|
|
|
|
|
Oaxaca History |
| Home >> Mexico Destinations >> Oaxaca City >> Oaxaca City History |
|
There have been Zapotec and Mixtec settlements in the general area of the modern city of Oaxaca for thousands of years, in connection with the important ancient centres of Monte Albán and Mitla. The colonial city, however, dates from 1532, when Spanish settlers who had followed Hernán Cortés' conquistadores successfully petitioned the Queen of Spain for a grant of land. They had already founded a city in the neighbourhood, under the name of Antequera, on the basis of a charter from King Carlos V of Spain, but Cortés had successfully sought to have the entire Valle de Oaxaca declared as part of his personal marquisate, and to have the settlers removed. The Queen's charter, however, secured the townspeople's rights.
The historic centre of the city is laid out in typical Spanish colonial style, with a rectangular grid of streets surrounding a central square, the zócalo. Most of the important buildings are within this central area.
In 2006, the 2006 Oaxaca protests constituted a major social action by teachers from May to late 2006. Several teachers and their supporters were shot dead, including Indymedia journalist Bradley Roland Will on October 27, 2006[1] and Roberto López Hernández and Jorge Alberto Beltrán on October 29, 2006 when over 10,000 federal police and army intervened |
| |
|
|
|
| |
|
