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Abu Hamza al-Masri

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Abu Hamza al-Masri
Abu Hamza al-Masri.jpg
An early picture of Abu Hamza al-Masri, prior to losing an eye and both hands in an explosion
Native nameأبو حمزة المصري
BornMustafa Kamel Mustafa
مصطفى كامل مصطفى

(1958-04-15) 15 April 1958 (age 60)
Alexandria, United Arab Republic
ResidenceADX Florence[1]

Mustafa Kamel Mustafa (Arabic: مصطفى كامل مصطفى; born 15 April 1958), also known as Abu Hamza al-Masri (/ˈɑːb ˈhɑːmzə ɑːl ˈmɑːsri/ (About this sound listen); أبو حمزة المصري, Abū Ḥamzah al-Maṣrī – literally, the Egyptian father of Hamza), the Hook Hand or simply Abu Hamza, is an Egyptian cleric who was the imam of Finsbury Park Mosque in London, England, where he preached Islamic fundamentalism and militant Islamism.

In 2004, Hamza was arrested by British police after the United States requested he be extradited to face charges. He was later charged by British authorities with sixteen offences for inciting violence and racial hatred.[3] In 2006, a British court found him guilty of inciting violence, and sentenced him to seven years' imprisonment. On 5 October 2012, after an eight-year legal battle, he was extradited from the UK to the United States to face terrorism charges[4][5] and on 14 April 2014 his trial began in New York.[6] On 19 May 2014, Hamza was found guilty of eleven terrorism charges by a federal jury in Manhattan. On 9 January 2015, he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.[7]

Hamza was born in Alexandria, Egypt, as Mustafa Kamel Mustafa in 1958, the son of a middle-class army officer. In 1979, he entered Britain on a student visa.[8]

His initial reaction to life in Britain was to describe it as "a paradise, where you could do anything you wanted."[9] He studied civil engineering at Brighton Polytechnic.[10] Prior to his conversion to Islamism in Malta, 1999, Hamza was known as a "gentle giant" and a "womaniser".[11] Hamza gained employment as a bouncer in the strip bars of Soho in the under his original name from 1980 until 1983, when club baron Jean Agius was arrested and charged for conspiring to be a pimp. Agius alleges that Hamza may have also co-owned a club during this time.[11]

In the early 1990s, Hamza lived in Bosnia under another name, and fought alongside Bosniaks against Serbs and Croats during the Bosnian War.[12][13]

Hamza, who has one eye and no hands, once claimed he lost them fighting Soviet forces in Afghanistan.[14] CNN reported they were "injuries he says he sustained while tackling a landmine in Afghanistan."[15] Among several accounts that take issue with Hamza's story,[16][17] BBC security correspondent Gordon Corera's introduction to Omar Nasiri's memoir Inside the Jihad: My Life with Al Qaeda says Hamza "boosted his credibility" with rumours he sustained the injuries fighting jihad; also that Nasiri knew they resulted from "an accident during experiments in a training camp", and Hamza asked Nasiri "to keep this secret in order to avoid undermining his reputation."[18] During his trial in the United States, Hamza stated that his injuries occurred whilst working with explosives with the Pakistani military in Lahore.[19] The UK tabloid press have nicknamed him "Hook" in allusion to the fictional pirate Captain Hook.[20][21][22]

On 16 May 1980, Hamza married British citizen Valerie Fleming, a Roman Catholic convert to Islam,[23] and soon after they had a son, Mohammed Mustafa Kamel born in October 1981. In 1984, their relationship came under increasing strain and later in that year Hamza took three-year-old Mohammed with him to Egypt, effectively breaking contact with Valerie.[24] Eventually they divorced and he married Najat Mustafa, with whom he has seven children: five sons followed by two daughters.[25] Hamza's stepdaughter, Donna Traverso, told The Times in 2006 that she was convinced Hamza had duped her mother into marrying him in order to gain the right to stay in the UK (see "Arrests, charges and imprisonment" below).[26]

In 1999, Hamza's son Mohammed, then 17 years old, was arrested in Yemen with Hamza's stepson Mohssin Ghalain and eight other men. All were tried and convicted of planning a terrorist bombing campaign that the prosecution alleged Hamza had sent the men to carry out. Mohammed and Mohssin received prison sentences of three and seven years respectively.[27][28]

Mohammed, Mohssin, and Hamza's oldest son with Najat, Hamza Mustafa Kamel, were convicted of fraud by a London court in 2009, and sentenced to prison terms.[29] Following his release Hamza, referred to as Tito Ibn Sheikh in court proceedings, was given a 12-year sentence after being convicted of 'orchestrating' a violent kidnapping in 2014.[30]

Hamza's third son with Najat, Yasser Kamel, was sentenced to 12 months in youth detention in 2010, for violent disorder at anti-Israel protests in 2009.[31] In 2012, Hamza's second youngest son, Imran Mustafa Kamel, was convicted of armed robbery and illegal possession of a firearm with intent to commit an offence and was sentenced to 11 years' imprisonment.[32] In 2013, the Evening Standard reported that Hamza's second oldest son with Najat, Uthman Mustafa Kamal, delivered sermons at An-Noor mosque in Acton, west London, that were allegedly 'in support of holy war', videos of which were uploaded online but have since been taken down.[33] In 2017, Hamza's youngest son, Sufiyan Mustafa Kamel, was stripped of his UK passport after travelling to Syria in 2013 to fight alongside rebel groups against Bashar al-Assad.[34]

Hamza's Moroccan daughter-in-law was jailed for attempting to smuggle a mobile phone sim card when visiting him in Belmarsh prison in 2012. She is now facing deportation but because she is the sole carer of her son, a British national, the European Court of Justice's advocate general has ruled she cannot automatically be deported despite her criminality unless she is deemed to pose a 'serious' threat to society.[35][36]

Religious life[edit]

Hamza was the imam of Finsbury Park Mosque from 1997, and a leader of the Supporters of Sharia, a group that believed in a strict interpretation of Islamic law. On 14 September 1999, he sent an article to Al-Hayat, one of the largest pan-Arab newspapers, supporting the Russian apartment bombings, claiming that while "in a war, no one targets women and children in a war", these attacks were necessary as "a Muslim revenge for the Russian criminal policies in Chechnya". In 2003, he addressed a rally in central London called by the Islamic al-Muhajiroun, where members spoke of their support for Islamist goals such as the creation of a new Islamic caliphate and replacing the Western-backed Middle Eastern regimes. On 4 February 2003 (after being suspended since April 2002), Hamza was dismissed from his position at the Finsbury Park Mosque by the Charity Commission,[37][38] the government department that regulates charities in England and Wales. After his exclusion from the mosque, he preached outside the gates until May 2004, when he was arrested at the start of US extradition proceedings against him (see below).[39]

Hamza publicly expressed support for Islamist goals such as creating a caliphate,[40] and for Osama bin Laden. He wrote a paper entitled El Ansar (The Victor) in which he expressed support for the actions of the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) in Algeria, but he later rejected them when they started killing civilians.[41] In one sermon relating to the necessity of Jihad, he said: "Allah likes those who believe in Him who kill those who do not believe in Him. Allah likes that. So if you Muslims don't like that because you hate the blood, there is something wrong with you."[42] He allegedly associated with Abdullah el-Faisal, a Jamaican Muslim convert cleric who preached in the UK until he was imprisoned for urging his followers to murder Jews, Hindus, Christians and Americans, subsequently being deported to Jamaica in 2007.[43]

Arrests, charges and imprisonment[edit]

Hamza was arrested in December 1980 during a raid on a Soho strip club for overstaying his tourist visa, which allowed him to stay in the UK for one month. He pleaded guilty to overstay but was allowed to remain in the UK as he was married to a British citizen, Valerie Fleming.[11]

On 26 August 2004, Hamza was arrested by British police under section 41 of the Terrorism Act 2000, which covers the instigation of acts of terrorism. Charges against him were dropped on 31 August 2004, but he was kept in jail whilst a US extradition case was developed and British authorities drew up further criminal charges of their own.[44] Almost two months later, on 19 October 2004, Hamza was charged with fifteen offences under the provisions of various British statutes, including encouraging the killing of non-Muslims, and intent to stir up racial hatred.[45] The trial commenced on 5 July 2005, but was adjourned, and not resumed until 9 January 2006. On 7 February 2006, he was found guilty on eleven charges and not guilty on four:

  • Guilty of six charges of soliciting murder under the Offences against the Person Act 1861; not guilty on three further such charges.
  • Guilty of three charges related to "using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour with intent to stir up racial hatred, contrary to section 18 (1) of the Public Order Act 1986",[46] not guilty on one further such charge.
  • Guilty of one charge of "possession of threatening, abusive or insulting recordings of sound, with intent to stir up racial hatred, contrary to section 23 of the Public Order Act 1986".[46]
  • Guilty of one charge of "possessing a document containing information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism",[46] under the Terrorism Act 2000, s58. This charge under the Terrorism Act of 2000 related to his possession of an Encyclopedia of Afghan Jihad, an Al Qaeda Handbook and other propaganda materials produced by Abu Hamza.[47]

In sentencing, Mr Justice Hughes said Hamza had "helped to create an atmosphere in which to kill has become regarded by some as not only a legitimate course but a moral and religious duty in pursuit of perceived justice."[48] Abu Hamza was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment.

