Cuauhtémoc station
Metrobús · 3 Line 3
Neighbouring stations
- 3Line 3Balderas Cuauhtémoc Jardín Pushkin
Transfers to other networks
The story behind the icon
The station icon represents an eagle's head. The station takes its name from the nearby Avenida Cuauhtémoc, and is also a transfer station with Line 1 of the STC Metro. Cuauhtémoc was born in Tenochtitlan on a date that has never been established with certainty; his name means "eagle that falls" or "descending eagle". Son of Tlacatecutli Ahuízotl and the Tlatelolca princess Tilalcalpatl, he had the education reserved for the indigenous nobility at the Calmecac, where he received the military and religious teaching that shaped the mettle and wisdom he showed during his brief rule.
He would become the last Mexica tlatoani; with him ended the dynasty founded in 1376 by Acamapichtli. When he took power on 25 January 1521 the conquistadors had already been driven out of Tenochtitlan, but the city was devastated by hunger, smallpox and the lack of fresh water. Cuauhtémoc came to this moment after serving as tlacochcálcatl, "chief of arms", of the resistance against the conquistadors. After meeting Hernán Cortés and rejecting his offer of surrender, he made ready to defend the city against the imminent attack, set about rebuilding and fortifying it, reorganised his armies and tried to make alliances with other peoples by reducing their tribute, but it was in vain; the advance of the Spanish and their allies could be held back for 90 days. After the siege of Tenochtitlan by land and from the lake, on 13 August 1521, weakened and with no means of continuing the defence, he tried to bring his family to safety and reorganise the resistance from elsewhere; he was detained in Tlatelolco and brought before Cortés, who took him prisoner. He was held captive for almost four years, during which he was humiliated and tortured.
When Cortés set out on an expedition to Las Hibueras he decided to take him along, but fear and rumours of a supposed conspiracy filled him with doubt and he decided to have him hanged on 28 February 1525 at a place in Tabasco called Huey Mollan. The decline of the Aztec empire would by then be unstoppable, and with it the other lesser tribes would fall.
What's near Cuauhtémoc
- Arena México