Chapultepec Castle

Chapultepec Castle is located at the top of the Chapultepec hill in the middle
of the Chapultepec park in Mexico City.

The history of this castle dates back to pre-Hispanic times, but it was not until
the Viceroyalty period that Viceroy Luis de Velasco ordered the construction
of a recreation palace.
Over time, the castle underwent several modifications because it hosted many
projects that were eventually abandoned. In 1883 the Mexican government
decreed it as the headquarters of the Military College, but in 1847, during the
U.S. invasion, the castle suffered serious destruction and the death of 6 cadets
known as the Niños Heroe, so the castle was again abandoned.
The castle acquired its present appearance when the Austrian Archduke
Maximilian of Habsburg and his wife, the Belgian Princess Carlota Amalia,
resided there between 1864 and 1867, during the second French intervention.
The building was converted into a palace by the Mexican architect Ramon
Rodriguez Arangoity and the gardens were redesigned by the Austrian
botanist Wilhelm Knechtel.
In 1878 the first National Astronomical Observatory was established in
Chapultepec Castle, for which the building was conditioned once again. In
1883 the observatory was moved to Tacubaya, so the castle once again
become the Military College as well as Porfirio Diaz’s summer residence.
After 1911, and throughout the Mexican Revolution, the castle was inhabited
by Francisco I. Madero, Venustiano Carranza and Alvaro Obregon. Several
subsequent presidents continued to make changes in the residence.
Revolutionary times continued until december 22, 1938 when General Lazaro
Cardenas decreed that this historic building become what it is today, the
National Museum of History.
The National Museum, was inaugurated on September 27, 1944 with
collections ranging from the Viceroyalty to the Revolution.

Marcela Pineda Rodriguez.