Federal Palace of Chihuahua

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The Federal Palace of Chihuahua is an early 20th-century building in the city centre of Chihuahua City, Mexico. It served as the federal building for the city until 2004, when it was renovated as a city museum, specialising in travelling exhibits. It also houses, in the basement, the jail cell of Fr Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, considered the Father of the Country. Fr Hidalgo was the first leader of the insurgency for independence from Spain. He was captured by the Spaniards early in 1811, tried and executed on 30 July 1811 at the neighbouring Government Palace. His jail cell is a national shrine.

[edit] History

Originally, this site contained a college for the Jesuit order, and Fr Hidalgo's cell was located in the basement. In 1878, the college was razed to the ground, preserving the basement area, and the Casa de Moneda, or branch mint was built here, where for some time Chihuahua minted and printed her own currency.

In 1908 the Casa de Moneda was demolished in order to build the Federal Palace that finally was inaugurated in 1910, during the celebrations of the centenary of Mexico's independence. The palace would serve as the main office of the postal service in the city.

In 2004 the postal service left the building and the palace was re-modeled in order to inaugurate a museum that would be called the Museo Casa Chihuahua. It opened its doors again in 2006 and is today one of the most famous landmarks in the city.

[edit] Architecture

The style of the building was popular during the era of President Porfirio Diaz , with both elements of neoclassicism and the French Beaux Artes. The main entrance of the palace displays two large columns and the walls have little decoration, typical of the neoclassical style.

The main facade exhibits the dates 1811 and 1910: The first is a reference to the death of Miguel Hidalgo, whilst the second refers to the time of the building's inauguration. The center contains the legend, Palacio Federal.