Moquegua (, founded by the Spanish colonists as Villa de Santa Catalina de Guadalcázar del Valle de Moquegua) is a city in southern Peru, located in the Department of Moquegua, of which it is the capital. It is also capital of

Mariscal Nieto Province 160px, Cathedral of Moquegua The Mariscal Nieto Province ( Spanish ''mariscal'' marshal) is the largest of three provinces that make up the Moquegua Region of Peru. The capital of the province is the city of Moquegua. Boundaries *North: General ...

and

Moquegua District Moquegua District is one of six districts of the province Mariscal Nieto in Peru. Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática. Banco de Información Distrital''. Retrieved April 11, 2008. References See also * Administrative divisions o ...

. It is located 1144 kilometers south of the capital city of

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...

History

Co-Catedral Santo Domingo de la Ciudad de Moquegua

This region was occupied for thousands of years by successive cultures of

indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

. The Wari culture built numerous monuments, and developed terraced fields to support crop cultivation on hillsides hundreds of years before the

Inca The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, ( Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The adm ...

conquered them and expanded their territory into this area. Cerro Baúl is the remains of a Wari monumental site, on top of a hill outside of Moquegua. Numerous Tiwanaku sites are also in the area. It was an important colonial center for the Tiwanaku state. The valley is the only area of Peru to house both Wari and Tiwanaku ruins. The Chiribaya culture flourished in the Moquegua area and near the Pacific island coast from about 1000 until 1360. According to Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, the Inca Emperor Mayta Cápac organized the military expedition that extended the Inca domains to the shore of the Pacific. They overcame other indigenous peoples in the 15th century; in the next century they were conquered by the Spanish. There is no definite information about the year of the city's founding by the Spanish. Tradition holds that the colonial city was founded on 25 November 1541, by Pedro Cansino and his wife Josefina de Bilbao.

Climate

Tourism

This city is located in the mountains of the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

of the same name. It has many gardens and other tourist attractions, which make it a popular destination in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

. The Plaza de Armas, is the Main Square and center of the city. It was designed in the 19th century by the French architect,

Gustave Eiffel Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (born Bonickhausen dit Eiffel; ; ; 15 December 1832 – 27 December 1923) was a French civil engineer. A graduate of École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures, he made his name with various bridges for the French railway ...

, who designed the

Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; french: links=yes, tour Eiffel ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Locally nicknamed ...

in Paris. In this main square the

Jose Carlos Mariategui Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods. *Jose ben Abin *Jose ben Akabya *Jose the Galil ...

Museum and the Contisuyo Museum, are located. The Casa del Regidor Perpetuo de la Ciudad, is a house built in the 18th century. It has a front of carved stone. Operated as a house museum, it is furnished with high quality antiques. The district of Torata, located 24 km away from the city, has traditional houses with ''mojinete'' roofs. The parish church has beautiful wood carvings. The

Pan-American Highway The Pan-American Highway (french: (Auto)route panaméricaine/transaméricaine; pt, Rodovia/Auto-estrada Pan-americana; es, Autopista/Carretera/Ruta Panamericana) is a network of roads stretching across the Americas and measuring about in to ...

passes through the city.

Economy

Moquegua's economy is largely based on mining. Resources include copper, silver, gold and molybdenum. Cuajone and part of Toquepala Mine are located in the Mcal. Nieto Province. A copper smelter and refinery to treat copper concentrates from those mines is located in Ilo province.

References

External links

*
Sur Noticias
- Southern Peru news website *
Municipalidad de Moquegua
- Moquegua Municipality Populated places in the Moquegua Region Wari culture Regional capital cities in Peru Populated places established in the 16th century {{Peru-stub