In September 2012, Frank Gardner revealed that Queen Elizabeth II had been upset some years earlier that Abu Hamza al-Masri could not be arrested.[49] The BBC apologised later that day for the revelation.[49]

On 18 January 2007, Lord Justice Hughes made an order for the recovery of the full costs of the court-appointed defence of the race-hate charges, estimated in excess of £1 million. This judgement was based on his view that "the story I have been told today (by Abu Hamza) is simply not true" that he [Abu Hamza] had no share in a £220,000 house in Greenford, west London. Hamza had claimed it belonged to his sister. The court also found that Abu Hamza was contributing £9000 a year for private education for his children.[50]

Extradition to the United States[edit]

On 27 May 2004, Hamza was detained on remand by British authorities and appeared before magistrates at the start of a process to try to extradite him to the United States. Yemen also requested his extradition. The United States wanted Hamza to stand trial for eleven counts relating to the taking of sixteen hostages in Yemen in 1998, advocating jihad in Afghanistan in 2001, supporting James Ujaama in an alleged attempt to establish a "terrorist training camp" in late 1999 and early 2000 near Bly, Oregon, and of providing aid to al-Qaeda.[51][52] Ujaama is a US citizen who had met Abu Hamza in England in 1999 and was indicted in the US for providing aid to al-Qaeda, attempting to establish a terrorist training camp, and for running a website advocating global jihad.[53] Abu Hamza was in Britain throughout the relevant period.

Hamza could not face the death penalty if extradited to the United States because the UK is a signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). On 15 November 2007, British courts gave permission for Hamza's extradition to the US.[54][55] Abu Hamza appealed against this decision to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). In the meantime, Hamza was kept in prison after the completion of his sentence.

On 8 July 2010, the ECtHR temporarily blocked Hamza's extradition to the United States to face terrorism charges until the court was satisfied that he would not be treated inhumanely.[56] The court based its judgement on ECHR, which applies to British law. It is an absolute prohibition for a signatory to the ECHR to remove anyone to a place where they would be subject to inhumane or degrading treatment.[57] In past cases, the ECtHR has prevented the UK from deporting suspected foreign terrorists to places where they might be tortured. In Hamza's case, this has been extended to refusing extradition to a country where he might be jailed for life, and where the prison regime is judged too harsh. The court said there should be further legal argument on whether life without parole would be a breach of human rights. The court asked for fresh submissions on whether Hamza, and other prisoners awaiting extradition, would face inhumane treatment in the US if they were sent there to stand trial.[58]

On 24 September 2012, the court said he could be extradited to the US to face terrorism charges.[59] After considering all evidence, statements by officials at ADX Florence, the court held that "conditions at ADX would not amount to ill-treatment" and also stated that "not all inmates convicted of international terrorism were housed at ADX and, even if they were, sufficient procedural safeguards were in place, such as holding a hearing before deciding on such a transfer" and that "if the transfer process had been unsatisfactory, there was the possibility of bringing a claim to both the Federal Bureau of Prisons' administrative remedy programme and the US federal courts",[60] referring to the 28 C.F.R. 542 Administrative Remedy Program. On 26 September 2012, a High Court judge halted the extradition of Hamza to the US on terror charges after the cleric launched a last-ditch appeal.[61] On 5 October 2012, the High Court granted the UK's government's request to extradite Hamza to the US.[62] The removal process took place that same evening, when Hamza was taken from Long Lartin jail to RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, where he was placed into the hands of the US Marshals.

Abu Hamza arrived in the US on the morning of 6 October 2012 to face eleven charges relating to hostage taking, conspiracy to establish a militant training camp and calling for holy war in Afghanistan. He appeared in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on 6 October and was then taken into custody. He appeared in court again on 9 October and pleaded not guilty to eleven charges.[63][64][65]

On 14 April 2014, his trial opened with jury selection.[6] His lawyer, Joshua Dratel, claimed Abu Hamza cooperated with MI5 and the police to help interact with the British Muslim community.[66] On 19 May 2014, he was found guilty of the terror charges. British Home Secretary Theresa May said that she was "pleased" that Abu Hamza had "finally faced justice".[67][68] On 9 January 2015, Hamza was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, and the entire sentence would be served at ADX Florence in Colorado.[7][69] In U.S. confinement, his hook devices were confiscated and replaced with a prosthetic spork.[70][71]

See also[edit]

