniper (Juniperus monticola) are found. In total, over sixty percent of the tree species are conifers and the rest are broad-leafed.
Although most of the flat areas are used for cultivation and grazing, some wild species remain such as maguey (Agave horrida and Agave salmiana), sotol (Nolina longifolia), Yucca filifera, Senecio praecox, Opuntia hyticantha, Opuntia robusta and Mammilaria magnimamma. Wildlife is mostly found outside the urban area and includes rabbits (Silvilagus floridanus), hares (Lepus californicus), birds and reptiles.
The first settlement in the Huamantla area was south of the current city. It became one of thirteen villages which formed a political union that lasted from 1800 to 1200 BCE and at its height had a population of about 3,500 inhabitants. The village near Huamantla extended over an area of between three and five hectares. The next regional center of power was in a settlement which is now an archeological site called Los Cerritos de Natividad, east of Huamantla, whose influence extended over fourteen communities. This era is distinguished with the building of pyramid and planned urban centers.
This was followed by the Texoloc era, with its center of power at Tlalencaleca between 800 and 600 BCE. Architecture included talud-tablero pyramids and ceramics which show influence from the west of Mexico and the Gulf coast. The following Tezoquipan era is considered to be the cultural and technological apex of the region reflected by its water system, architecture and trade connections. This era extended from 350 BCE to 100 CE, and at its height included 297 settlements, fourteen of which were major cities. What is now Huamantla was three of these settlements, with pyramids and planned layouts centered on a plaza.
The decline of this area is called the Tenanyecac phase, which lasts from 100–650 CE. The decline is due to the rise of Teotihuacan and Cholula. People migrated away from the Tlaxcala area and eventually the zone became tributary provinces of the two powers. Teotihuacan established a trade corridor through Huamantla to connect it to points east and south, but no major settlements.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Huamantla”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.