Description of the attraction
The National Palace is located on Constitution Square, or, as the Mexicans call it, Zocalo, and occupies its entire eastern side. The government building was designed by order of the conquistador Hernán Cortez in 1692. Once in its place was the palace of the Aztec emperor Montezuma, which later became the home of Cortez himself.
The construction of the modern palace began in 1562 in the then fashionable Baroque style. The government building has been repeatedly attacked. So in 1624 and 1692 the rebels attacked him. In 1821, when Mexico gained independence, the palace became the presidential residence.
The palace is partially open to tourists. For example, you can visit the offices where President Juarez worked in 1860. They make up a small museum, the exhibits of which also tell about the history of the Mexican Congress. The entrance is free.
On the second floor, the walls are covered with paintings by Diego Rivera, a renowned socialist painter. He worked on the frescoes from 1929 to 1935. Significant in scope and value, the work "The Mexican People's Epic of Their Fight for Freedom and Independence" embodies the two thousand year history of Mexico. The right wall reflects the life of the Mexican aborigines before the arrival of the conquerors from Spain. The left wall tells about the present and future of the country after the revolution. On the ground floor, wall frescoes depict the life of Mexico before the arrival of the conquistadors and the life of the city of Tenochtitlan, where Mexico City stands today.
Now the National Palace houses the residence of the President and the Ministry of Finance.