  1. ^ Inmate Locator search for register number 67495-054. Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved 05 February 2015.
  2. ^ "Britain: Citizenship Restored to Cleric Wanted on Terrorism Charges in U.S." The New York Times. 6 November 2010.
  3. ^ Cowan, Rosie (20 October 2004). "Abu Hamza charged with inciting murders". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
  4. ^ Neumeister, Larry; Christofferson, John (6 October 2012). "5 terror suspects from UK appear in US courts". The Age. Archived from the original on 9 October 2012.
  5. ^ FP Staff. "Abu Hamza to appear in US court". The First Post. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
  6. ^ a b McVeigh, Karen (14 April 2014). "Abu Hamza to testify in New York terrorism trial as jury selection begins". The Guardian.
  7. ^ a b "Radical cleric Abu Hamza jailed for life by US court". BBC. 9 January 2015. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
  8. ^ Brooks, Libby (1 May 2003). "5 tough questions about asylum-part 2". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 18 March 2009.
  9. ^ "BBC Four – Storyville". BBC. 25 November 2011. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  10. ^ Lawson, Tracy (21 January 2003). "As a fundamentalist cleric reviled and revered for his preaches of hate". The Scotsman. Retrieved 18 March 2009.
  11. ^ a b c Gadher, Dipesh (26 August 2018). "Ladies' man Abu Hamza plunged hook, line and sinker into Soho sleaze". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 27 August 2018. (Subscription required (help)).
  12. ^ Nun, Jan (8 February 2006). "U.K.: Muslim Extremist Preacher Gets Seven Years in Jail". Radio Free Europe. Retrieved 21 March 2009.
  13. ^ Naughton, Philippe (7 February 2006). "Profile: Abu Hamza". Times Online edition. London. Retrieved 21 March 2009.
  14. ^ McVeigh, Karenn (14 April 2014). "Abu Hamza to testify in New York terrorism trial as jury selection begins". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  15. ^ "Abu Hamza: Controversial Muslim figure". CNN. 27 May 2004. Archived from the original on 24 April 2012. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  16. ^ Horgan, John (15 May 2009). Walking Away from Terrorism: Accounts of Disengagement from Radical and Extremist Movements. New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-203-87473-8. Retrieved 24 October 2013.
  17. ^ O'Neill, Sean; McGrory, Daniel (2006). The Suicide Factory: Abu Hamza and the Finsbury Park Mosque. HarperPerennial. pp. 21–29. ISBN 978-0-007-23469-1.
  18. ^ "Nasiri, Omar" (2006). Inside the Jihad: My Life with Al Qaeda - A Spy's Story. New York: Basic Books. ISBN 978-0-465-02388-2. Retrieved 24 October 2013.
  19. ^ "Profile: Abu Hamza". BBC News. 9 January 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
  20. ^ Frost, Martin (2006). "Abu Hamza al-Masri". Martin Frost's former web site. Archived from the original on 17 December 2009.
  21. ^ Holden, Michael (10 April 2012). "Hook-handed Hamza: much more than a James Bond villain". Reuters. Archived from the original on 10 April 2012.
  22. ^ Hume, Mick (28 April 2004). "So Captain 'Hamza' Hook is a threat? Oh no he isn't! (original), Hamza Hook: a panto villain (reprint)". The Times (via Spiked-online.com). Archived from the original on 30 October 2013. The original article in The Times is available by subscription.
  23. ^ "Hamza's ex-wife life threatened". BBC. 8 February 2006. Retrieved 18 March 2009.
  24. ^ Syal, Rajeev (18 February 2006). "Hooked on Hamza". London: The Times. (Subscription required (help)).
  25. ^ Casciani, Dominic (7 February 2006). "Profile: Abu Hamza". BBC. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  26. ^ Syal, Rajeev (27 July 2006). "Dad is a coward, a hypocrite and he deserves to rot in jail". The Times. Retrieved 27 August 2018. (Subscription required (help)).
  27. ^ "Britons convicted of Yemen bomb plot". BBC News. 9 August 1999. Archived from the original on 17 July 2013.
  28. ^ "Abu Hamza and the Islamic Army: Day by Day: A chronology of events surrounding the "bomb plot" and kidnapping". Albab. 11 March 2000. Archived from the original on 25 May 2000.
  29. ^ "Mohammed Chiadmi, 31, from Maida Vale; his brother Abdul Chiadmi, 22, from Ladbroke Grove; Khalid Jebari, 22, from Pimlico; and Hamza Mrimou, 27, from Feltham admitted fraud, handling stolen goods and money laundering.""Abu Hamza's cat scam sons jailed". BBC News. 28 May 2009. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
  30. ^ Gayle, Damien (20 October 2014). "Hate cleric Abu Hamza's son led kidnap gang who tortured man for three days over £15,000 debt". The Daily Mail. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  31. ^ Rebecca Camber (1 July 2010). "Son of hate preacher Abu Hamza jailed for attacking police at London demonstration". Daily Mail. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  32. ^ Alex Ward (28 August 2012). "Abu Hamza's son Imran Mostafa stole £70,000 jewellery in armed robbery". Daily Mail. Retrieved 1 September 2012.
  33. ^ Harper, Tom (19 March 2013). "Abu Hamza's son Uthman Mustafa Kamel backs al-Qaeda suspect and prays in support of holy war at London mosque". Evening Standard. London.
  34. ^ Mendick, Robert (1 April 2017). "Abu Hamza's son stripped of British passport after waging  jihad in Syria". The Telegraph.
  35. ^ Duell, Mark (7 February 2016). "Abu Hamza's criminal daughter-in-law who cannot be deported because she is a mother 'lives in a taxpayer-funded council house". The Daily Mail.
  36. ^ "Woman fighting deportation is Abu Hamza's daughter-in-law, says MP". The Guardian. 6 February 2016.
  37. ^ "Mosque raid findings revealed". BBC News. 7 February 2006.
  38. ^ Casciani, Dominic; Sakr, Sharif (7 February 2006). "The battle for the mosque". BBC News.
  39. ^ Casciani, Dominic (27 May 2004). "Profile: Abu Hamza al-Masri". BBC. Retrieved 22 March 2009.
  40. ^ Oneill, Sean (13 January 2006). "Abu Hamzas video call to arms". The Times. London.
  41. ^ "The Algerian Question", Algeria: Anger of the Dispossessed, Yale University Press, John Phillips and Martin Evans, 2007, p. 222.
  42. ^ Salafimedia.com "Join the Victorious Party (Part l)".
  43. ^ Thackrah, John Richard (2004). Dictionary of terrorism. Routledge. p. 145. ISBN 978-0-415-29820-9. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  44. ^ "Muslim cleric Hamza de-arrested". BBC News. BBC. 31 August 2004. Retrieved 22 March 2009.
  45. ^ "Cleric faces trial on 16 charges". CNN. 1 August 2006. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  46. ^ a b c "Abu Hamza convicted of eleven charges". Crown Prosecution Service. 2 July 2006.
  47. ^ Vikram Dodd (12 January 2006). "Islamic cleric had terror handbook, court told". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  48. ^ Campbell, Duncan (9 February 2006). "'Preacher of hate' jailed in Britain". The Age. Australia. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  49. ^ a b "BBC apology to Queen over Abu Hamza disclosure". BBC News. 25 September 2012.
  50. ^ "Abu Hamza must pay £1m for trial". BBC. 18 January 2007. Retrieved 22 March 2009.
  51. ^ Whitehead, Tom (24 September 2012). "Abu Hamza could be out of Britain in days after losing extradition appeal". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 25 September 2012.
  52. ^ "Abu Hamza arrested in London on terrorism charges files in the United States". United States Department of Justice. 27 May 2004. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  53. ^ "From community activist to alleged terror conspirator". CNN. 29 August 2002.
  54. ^ "Abu Hamza could face extradition". BBC. 15 November 2007. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  55. ^ Hughes, Simon (20 June 2008). "Abu Hamza will be sent packing to America straight after serving his jail sentence in Britain". The Sun. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  56. ^ Dodd, Vikram (8 July 2010). "Abu Hamza extradition to US blocked by European court". The Guardian. London.
  57. ^ "Abu Hamza extradition to US blocked on human rights grounds". The Daily Telegraph. London. 8 July 2010.
  58. ^ "Yemen seeks Abu Hamza's extradition.(UPI Top Stories)". UPI News. 29 May 2004.
  59. ^ Hue, Sylvia. "UK TO EXTRADITE RADICAL MUSLIM CLERIC TO US". Associated Press. Retrieved 25 September 2012.
  60. ^ Hall, John (10 April 2012). "Court rejects claims that extraditing Abu Hamza to the US would breach his human rights". The Independent. Retrieved 23 February 2013.
  61. ^ "Abu Hamza: High Court judge halts extradition to the US". BBC. 26 September 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
  62. ^ Casciani, Dominic (5 October 2012). "Abu Hamza to be extradited to US". BBC News.
  63. ^ Roth, Richard; Smith, Olivia (9 October 2012). "Radical Islamist Abu Hamza al-Masri pleads not guilty". CNN. Archived from the original on 10 October 2012.
  64. ^ "Abu Hamza due in US court following extradition". BBC News. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012.
  65. ^ Leithead, Alastair (7 October 2012). "Abu Hamza extradition: US court hears terror suspects". BBC News. Archived from the original on 24 March 2013.
  66. ^ "Abu Hamza 'secretly worked for MI5' to 'keep streets of London safe'". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 22 October 2014.
  67. ^ "Abu Hamza: Home Secretary Theresa May hails guilty verdict". BBC News. 20 May 2014. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
  68. ^ Ax, Joseph (19 May 2014). "London imam Abu Hamza convicted of US terrorism charges". Reuters. Archived from the original on 19 May 2014.
  69. ^ Woolf, Nicky (9 January 2015). "Abu Hamza sentenced to life in prison on US terrorism conviction". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 June 2016.
  70. ^ "Pictured: Authorities release image of prosthetic SPORK hook-handed hate cleric Abu Hamza has to use to eat in detention center". The Daily Mail. 9 January 2015.
  71. ^ "Hook-handed hate preacher isn't happy being spork-handed in prison". The New York Post. January 8, 2015.

External links[edit]

Media related to Abu Hamza al-Masri at Wikimedia Commons


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Hypothetical Axis victory in World War II

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Map of Europe detailing a victorious German Reich in 1964 as described in Robert Harris' 1992 novel Fatherland. Although fictional, many of the named regions were real or planned ones for parts of the Nazi lebensraum effort.

A hypothetical Axis victory in World War II has become a common concept of alternative history and counterfactual history. Such writings express ideas of what the world would be like had the Axis powers of Germany, Italy and Japan won World War II. Numerous examples exist in several languages worldwide.[1][2]

The term Pax Germanica, Latin for "German peace", is sometimes used for this theoretical period,[3] by analogy to similar terms for peaceful historical periods. In some cases, this term is used for a hypothetical Imperial German victory in World War I as well, having a historical precedent in Latin texts referring to the Peace of Westphalia.[4]

The subject of Axis supremacy as a fictional dramatic device began in the English-speaking world before the start of World War II, with Katharine Burdekin's novel Swastika Night coming out in 1937. Subsequent popular fictional depictions of an Axis-powers victory include: The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick (1962), SS-GB by Len Deighton (1978), and Fatherland by Robert Harris (1992).

Some have viewed the enduring interest in the "what-ifs" of an Axis-powers victory as the result of the resonance of related themes, for example, how ordinary individuals deal with the humiliation and anger of being dominated.[1][5][6]

Depiction of Axis victory in fiction[edit]

Central themes and motifs[edit]

In terms of tone, the concept of a victory usually creates a background of depressing melancholy, audiences seeing plots unformed in a dark, strained atmosphere. Examples of writers using this device include Philip K. Dick, Stephen Fry, Robert Harris, and Philip Roth among many others.[1]

Early depictions[edit]

Swastika Night, authored by Katherine Burdekin under the pseudonym "Murray Constantine" in 1937, is a unique case given that it came out before World War II began. It is thus a novel of future history rather than an "alternative" one. Writing in 2009 for The Guardian, journalist Darragh McManus remarked that "[t]hough a huge leap of imagination, Swastika Night posits a terrifyingly coherent and plausible" story-line. He also wrote, "And considering when it was published, and how little of what we know of the Nazi regime today was then understood, the novel is eerily prophetic and perceptive about the nature of Nazism". The journalist particularly noted the "violence and mindlessness" as well as the "irrationality and superstition" found in the post-victory dictatorship.[5]

The first Nazi-victory 'alternate history' as such, in any language, was published in 1945 months after Hitler's suicide and written by the Hungarian author Laszlo Gaspar.[1] Titled We, Adolf I (Adolf the First), the novel envisions German success after fighting in Stalingrad eventually leading to the victorious Hitler crowning himself a new modern 'Emperor'. Erecting in Berlin a huge Imperial Palace incorporating elements of the French Eiffel Tower and the U.S. Statue of Liberty among other spectacles, the narcissistic despot prepares a dynastic marriage with a Japanese princess in order to produce an heir who would rule the whole world.

