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Guatemala City
Guatemala City ( es, Ciudad de Guatemala), known locally as Guatemala or Guate, is the capital and largest city of Guatemala, and the most populous urban area in Central America. The city is located in the south-central part of the country, nestled in a mountain valley called Valle de la Ermita ( en, Hermitage Valley). The city is the capital of the Municipality of Guatemala and of the Guatemala Department. Guatemala City is the site of the Mayan city of Kaminaljuyu, founded around 1500 BC. Following the Spanish conquest, a new town was established, and in 1776 it was made capital of the Kingdom of Guatemala. In 1821, Guatemala City was the scene of the declaration of independence of Central America from Spain, after which it became the capital of the newly established United Provinces of Central America (later the Federal Republic of Central America). In 1847, Guatemala declared itself an independent republic, with Guatemala City as its capital. The city was originally l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Capital City
A capital city or capital is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, department, or other subnational entity, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city that physically encompasses the government's offices and meeting places; the status as capital is often designated by its law or constitution. In some jurisdictions, including several countries, different branches of government are in different settlements. In some cases, a distinction is made between the official (constitutional) capital and the seat of government, which is in another place. English-language news media often use the name of the capital city as an alternative name for the government of the country of which it is the capital, as a form of metonymy. For example, "relations between Washington and London" refer to " relations between the United States and the United Kingdom". Terminology and etymology The word ''capital'' derives from the Latin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Act Of Independence Of Central America
The Act of Independence of Central America ( es, Acta de Independencia Centroamericana), also known as the Act of Independence of Guatemala, is the legal document by which the Provincial Council of the Province of Guatemala proclaimed the independence of Central America from the Spanish Empire and invited the other provinces of the Captaincy General of Guatemala to send envoys to a congress to decide the form of the region's independence. It was enacted on 15 September 1821. Independence movements By the turn of the nineteenth-century, it became clear that several unique regional identities had formed in Central America, although the authority for self-governance that each of these regions held was less discernible. Eventually though, the divisions would result in the dominance of Guatemala City and the wider area of Guatemala, which held the seat of the captaincy general, the only university in Central America, and most importantly, a large population of Peninsulares. The other ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hippodrome
The hippodrome ( el, ἱππόδρομος) was an ancient Greek stadium for horse racing and chariot racing. The name is derived from the Greek words ''hippos'' (ἵππος; "horse") and ''dromos'' (δρόμος; "course"). The term is used in the modern French language and some others, with the meaning of "horse racecourse". Hence, some present-day horse-racing tracks also include the word "hippodrome" in their names, such as the Hippodrome de Vincennes and the Central Moscow Hippodrome. In the English-speaking world the term is occasionally used for theatres. Overview The Greek hippodrome was similar to the Roman version, the circus. (The hippodrome was not a Roman amphitheatre, which was used for spectator sports, executions, and displays, or a Greek or Roman semicircular amphitheater used for theatrical performances.) The Greek hippodrome was usually set out on the slope of a hill, and the ground taken from one side served to form the embankment on the other side. One ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jorge Ubico
Jorge Ubico Castañeda (10 November 1878 – 14 June 1946), nicknamed Number Five or also Central America's Napoleon, was a Guatemalan dictator. A general in the Guatemalan army, he was elected to the presidency in 1931, in an election where he was the only candidate. He continued his predecessors' policies of giving massive concessions to the United Fruit Company and wealthy landowners, as well as supporting their harsh labor practices. Ubico has been described as "one of the most oppressive tyrants Guatemala has ever known" who compared himself to Adolf Hitler. He was removed by a pro-democracy uprising in 1944, which led to the ten-year Guatemalan Revolution. Early years Jorge Ubico was the son of Arturo Ubico Urruela, a lawyer and politician of the Guatemalan Liberal Party. Ubico Urruela was a member of the legislature that wrote the Guatemalan Constitution of 1879, and was subsequently the president of the Guatemalan Congress during the government of Manuel Estrada ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indigenous Peoples Of The Americas
The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Americas were traditionally hunter-gatherers and many, especially in the Amazon basin, still are, but many groups practiced aquaculture and agriculture. While some societies depended heavily on agriculture, others practiced a mix of farming, hunting, and gathering. In some regions, the Indigenous peoples created monumental architecture, large-scale organized cities, city-states, chiefdoms, states, kingdoms, republics, confederacies, and empires. Some had varying degrees of knowledge of engineering, architecture, mathematics, astronomy, writing, physics, medicine, planting and irrigation, geology, mining, metallurgy, sculpture, and gold smithing. Many parts of the Americas are still populated by Indigenous peoples; some countries h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carrera Theater (Guatemala)
The Carrera Theater -also called Colón Theater after the Liberal Reform of 1871– was a majestic classic Greek style theater built by president Captain General Rafael Carrera y Turcios in Guatemala City, Guatemala in 1852. The building was in the Old Central Square and after the liberal revolution of 1871 it was called National Theater. Towards the end of general Manuel Lisandro Barillas Bercián government, the building was remodeled to celebrate the Discovery of America fourth centennial anniversary. Finally, the theatre was destroyed by the earthquakes of 1917–18 and demolished in 1923. Construction An enthusiastic fan of Opera, and following his mistress -Josefa Silva's advice "Ms. Silva was a professional actress and singer who had taught Rafael Carrera how to behave, write, read and sing."-, president for life of Guatemala Rafael Carrera started the construction of a massive National Theater that was called "Carrera Theater" in his honor, and was located in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United Provinces Of Central America
