Palace of Axayacatl
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| Palace of Axayacatl | |
|---|---|
 Plaque marking the site of the former palace | |
 Location in Mexico City | |
| Location | Mexico City, Mexico |
| Coordinates | 19°26.061′N 99°8.045′W / 19.434350°N 99.134083°W |
| Built | Between 1469–79[1][2] |
| Built for | Axayacatl |
| Demolished | c. 1521 |
The Palace of Axayacatl, also known as the Old House of Moctezuma, (Spanish: Palacio de Axayácatl) is the name of a pre-Hispanic residential complex composed of interconnected palaces.[3] The complex served as the royal palace and chambers of Tenochtitlan's sixth emperor Axayacatl,[3] and later as the residence of Hernán Cortés.
Only ruins of the Palace exist today.[4]
The Palace was built during the reign of Axayacatl (1469–81), and it was completed no later than 1479.[2] During his life, Axayacatl used the palace as his main living quarters.
The Palace was then passed down to Axayacatl's son Moctezuma II in 1481, and he lived there until he moved into the "New Houses" built specifically for the ninth emperor.[5] While he lived at the Palace, Moctezuma kept hundreds of objects made from gold and jade on display which were later melted down by the conquistadors.[6][7]
Colonial history
Moctezuma allowed conquistador Hernán Cortés to live in the Palace in 1519; within months, he had converted the building into a massive fortress with embrasures for cannons and crenels for musketeers.[6] Here, he imprisoned several Mesoamerican rulers including Moctezuma II, who was put under house arrest in the hopes that Cortés could rule through him.[8] In May 1520, several of these rulers were killed during a religious festival at the Palace.[4]
After Moctezuma II died within the grounds of the Palace in 1520,[4] Hernán Cortés had the original palace demolished by forcing the former residents of Tenochitlan to raze the Palace buildings during the Massacre of Toxcatl on 22 May 1520,[9] and rubble from the demolished palace was used by Alonso García Bravo construct a new building built specifically for Cortés between c. 1521–25.[3] The building then became the seat of the first cabildo government of New Spain in 1525.[10] Cortés used the building until 1530 and it stayed within his family until 1562, when it was acquired by the Spanish crown.[6]
The main office of the pawnshop known as the Nacional Monte de Piedad was built on the site between 1774–77, and they acquired the site in 1836.[10]