Often known in English by the title The Last Jew, the Hebrew work Ha-Yehudi Ha'Aharon (היהודי האחרון) by the Revisionist Zionist physician and political activist Jacob Weinshall came out in Tel Aviv 1946. In it, hundreds of years in the future, a completely Nazi-dominated world ruled by a "League of Dictators" discovers a last surviving Jew hiding in Madagascar. The Nazi rulers plan to publicly execute this last Jew during the forthcoming Olympic Games. However, before this can take place, the Moon moves close to the Earth as a result of the Nazis' misguided attempt to colonize it. The catastrophe causing the end of human civilization and thus of Nazi rule. Weinshall's Hebrew text, as of 2000, has never received a full, formal translation into other languages.[7] The novel should not be confused with Yoram Kaniuk's novel The Last Jew, which has been translated to English.[8]

The work Peace in Our Time explored a fascist-dominated London and the deleterious effects of occupation on regular people. English playwright Noël Coward, whose name appeared on a Gestapo arrest list in the event of a ground invasion of the UK, authored the drama, and it received its stage debut in 1947. Although facing a muted response at first, lingering interest in Coward's work as well as the specific themes of Peace in Our Time have meant that subsequent productions have gone on, even into the 21st century.[6]

Later depictions[edit]

Additional notable depictions of Axis victory include:

The world under the victorious Axis in the 1962 Philip K. Dick novel The Man in the High Castle.

Counterfactual scenarios are also written as a form of academic paper rather than necessarily as fiction and/or novel-length fiction. For example, Greenhill's Alternate Decisions is an entire series written by military historians, academics, and officers without any pretense at the novelistic suspension-of-disbelief.

The occupied US as depicted in the television series The Man in the High Castle. Though Denver is the capital of the Neutral Zone, Canon City is a major setting.

Video games[edit]

Cultural studies[edit]

Academics, such as Gavriel David Rosenfeld in The World Hitler Never Made: Alternate History and the Memory of Nazism (2005), have begun the research of this subgenre and its various implications as a subject of full-scale academic research.[citation needed]

See also[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d "Alternative History: What Might Have Been Had Hitler Won?". Haaretz.
  2. ^ Fred Bush (July 15, 2002). "The Time of the Other: Alternate History and the Conquest of America". Strange Horizons. Archived from the original on 3 January 2010. Retrieved 2 January 2009.
  3. ^ Carl Tighe: Pax Germanica - the Future Historical. Journal of European Studies, Vol. 30, 2000.
  4. ^ "CAPUT LXVIII. Chronologia." in CAMENA. See for years 1648 et 1649.
  5. ^ a b McManus, Darragh (12 November 2009). "Swastika Night: Nineteen Eighty-Four's lost twin". The Guardian.
  6. ^ a b Hardy, Michael (September 30, 2014). "Review: Peace in Our Time Is a Play For Our Time". Houstonia. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  7. ^ Eli Eshed, "Israeli Alternate Histories" (in Hebrew) published by the Israeli Society for Science Fiction and Fantasy, November 2, 2000 [1]
  8. ^ Kaniuk, Yoram (2007-12-01). The Last Jew: A Novel. Grove/Atlantic, Inc. ISBN 9781555848385.
  9. ^ "World War Two: The Rewrite". The Independent. April 23, 2006. Retrieved 2009-06-26.
  10. ^ Hölbling, Walter; Heller, Arno (2004). What is American?: New Identities in U.S. Culture. LIT Verlag Münster.
  11. ^ "Marvel Knights Captain America Vol. 4: Cap Lives". Marvel Masterworks.

Further reading[edit]

  • Rosenfeld, Gavriel David. The World Hitler Never Made. Alternate History and the Memory of Nazism (2005).
  • Tighe, C., "Pax Germanica in the future-historical" in Amsterdamer Beiträge zur neueren Germanistik, pp. 451–467.
  • Tirghe, Carl. "Pax Germanicus in the future-historical". In Travellers in Time and Space: The German Historical Novel (2001).
  • Winthrop-Young, Geoffrey. "The Third Reich in Alternate History: Aspects of a Genre-Specific Depiction of Nazism". In Journal of Popular Culture, vol. 39 no. 5 (October 2006).

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text:
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

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Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights logo.png
English abbreviation logo.
PurposeHuman Rights monitoring in the Americas
Region served
(ACHR signatories,
OAS members)
Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, The Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, United States of America, Uruguay, Venezuela
Executive Secretary
Brazil Paulo Abrao
Parent organization
Organization of American States

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (the IACHR or, in the three other official languages – Spanish, French, and Portuguese – CIDH, Comisión Interamericana de los Derechos Humanos, Commission Interaméricaine des Droits de l'Homme, Comissão Interamericana de Direitos Humanos) is an autonomous organ of the Organization of American States (OAS).

Along with the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, it is one of the bodies that comprise the inter-American system for the promotion and protection of human rights.

The IACHR is a permanent body, with headquarters in Washington, D.C., United States, and it meets in regular and special sessions several times a year to examine allegations of human rights violations in the hemisphere.

Its human rights duties stem from three documents:

History of the Inter-American human rights system[edit]

The inter-American system for the protection of human rights emerged with the adoption of the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man in April 1948 – the first international human rights instrument of a general nature, predating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by more than six months.

The IACHR was created in 1959. It held its first meeting in 1960, and it conducted its first on-site visit to inspect the human rights situation in the Dominican Republic in 1961.

A major step in the development of the system was taken in 1965 when the Commission was expressly authorized to examine specific cases of human rights violations. Since that date the IACHR has received thousands of petitions and has processed in excess of 12,000 individual cases.

In 1969, the guiding principles behind the American Declaration were taken, reshaped, and restated in the American Convention on Human Rights. The Convention defines the human rights that the states parties are required to respect and guarantee, and it also ordered the establishment of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. It is currently binding on 24 of the OAS's 35 member states.

Functions of the Inter-American Commission[edit]

The main task of the IACHR is to promote the observance and defense of human rights in the Americas.

In pursuit of this mandate it:

  • Receives, analyzes, and investigates individual petitions alleging violations of specific human rights protected by the American Convention on Human Rights.
  • Works to resolve petitions in a collaborative way that is amiable to both parties.
  • Monitors the general human rights situation in the OAS's member states and, when necessary, prepares and publishes country-specific human rights reports.
  • Conducts on-site visits to examine members' general human rights situation or to investigate specific cases.
  • Encourages public awareness about human rights and related issues throughout the hemisphere.
  • Holds conferences, seminars, and meetings with governments, NGOs, academic institutions, etc. to inform and raise awareness about issues relating to the inter-American human rights system.
  • Issues member states with recommendations that, if adopted, would further the cause of human rights protection.
  • Requests that states adopt precautionary measures to prevent serious and irreparable harm to human rights in urgent cases.[1]
  • Refers cases to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and litigates those same cases before the Court.
  • Asks the Inter-American Court to provide advisory opinions on matters relating to the interpretation of the Convention or other related instruments.

Rapporteurships and Units[edit]

The IACHR has created several Rapporteurships, a Special Rapporteurship and a Unit to monitor OAS states' compliance with inter-American human rights treaties in the following areas:

The IACHR also has a Press and Outreach Office.

The Commission processes petitions lodged with it pursuant to its Rules of Procedure.

Petitions may be filed by states, NGOs or individuals. Unlike most court filings, petitions are confidential documents and are not made public. Petitions must meet three requirements; domestic remedies must have already been tried and failed (exhaustion), petitions must be filed within six months of the last action taken in a domestic system (timeliness), petitions can not be before another court (duplication of procedure).

Once a petition has been filed, it follows the following procedure:

  • Petition is forwarded to the Secretariat and reviewed for completeness; if complete, it is registered and is given a case number. This is where the state is notified of the petition.
  • Petition reviewed for admissibility.
  • The Commission tries to find a friendly settlement.
  • If no settlement is found, then briefs are filed by each side on the merits of the case.
  • The Commission then files a report on the merits, known as an Article 50 report from relevant article of the Convention. This is a basically a ruling by the Commission with recommendations on how to solve the conflict. The Article 50 report is sent to the state. This is a confidential report; the petitioner does not get a full copy of this report.
  • The state is given two months to comply with the recommendations of the report.
  • The petitioner then has one month to file a petition asking for the issue to be sent to the Inter-American Court (only applicable if the State in question has recognized the competence of the Inter-American Court).
  • The Commission has three months, from the date the Article 50 report is given to the state, to either publish the Article 50 report or send the case to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Alternatively, the Commission can also choose to monitor the situation. The American Convention establishes that if the report is not submitted to the Court within three months it may not be submitted in the future, but if the State asks for more time in order to comply with the recommendations of the Article 50 report, the Commission might grant it on the condition that the State signs a waiver on this requirement.

Politization and position in debatable matters[edit]

The Commission's performance has not been always welcomed. Among others, Venezuela has criticized its politization. Many others criticize the Commission's stress in some rights instead of some others. These criticisms have given rise to what was called the "Strengthening process of the Commission". This process began in 2011, led by the States belonging to the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas.[2]

Location of its headquarters[edit]

Officers of Ecuador, Argentina, Bolivia, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, supported the motion for moving the Commission's headquarters, which are currently in Washington D.C. These countries suggested moving the IACHR's headquarters to a Member State to the American Convention of Human Rights. Among the suggested countries were Argentina, Costa Rica and Peru.