The Federal Republic of Central America ( es, República Federal de Centroamérica), originally named the United Provinces of Central America ( es, Provincias Unidas del Centro de América), and sometimes simply called Central America, in its first year of creation, was a sovereign state in Central America that consisted of the territories of the former Captaincy General of Guatemala of New Spain. It existed from July 1823 to February 1841 as a democratic republic. The republic consisted of the present-day Central American countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua as well as the southern Mexican state of Chiapas. In the 1830s, a sixth state was added— Los Altos, with its capital in Quetzaltenango—occupying parts of what are now the western highlands of Guatemala and Chiapas. Shortly after Central America declared independence from the Spanish Empire in 1821, some of its countries were annexed by the First Mexican Empire in 1822 and then Ce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cathedral Of Guatemala City
The Holy Church Cathedral Metropolitan Basilica of Santiago de Guatemala also Metropolitan Cathedral, officially Catedral Primada Metropolitana de Santiago, is the main church of Guatemala City and of the Archdiocese of Guatemala (Archidioecesis Guatimalensis). It is located at the Parque Central in the center of the city. Its massive structure incorporates baroque and classical elements and has withstood numerous earthquakes. Damage by the devastating earthquakes of 1917 and 1976 has been repaired. The inside of the cathedral is relatively sparsely decorated but impresses by its size and its structural strength. The altars are ornate and decorative. In front of the cathedral stand a series of 12 pillars, solemnly remembering the names othousands of peopleforcibly disappeared or murdered during thcounterinsurgency violenceof Guatemala's internal armed conflict, which began in 1960 and lasted until the finapeace accordwas signed in 1996. On 28 October 2003, Pope John Paul II aut ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Antigua Guatemala
Antigua Guatemala (), commonly known as Antigua or La Antigua, is a city in the central highlands of Guatemala. The city was the capital of the Captaincy General of Guatemala from 1543 through 1773, with much of its Baroque-influenced architecture and layout dating from that period. These characteristics had it designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. Antigua Guatemala serves as the capital of the homonymous municipality and the Sacatepéquez Department. Population The city had a peak population of some 60,000 in the 1770s; the bulk of the population moved away in the late 18th century. Despite significant population growth in the late 20th century, the city had only reached half that number by the 1990s. At the time of the 2007 census, the city had 34,685 inhabitants. History ''Antigua Guatemala'' means "Old Guatemala" and was the third capital of Guatemala. The first capital of Guatemala was founded on the site of a Kakchikel-Maya city, now called Iximch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pedro De Alvarado
Pedro de Alvarado (; c. 1485 – 4 July 1541) was a Spanish conquistador and governor of Guatemala.Lovell, Lutz and Swezey 1984, p. 461. He participated in the conquest of Cuba, in Juan de Grijalva's exploration of the coasts of the Yucatán Peninsula and the Gulf of Mexico, and in the conquest of the Aztec Empire led by Hernán Cortés. He is considered the conquistador of much of Central America, including Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Character and appearance Pedro de Alvarado was flamboyant and charismatic, and was both a brilliant military commander and a cruel, hardened man. His hair and beard were red, which reminded the Aztecs of their sun-god (often painted red) Tōnatiuh. He was handsome, and presented an affable appearance, but was volatile and quick to anger.Burland 1973, p. 216. He was ruthless in his dealings with the indigenous peoples he set out to conquer. Historians judge that his greed drove him to excessive cruelty,Recinos 1986, p. 205. and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Obsidian
Obsidian () is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Obsidian is produced from felsic lava, rich in the lighter elements such as silicon, oxygen, aluminium, sodium, and potassium. It is commonly found within the margins of rhyolitic lava flows known as obsidian flows. These flows have a high content of silica, granting them a high viscosity. The high viscosity inhibits diffusion of atoms through the lava, which inhibits the first step ( nucleation) in the formation of mineral crystals. Together with rapid cooling, this results in a natural glass forming from the lava. Obsidian is hard, brittle, and amorphous; it therefore fractures with sharp edges. In the past, it was used to manufacture cutting and piercing tools, and it has been used experimentally as surgical scalpel blades. Origin and properties The '' Natural History'' by the Roman writer Pliny the Elder inc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maya People
The Maya peoples () are an ethnolinguistic group of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group, and today's Maya are generally descended from people who lived within that historical region. Today they inhabit southern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, and Honduras. "Maya" is a modern collective term for the peoples of the region, however, the term was not historically used by the indigenous populations themselves. There was no common sense of identity or political unity among the distinct populations, societies and ethnic groups because they each had their own particular traditions, cultures and historical identity. It is estimated that seven million Maya were living in this area at the start of the 21st century. Guatemala, southern Mexico and the Yucatán Peninsula, Belize, El Salvador, and western Honduras have managed to maintain numerous remnants of their ancient cultural her ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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