Chapultepec Palace

Laid in 1785 by Viceroy Bernardo de Galves (whose name is the city of Galveston in Texas ). Due to the exorbitant costs of construction was suspended, and the king ordered to sell the palace at auction. Buyers were found only in 1806 - these were the city authorities of Mexico City. The palace finally became inhabited in 1833, when a military academy was placed here. At the same time, the observation tower "High Knight" ( caballero alto ) was attached to the building.

During the invasion of the Americans in Mexico for the possession of the palace unleashed a fierce battle, known as the Battle of Chapultepec . The residence was defended, besides the soldiers of the regular army, two hundred cadets aged 13 years (so-called children-heroes ).

In 1864, Emperor Maximilian Habsburg chose the palace as his country residence. He drew several European and Mexican architects to redevelop the palace in the fashionable style of neoclassicism . On the roof of the building botanist Wilhelm Knechtel broke a garden. From the palace to the capital was laid the promenade of the Empress (now - Paseo de la Reforma boulevard, the central city highway).

After the execution of the emperor in the palace, the Mexican National Astronomical Observatory operated for several years, then until 1939 it served as the residence of the presidents of Mexico. Now it houses the main exposition of the National Historical Museum .

In early 1945, an inter-American conference on war and peace was held in the Chapultepec Palace under the auspices of the United States ^[1] . In 1991-1992, the Chapultepec agreements were concluded here, ending the civil war in El Salvador .