The IACHR's ranking officers are its seven commissioners. The commissioners are elected by the OAS General Assembly, for four-year terms, with the possibility of re-election on one occasion, for a maximum period in office of eight years. They serve in a personal capacity and are not considered to represent their countries of origin but rather "all the member countries of the Organization" (Art. 35 of the Convention). The Convention (Art. 34) says that they must "be persons of high moral character and recognized competence in the field of human rights". No two nationals of the same member state may be commissioners simultaneously (Art. 37), and commissioners are required to refrain from participating in the discussion of cases involving their home countries.

Current Commissioners[edit]

Name State Position Elected Term
Margarette May Macaulay [es]  Jamaica President 2015 2016–2019
Esmeralda Arosemena de Troitiño  Panama First Vice-President 2015 2016–2019
Luis Ernesto Vargas Silva  Colombia Second Vice-President 2017 2017–2019
Francisco José Eguiguren Praeli  Peru Commissioner 2015 2016–2019
Joel Hernández García  Mexico Commissioner 2017 2017–2021
Antonia Urrejola Noguera  Chile Commissioner 2017 2017–2021
Flávia Piovesan  Brazil Commissioner 2017 2017–2021
Source: IACHR Starts 2018 with New Composition and Distributes Rapporteurships (10 January 2018). See also: IACHR Composition.

Past Commissioners[edit]

José Zalaquett, President 2004
Year State Commissioners President (post-2001)
Chairman (pre-2001)
1960–1963  Venezuela Rómulo Gallegos 1960
1960–1964  El Salvador Reynaldo Galindo Pohl
1960–1968  Ecuador Gonzalo Escudero
1960–1972  Costa Rica Ángela Acuña de Chacón
1960–1972  USA Durwood V. Sandifer
1960–1972  Chile Manuel Bianchi Gundián
1960–1979  Mexico Gabino Fraga
1964–1968  Uruguay Daniel Hugo Martins
1964–1983  Brazil Carlos A. Dunshee de Abranches
1968–1972  Peru Mario Alzamora Valdez
1968–1972  Uruguay Justino Jiménez de Arechega
1972–1976  Argentina Genaro R. Carrió
1972–1976  USA Robert F. Woodward
1972–1985  Venezuela Andrés Aguilar
1976–1979  Guatemala Carlos García Bauer
1976–1979  Costa Rica Fernando Volio Jiménez
1976–1983  USA Tom J. Farer
1976–1978  Colombia José Joaquín Gori
1978–1987  Colombia Marco Gerardo Monroy Cabra
1980–1987  El Salvador Franciso Bertrand Galindo
1980–1985  Mexico César Sepúlveda
1980–1985  Costa Rica Luis Demetrio Tinoco Castro
1984–1988  USA R. Bruce McColm
1984–1987  Bolivia Luis Adolfo Siles Salinas
1984–1991  Brazil Gilda Maciel Correa Russomano
1986–1989  Argentina Elsa Kelly
1986–1993  Venezuela Marco Tulio Bruni-Celli
1986–1993  Barbados Oliver H. Jackman
1988–1991  USA John Reese Stevenson
1988–1995  Honduras Leo Valladares Lanza
1988–1995  Jamaica Patrick Lipton Robinson
1990–1997  Argentina Óscar Luján Fappiano
1992–1995  USA Michael Reisman
1994–1997  Trinidad and Tobago John S. Donaldson 1997
1998–1999  Barbados Sir Henry de Boulay Forde
1992–1999  Colombia Álvaro Tirado Mejía 1995
1996–1999  Venezuela Carlos Ayala Corao 1998
1996–1999  Haiti Jean-Joseph Exumé
1994–2001  Chile Claudio Grossman 1996
1998–2001  Brazil Hélio Bicudo 2000
1999–2001  Barbados Peter Laurie
2002–2002  Peru Diego García Sayán
1996–2003  USA Robert K. Goldman 1999
2000–2003  Guatemala Marta Altolaguirre Larraondo 2003
2000–2003  Argentina Juan E. Méndez 2002
2000–2003  Ecuador Julio Prado Vallejo
2002–2005  Peru Susana Villarán
2001–2005  Chile José Zalaquett 2004
2004–2007  Paraguay Evelio Fernández Arévalos 2006
2004–2007  Venezuela Freddy Gutiérrez
2002–2009  Antigua and Barbuda Sir Clare Kamau Roberts
2004–2009  El Salvador Florentín Meléndez
2006–2009  Argentina Víctor Abramovich
2006–2009  USA Paolo Carozza 2008
2004–2011  Brazil Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro
2008–2011  Venezuela Luz Patricia Mejía 2009
2009–2011  El Salvador María Silvia Guillén
2010–2013  Colombia Rodrigo Escobar Gil
2010–2013  USA Dinah Shelton
2008–2015  Chile Felipe González 2010
2012–2015  Saint Lucia  Trinidad and Tobago Rose-Marie Belle Antoine 2015
2012–2015  Jamaica Tracy Robinson 2014
2012–2015  Paraguay Rosa María Ortiz

Human rights violations investigated by the Inter-American Commission[edit]

  1. ^ "Precautionary Measures". Organization of American States. June 2012. Archived from the original on 20 August 2012. Retrieved 20 August 2012.
  2. ^, and
  3. ^ "Peru; New Defense Minister takes office". Defense Market Intelligence. 25 July 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
  4. ^ Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (Organization of American States) REPORT Nº 98/03* Archived 1 October 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
  5. ^ Malone, Patrick (16 August 2011). "Human rights group questions court ruling". The Pueblo Chieftain.
  6. ^ Michael Haggerson (31 March 2012). "Human rights court agrees to hear Guantanamo detainee case". The Jurist. Archived from the original on 6 April 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2012. The IACHR will investigate whether the US's failure to transfer Ameziane is in compliance with international human rights law.
  7. ^ "Mexico: Expert report on Ayotzinapa disappearances highlights government's incompetence". Amnesty International. 6 September 2015. Retrieved 7 September 2015. A new report by a group of experts from the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights on the investigation of the disappearance of 43 students in Guerrero, Mexico, uncovers the authorities’ utter incompetence and lack of will to find the students and bring those responsible to justice, said Amnesty International.

External links[edit]


text:
Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Metropolitan Cathedral
Catedral Metropolitana de la Asunción de la Santísima Virgen María a los cielos
Catedral de México.jpg
Mexico City Cathedral, with the Metropolitan Tabernacle to the right.
Basic information
LocationMexico City, Mexico
Geographic coordinates19°26′4″N 99°7′59″W / 19.43444°N 99.13306°W / 19.43444; -99.13306Coordinates: 19°26′4″N 99°7′59″W / 19.43444°N 99.13306°W / 19.43444; -99.13306
AffiliationRoman Catholic
Year consecrated2 February 1656[1]
Ecclesiastical or organizational statusCathedral
LeadershipCardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes
WebsiteOfficial website[permanent dead link]
Architectural description
Architect(s)Claudio de Arciniega
Architectural typeChurch
Architectural styleBaroque
Direction of façadeSouth
Length110 m (360 ft)
Width54.5 m (179 ft)
The cathedral as seen from Madero street.
Back section of cathedral facing República de Guatemala street.
Main entrance

The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary into Heavens (Spanish: Catedral Metropolitana de la Asunción de la Santísima Virgen María a los cielos) is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico.[2] It is situated atop the former Aztec sacred precinct near the Templo Mayor on the northern side of the Plaza de la Constitución in Downtown Mexico City. The cathedral was built in sections from 1573 to 1813 around the original church that was constructed soon after the Spanish conquest of Tenochtitlan, eventually replacing it entirely. Spanish architect Claudio de Arciniega planned the construction, drawing inspiration from Gothic cathedrals in Spain.[3]

The cathedral has four façades which contain portals flanked with columns and statues. The two bell towers contain a total of 25 bells. The tabernacle, adjacent to the cathedral, contains the baptistery and serves to register the parishioners. There are two large, ornate altars, a sacristy, and a choir in the cathedral. Fourteen of the cathedral's sixteen chapels are open to the public. Each chapel is dedicated to a different saint or saints, and each was sponsored by a religious guild. The chapels contain ornate altars, altarpieces, retablos, paintings, furniture and sculptures. The cathedral is home to two of the largest 18th-century organs in the Americas. There is a crypt underneath the cathedral that holds the remains of many former archbishops.

Over the centuries, the cathedral has suffered damage. A fire in 1967 destroyed a significant part of the cathedral's interior. The restoration work that followed uncovered a number of important documents and artwork that had previously been hidden. Although a solid foundation was built for the cathedral,[4] the soft clay soil it is built on has been a threat to its structural integrity. Dropping water tables and accelerated sinking caused the structure to be added to the World Monuments Fund list of the 100 Most Endangered Sites. Reconstruction work beginning in the 1990s stabilized the cathedral and it was removed from the endangered list in 2000.[5]

After the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, the conquistadors decided to build their church on the site of the Templo Mayor of the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan to consolidate Spanish power over the newly conquered domain. Hernán Cortés and the other conquistadors used the stones from the destroyed temple of the Aztec god of war Huitzilopochtli, principal deity of the Aztecs, to build the church.[5][6] Cortés ordered the original church's construction after he returned from exploring what is now Honduras. Architect Martín de Sepúlveda was the first director of this project from 1524 to 1532. Juan de Zumárraga, the first Bishop of the first See of the New World, established in the Viceroyalty of New Spain, promoted this church's completion. Zumárraga's Cathedral was located in the northeast portion of what is now the cathedral. It had three naves separated by three Tuscan columns. The central roof was ridged with intricate carvings done by Juan Salcedo Espinosa and gilded by Francisco de Zumaya and Andrés de la Concha. The main door was probably of Renaissance style. The choir area had 48 seats made of ayacahuite wood crafted by Adrian Suster and Juan Montaño. However, this church was soon considered inadequate for the growing importance of the capital of New Spain.

In 1544, ecclesiastical authorities in Valladolid ordered the creation of new and more sumptuous cathedral. In 1552, an agreement was reached whereby the cost of the new cathedral would be shared by the Spanish crown, encomenderos and the native inhabitants under the direct authority of the archbishop of New Spain.[4] The cathedral was begun by being built around the existing church in 1573. When enough of the cathedral was built to house basic functions, the original church was demolished to enable construction to continue.[5]

Interior of Mexico City Cathedral

The cathedral was constructed over a period of over two centuries, between 1573 and 1813. Its design is a mixture of three architectural styles that predominated during the colonial period, Renaissance, Baroque and Neo-classic.[6]

Initial plans for the new cathedral were drawn up and work on the foundation began in 1562. The decision to have the cathedral face south instead of east was made in 1570.[4] In the same year, construction commenced, working from the Gothic designs and models created by Claudio de Arciniega and Juan Miguel de Agüero, inspired by cathedrals found in Spanish cities such as Valladolid and Jaén.[3]

Because of the muddy subsoil of the site, work on the foundation continued past the work on the walls to 1581. In 1585, work on the first of the cathedral's chapels began and by 1615, the cathedral's walls reached to about half of their final height.[4] Construction of the interior of the current cathedral began in 1623[7] and what is now the vestry was where Mass was conducted after the first church was finally torn down.[8]

In 1629, work was interrupted by flooding,[4] over two metres in depth. Parts of the city were damaged, especially around the main plaza or Zocalo.[9] Because of such damage, this site was almost abandoned and a new cathedral project was begun in the hills of the Tacubaya area to the west.[4]

Despite these problems, the project continued in its current location, and under the direction of Luis Gómez de Transmonte, the interior was finished and consecrated in 1667.[7] The cathedral still lacked bell towers, the complete front facade, and many of the other features it has now at the beginning of the 18th century.[4]

In 1787, José Damian Ortiz de Castro was in charge of finishing work on the cathedral. He did most of the work on the bell towers, putting in most of the fretwork and capping them with roofs in the shape of bells. With his death in 1793, he did not live to see the cathedral completed, and Manuel Tolsá finished the cathedral by adding the cupola, the central front facade, the balustrades, and the statues of Faith, Hope and Charity at the top of the front facade. Tolsa's work was the last major construction to the cathedral and the appearance it had when he finished is the basic look the cathedral has today.[4]

The cathedral faces south and is approximately 54.5 metres (179 ft) wide and 110 metres (360 ft) long. It consists of two bell towers, a central dome, three main portals, five naves, 51 vaults, 74 arches and 40 columns. Inside the cathedral are five large altars, sixteen chapels, a choir area, a corridor, capitulary room, and sacristy. The cathedral has approximately 150 windows.[6]

Facades and portals[edit]

Main portal with view of clock

The main facade of the cathedral faces south. The main portal is centered in the main facade and is the highest of the cathedral's three portals. Statues of Saint Peter and Paul the Apostle stand between the columns of the portal, while Saint Andrew and James the Just are depicted on the secondary doorway. In the center of this doorway is a high relief of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, to whom the cathedral is dedicated.[6] This image is flanked by images of Saint Matthew and Saint Andrew. The coat of arms of Mexico is above the doorway, with the eagle's wings outstretched. There is a clock tower at the very top of the portal with statues representing Faith, Hope and Charity, which was created by sculptor Manuel Tolsá.[4]

The west facade was constructed in 1688 and rebuilt in 1804. It has a three-section portal with images of the Four Evangelists.[4] The west portal has high reliefs depicting Jesus handing the Keys of Heavens to Saint Peter.

The east facade is similar to the west facade. The reliefs on the east portal show a ship carrying the four apostles, with Saint Peter at the helm.[6] The title of this relief is The ship of the Church sailing the seas of Eternity.[4]

The northern facade, built during the 16th century in the Renaissance Herrera style, is oldest part of the cathedral and was named after Juan de Herrera, architect of the El Escorial monastery in Spain.[6] While the eastern and western facades are older than most of the rest of the building, their third level has Solomonic columns which are associated with the Baroque period.

All the high reliefs of the portals of the cathedral were inspired by the work of Flemish painter Peter Paul Rubens.[6]

Bell towers[edit]

The west bell tower

The bell towers are the work of Xalapan artist José Damián Ortiz de Castro. They are capped with bell-shaped roofs made of tezontle covered in chiluca, a white stone. Ortiz de Castro was in charge of the cathedral's construction in the latter half of the 18th century until he died, unexpectedly. Manuel Tolsá of Valencia, who had built other notable buildings in Mexico City, was hired to finish the cathedral. At this point, the cathedral had already been 240 years in the making. He added the neo-Classic structure housing the clock, the statues of the three theological virtues (Faith, Hope, and Charity), the high balustrade surrounding the building, and the dome that rises over the transept.

The cathedral has 25 bells—eighteen hang in the east bell tower and seven in the west tower. The largest bell is named the Santa Maria de Guadalupe and weighs around 13,000 kilograms (29,000 lb). Other major bells are named the Doña Maria, which weighs 6,900 kilograms (15,200 lb), and La Ronca ("the hoarse one"), named so because of its harsh tone. Doña Maria and La Ronca were placed in 1653 while the largest bell was placed later in 1793.[6]

The statues in the west tower are the work of José Zacarías Cora and represent Pope Gregory VII, Saint Augustine, Leander of Seville, St. Fulgentius of Écija, St.Francis Xavier, and Saint Barbara. The statues in the east tower are by Santiago Cristóbal Sandoval and depict Emilio, Rose of Lima, Mary (mother of Jesus), Ambrogio, Jerome, Philip of Jesus, Hippolytus of Rome, and Isidore the Laborer.[4]

In 1947, a novice bell ringer died in an accident when he tried to move one of the bells while standing under it. The bell swung back and hit him in the head, killing him instantly. The bell was then "punished" by removing the clapper. In the following years, the bell was known as la castigada ("the punished one"), or la muda ("the mute one"). In 2000, the clapper was reinstalled in the bell.[10]

In October 2007, a time capsule was found inside the stone ball base of a cross, in the southern bell tower of the cathedral. It was placed in 1742, supposedly to protect the building from harm. The lead box was filled with religious artifacts, coins and parchments and hidden in a hollow stone ball. The ball was marked with the date of 14 May 1791, when the building's topmost stone was laid. A new time capsule will be placed in the stone ball when it is closed again.[11]

Tabernacle's southern façade, opening out towards the Zócalo.

Situated to the right of the main cathedral, the Metropolitan Tabernacle (Spanish: Sagrario Metropolitano) was built by Lorenzo Rodríguez during the height of the Baroque period between 1749 and 1760,[6] to house the archives and vestments of the archbishop.[12] It also functioned and continues to function as a place to receive Eucharist and register parishioners.[13]

The first church built on the cathedral site also had a tabernacle, but its exact location is unknown. During the construction of the cathedral, the tabernacle was housed in what are now the Chapels of San Isidro and Our Lady of Agony of Granada. However, in the 18th century, it was decided to build a structure that was separate, but still connected, to the main cathedral.[13] It is constructed of tezontle (a reddish porous volcanic rock) and white stone in the shape of a Greek cross with its southern facade faces the Zócalo. It is connected to the main cathedral via the Chapel of San Isidro.[4][6]

Tabernacle's main altar

The interiors of each wing have separate uses. In the west wing is the baptistry, in the north is the main altar, the main entrance and a notary area, separated by inside corner walls made of chiluca stone and tezontle. Chiluca, a white stone, covers the walls and floors and the tezontle frames the doors and windows. At the crossing of the structure is an octagonal dome framed by arches that form curved triangles where they meet at the top of the dome.[13] The principal altar is in the ornate Churrigueresque style and crafted by indigenous artist Pedro Patiño Ixtolinque. It was inaugurated in 1829.[4]

The exterior of the Baroque styled tabernacle is almost entirely adorned with decorations, such as curiously shaped niche shelves, floating drapes and many cherubs. Carvings of fruits such as grapes and pomegranates have been created to in the shape of ritual offerings, symbolizing the Blood of Christ and the Church. Among the floral elements, roses, daisies, and various types of four-petalled flowers can be found, including the indigenous chalchihuite.[6]

The tabernacle has two main outside entrances; one to the south, facing the Zócalo and the other facing east toward Seminario Street. The southern façade is more richly decorated than the east façade. It has a theme of glorifying the Eucharist with images of the Apostles, Church Fathers, saints who founded religious orders, martyrs as well as scenes from the Bible. Zoomorphic reliefs can be found along with the anthropologic reliefs, including a rampaging lion, and the eagle from the coat of arms of Mexico. The east facade is less ambitious, but contains figures from the Old Testament as well as the images of John Nepomucene and Ignacio de Loyola. Construction dates for the phases of the tabernacle are also inscribed here.[13]

Sketch of the Cathedral

High Altar[edit]

This disappeared in the forties of the twentieth century. On the occasion of the Jubilee of the year 2000, a new altar table was made to replace the previous one. This was built in modernist style by the architect Ernesto Gómez Gallardo.

Altar of Forgiveness[edit]

The Altar of Forgiveness

The Altar of Forgiveness (Spanish: Altar del perdón)is located at the front of the central nave. It is the first aspect of the interior that is seen upon entering the cathedral. It was the work of Spanish architect Jerónimo Balbás, and represents the first use of the estípite column (an inverted triangle-shaped pilaster) in the Americas.[6]

There are two stories about how the name of this altar came about. The first states that those condemned by the Spanish Inquisition were brought to the altar to ask for forgiveness in the next world before their execution. The second relates to painter Simon Pereyns, who despite being the author of many of the works of the cathedral, was accused of blasphemy. According to the story, while Pereyns was in jail, he painted such a beautiful image of the Virgin Mary that his crime was forgiven.[14]

This altar was damaged by fire in January 1967 but has been completely restored.[6]

Altar of the Kings[edit]

Altar of the Kings

The Altar of the Kings (Spanish: Altar de los Reyes) was also the work of Jerónimo Balbás, in Mexican Baroque or Churrigueresque style.[6] It was begun in 1718 by Balbás[12] in cedar, and was gilded and finished by Francico Martínez, debuting in 1737.[4] It is located at the back of the Cathedral, beyond the Altar of Forgiveness and the choir. This altar is 13.75 metres (45.1 ft) wide, 25 metres (82 ft) tall and 7.5 metres (25 ft) deep. Its size and depth gave rise to the nickname la cueva dorada ("the golden cave").

It takes its name from the statues of saintly royalty which form part of its decoration,[6] and is the oldest work in churrigueresque style in Mexico, taking 19 years to complete. At the bottom, from left to right, are six female royal saints: Saint Margaret of Scotland, Helena of Constantinople, Elisabeth of Hungary, Elizabeth of Aragon, Empress Cunegunda and Edith of Wilton. In the middle of the altar are six canonized kings, four of whom are: Hermenegild a Visigoth martyr, Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor, Edward the Confessor and Casimir of Poland. Above these four are Saints Louis of France and Ferdinand III of Castile. In between these kings an oil painting of the Adoration of the Magi by Juan Rodriguez Juarez shows Jesus as the King of kings. The top portion features a painting of the Assumption of Mary as celestial queen flanked by oval bas reliefs, one of Saint Joseph carrying the infant Jesus and the other of Saint Teresa of Ávila with a quill in her hand and the Holy Spirit above her, inspiring her to write. Above this are figures of Jesus and Mary among sculptures of angels crowned with an image of God, the Father.[14]

This altar has been under restoration since 2003.[8]

Interior view of the sacristy
Dome of the Sacristy
Interior view of the access door

The Herrera door opens into the sacristy, the oldest part of the cathedral. It is a mixture of Renaissance and Gothic styles.

The walls hold large canvases painted by Cristóbal de Villalpando, such as The Apotheosis of Saint Michael, The Triumph of the Eucharist, The Church Militant and the Church Triumphant, and The Virgin of the Apocalypse.[6] The Virgin of the Apocalypse depicts the vision of John of Patmos.[15] Two other canvases, Entering Jerusalem and The Assumption of the Virgin, painted by Juan Correa, are also here.[6] An additional painting, attributed to Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, hangs in the Sacristy.

On the north wall, there is a niche that holds a statue of the crucifix with a Christ image sculpted in ivory. Behind this, is another mural that depicts the Juan Diego's of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The Sacristy used to house Juan Diego's cloak, upon which the Virgin's image purportedly appears, but after massive flooding in 1629, it was removed from the Sacristy to better protect it.[15]

A cabinet on the west wall of the Sacristy, under the Virgin of the Apocalypse painting, once held golden chalices and cups trimmed with precious stones, as well as other utensils.[citation needed]

In 1957, The wooden floor and platform around the perimeter of the Sacristy were replaced with stone.[citation needed]

Chapel of Our Lady of the Agonies of Granada.

The cathedral's sixteen chapels were each assigned to a religious guild, and each is dedicated to a saint. Each of the two side naves contain seven chapels. The other two were created later on the eastern and western sides of the cathedral. These last two are not open to the public.[6] The fourteen chapels in the east and west naves are listed below. The first seven are in the east nave, listed from north to south, and the last seven are in the west nave.

Chapel of Our Lady of the Agonies of Granada[edit]

The Chapel of Our Lady of the Agonies of Granada (Spanish: Capilla de Nuestra Señora de las Angustias de Granada) was built in the first half of the 17th century, and originally served as the sacristy. It is a medieval-style chapel with a ribbed vault and two relatively simple altarpieces. The narrow altarpiece contains an oval painting of Saint Raphael, Archangel and the young Tobias, a 16th century painting attributed to Flemish painter Maerten de Vos. At the top of this altarpiece is a painting of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, and above this is a painting of the Last Supper. At the back of the chapel is a churrigueresque painting of Our Lady of the Agonies of Granada.

Chapel of Saint Isidore[edit]

The Chapel of Saint Isidore (Spanish: Capilla de San Isidro) was originally built as an annex between 1624 and 1627, and was once used as the baptistery. Its vault contains plaster casts representing Faith, Hope, Charity, and Justice, considered to be basic values in the Catholic religion. After the Tabernacle was built, it was converted into a chapel and its door was reworked in a churrigueresque style.

Chapel of the Immaculate Conception[edit]

Chapel of the Immaculate Conception

The Chapel of the Immaculate Conception (Spanish: Capilla de la Inmaculada Concepción) was built between 1642 and 1648. It has a churrigueresque altarpiece which, due to the lack of columns, most likely dates from the 18th century. The altar is framed with molding—instead of columns—and a painting of the Immaculate Conception presides over it. The altar is surrounded by paintings by José de Ibarra relating to the Passion of Christ and various saints. The chapel also contains a canvas of Saint Christopher painted by Simon Pereyns in 1588, and the Flagellation by Baltasar de Echave Orio, painted in 1618. The altarpiece on the right side[16] is also dedicated to the Immaculate Conception and was donated by the College of Saints Peter and Paul. This chapel holds the remains of Franciscan friar Antonio Margil de Jesús who was evangelized in what is now the north of Mexico.

Chapel of Our Lady of Guadalupe[edit]

The Chapel of Our Lady of Guadalupe (Spanish: Capilla de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe) was built in 1660. It was the first baptistery of the cathedral and for a long time was the site for the Brotherhood of the Most Holy Sacrament, which had many powerful benefactors. It is decorated in a 19th century neo-classic style by the architect Antonio Gonzalez Vazquez, director of the Academy of San Carlos. The main altarpiece is dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe and the sides altars are dedicated to John the Baptist and San Luis Gonzaga respectively.

Chapel of Our Lady of Antigua[edit]

Our Lady of Antigua

The Chapel of Our Lady of Antigua (Spanish: Capilla de Nuestra Señora de La Antigua) was sponsored and built between 1653 and 1660 by a brotherhood of musicians and organists, which promoted devotion to this Virgin. Its altarpiece contains a painting of the Virgin, a copy of one found in the Cathedral of Seville. This copy was brought to New Spain by a merchant. Two other paintings show the birth of the Virgin and her presentation. Both were painted by Nicolás Rodriguez Juárez.

Chapel of Saint Peter[edit]

The Chapel of Saint Peter (Spanish: Capilla de San Pedro) was built between 1615 and 1620, and contains three highly decorated Baroque altarpieces from the 17th century. The altar at the back is dedicated to Saint Peter, whose sculpture presides over the altar. It is surrounded by early 17th century paintings relating to his life, painted by Baltasar de Echave Orio. To the right is an altarpiece dedicated to the Holy Family, with two paintings by Juan de Aguilera of Florence called The Holy Family in the workshop of Saint Joseph and Birth of the Savior. The altarpiece to the left of the main altarpiece is dedicated to Saint Theresa of Jesus whose image also appears in the chapel's window. It includes four paintings on sheets of metal that depict scenes from the birth of Jesus. Five oil paintings illustrate scenes from the life of Saint Theresa, and above this is a semi-circular painting of the coronation of Mary. All these works were created in the 17th century by Baltasar de Echave y Rioja.[14]

This chapel is home to the Niño Cautivo (Captive Child) a Child Jesus figure that was brought to Mexico from Spain. It was sculpted in the 16th century by Juan Martínez Montañez in Spain and purchased by the cathedral. However, on its way to Veracruz, pirates attacked the ship it was on and sacked it. To get the image back, a large ransom was paid. Today, the image is in the Chapel of San Pedro or De las Reliquias.[17] Traditionally, the image has been petitioned by those seeking release from restrictions or traps, especially financial problems or drug addiction or alcoholism.[18] The cult to the Niño Cautivo is considered to be "inactive" by INAH.[19] However, this particular image has made a comeback since 2000 as one to petition when a family member is abducted and held for ransom.[18]

Chapel of Christ and of the Reliquaries[edit]

Chapel of Christ of the Reliquaries

The Chapel of Christ and of the Reliquaries (Spanish: Capilla del Santo Cristo y de las Reliquias) was built in 1615 and designed with ultra-Baroque details which are often difficult to see in the poorly lit interior.[6] It was originally known as the Christ of the Conquistadors. That name came from an image of Christ that was supposedly donated to the cathedral by Emperor Charles V. Over time, so many reliquaries were left on its main altar that its name was eventually changed. Of 17th century ornamentation, the main altarpiece alternates between carvings of rich foliage and small heads on its columns in the main portion and small sculptures of angels on its telamons in the secondary portion. Its niches hold sculptures of saints framing the main body. Its crucifix is from the 17th century. The predella is finished with sculptures of angels, and also contains small 17th paintings of martyred saints by Juan de Herrera. Behind these paintings, hidden compartments contain some of the numerous reliquaries left here. Its main painting was done by Jose de Ibarra and dated 1737. Surrounding the altar is a series of paintings on canvas, depicting the Passion of Christ by Jose Villegas, painted in the 17th century. On the right-hand wall, an altar dedicated to the Virgin of the Confidence is decorated with numerous churrigueresque figurines tucked away in niches, columns and top pieces.[14]

Chapel of the Holy Angels and Archangels[edit]

The Chapel of the Holy Angels and Archangels (Spanish: Capilla de los Ángeles) was finished in 1665 with Baroque altarpieces decorated with Solomonic columns. It is dedicated to the Archangel Michael, who is depicted as a medieval knight.[6] It contains a large main altarpiece with two smaller altarpieces both decorated by Juan Correa.[12] The main altarpiece is dedicated to the seven archangels, who are represented by sculptures, in niches surrounding images of Saint Joseph, Mary and Christ. Above this scene are the Holy Spirit and God the Father. The left-hand altarpiece is of similar design and is dedicated to the Guardian Angel, whose sculpture is surrounded with pictures arranged to show the angelic hierarchy. To the left of this, a scene shows Saint Peter being released from prison, and to the right, Saul, later Saint Paul, being knocked from his horse, painted by Juan Correa in 1714. The right-hand altarpiece is dedicated to the Guardian Angel of Mexico.[14]

Chapel of Saints Cosme and Damian[edit]

The Chapel of Saints Cosme and Damian (Spanish: Capilla de San Cosme y San Damián) was built because these two saints were commonly invoked during a time when New Spain suffered from the many diseases brought by the Conquistadors. The main altarpiece is Baroque, probably built in the 17th century. Oil paintings on wood contain scenes from physician saints, and are attributed to painter Sebastian Lopez Davalos, during the second half of the 17th century. The chapel contains one small altarpiece which came from the Franciscan church in Zinacantepec, to the west of Mexico City, and is dedicated to the birth of Jesus.[14]

Chapel of Saint Joseph[edit]

Lord of the cacao beans

The Chapel of Saint Joseph (Spanish: Capilla de San José), built between 1653 and 1660, contains an image of Our Lord of Cacao, an image of Christ most likely from the 16th century. Its name was inspired from a time when many indigenous worshipers would give their alms in the form of cocoa beans. Churrigueresque in style and containing an graffito statue of Saint Joseph, patron saint of New Spain,[6] the main altarpiece is Baroque and is from the 18th century. This once belonged to the Church of Our Lady of Monserrat. This altar contains statues and cubicles containing busts of the Apostles, but contains no paintings.[14]

Chapel of Our Lady of Solitude[edit]

The Chapel of Our Lady of Solitude (Spanish: Capilla de Nuestra Señora de la Soledad) was originally built in honor of the workers who built the cathedral. It contains three Baroque altarpieces. The main altarpiece is supported by caryatids and small angels as telamons, to uphold the base of the main body. It is dedicated to the Virgin of Solitude of Oaxaca, whose image appears in the center. The surrounding 16th century paintings are by Pedro Ramírez, and depict scenes from the life of Christ.[14]

Chapel of Saint Eligius[edit]

The Chapel of Saint Eligius (Spanish: Capilla de San Eligio), also known as the Chapel of the Lord of Safe Expeditions (Spanish: Capilla del Señor del Buen Despacho), was built by the first silversmith guild, who donated the images of the Conception and Saint Eligius to whom the chapel was formerly dedicated. The chapel was redecorated in the 19th century, and the image of Our Lord of Good Sending was placed here, named thus, since many supplicants reported having their prayers answered quickly. The image is thought to be from the 16th century and sent as a gift from Charles V of Spain.[14]

Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows[edit]

Image of Our Lady of Solitude

The Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows (Spanish: Capilla de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores), formerly known as the Chapel of the Lord's Supper (Spanish: Capilla de la Santa Cena), was built in 1615. It was originally dedicated to the Last Supper since a painting of this event was once kept here. It was later remodeled in a Neo-classical style, with three altarpieces added by Antonio Gonzalez Velazquez. The main altarpiece contains an image of the Virgin of Sorrows sculpted in wood and painted by Francisco Terrazas, at the request of Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico. On the left-hand wall a ladder leads to a series of crypts which hold most of the remains of past archbishops of Mexico. The largest and grandest of these crypts contains the remains of Juan de Zumarraga, the first archbishop of Mexico.[14]

Chapel of the Lord of Good dispatch[edit]

Señor del buen despacho.JPG

The Chapel of the Lord of good dispatch(Spanish: Capilla del Señor del Buen Despacho) was premiered on December 8, 1648 and was dedicated to the silversmiths' guild, who placed two images of solid silver, one of the most pure conception and another of San Eligio or Eloy.

The decoration of the entire chapel is neoclassical style belongs to the first half of the nineteenth century.

Chapel of Saint Philip of Jesus[edit]

Exhibition of the skeleton of Emperor and General Agustín de Iturbide in the Metropolitan Cathedral in Mexico City, on the occasion of the celebrations of the bicentennial of the beginning of the War of Independence from Mexico. Picture taken after the liturgical celebration held in his honor on September 27, 2010

The Chapel of Saint Philip of Jesus (Spanish: Capilla de San Felipe de Jesús) was completed during one of the earliest stages of the construction of the cathedral. It is dedicated to Philip of Jesus, a friar and the only martyr from New Spain, who was crucified in Japan. The chapel is topped with a Gothic-style dome and has a Baroque altarpiece from the 17th century. A statue of the saint is located in a large niche in the altarpiece. The altar to the left is dedicated to Saint Rose of Lima, considered a protector of Mexico City. To the right is an urn which holds the remains of Agustín de Iturbide, who briefly ruled Mexico from 1822 to 1823.[6][14] Next to this chapel is a baptismal font, in which it is believed Philip of Jesus was baptised.[14]The heart of Anastasio Bustamante is preserved here. In this chapel is a sculpture alluding to the first Mexican saint: San Felipe de Jesús. This work, as seen by many art critics, is the best elaborated, carved and polychrome sculptured sculpture from Latin America.

View of an organ case from outside the choir area.

The cathedral has had perhaps a dozen organs over the course of its history.[20] The earliest is mentioned in a report written to the king of Spain in 1530. Few details survive of the earliest organs. Builders names begin to appear at the end of the sixteenth century. The earliest disposition that survives is for the Diego de Sebaldos organ built in 1655.[21] The first large organ for Mexico City Cathedral was built in Madrid from 1689 to 1690 by Jorge de Sesma and installed by Tiburcio Sanz from 1693 to 1695.[22] It now has two, which were made in Mexico by José Nassarre of Spain, and completed by 1736, incorporating elements of the 17th century organ. They are the largest 18th century organs in the Americas; they are situated above the walls of the choir, on the epistle side (east) and the gospel side (west).[23] Both organs, damaged by fire in 1967, were restored in 1978. Because both organs had fallen into disrepair again, the gospel organ was re-restored from 2008-2009 by Gerhard Grenzing; the restoration of the epistle organ, also by Grenzing, was completed in 2014, and both organs are now playable.[24]

The choir is where the priest and/or a choral group sings the psalms. It is located in the central nave between the main door and the high altar, and built in a semicircular fashion, much like Spanish cathedrals. It was built by Juan de Rojas between 1696 and 1697.[25] Its sides contain 59 reliefs of various saints done in mahogany, walnut, cedar and a native wood called tepehuaje. The railing that surrounds the choir was made in 1722 by Sangley Queaulo in Macao, China and placed in the cathedral in 1730.[15]

The crypt

The Crypt of the Archbishops is located below the floor of the cathedral beneath the Altar of the Kings. The entrance to the crypt from the cathedral is guarded by a large wooden door behind which descends a winding yellow staircase. Just past the inner entrance is a Mexica-style stone skull. It was incorporated as an offering into the base of a cenotaph to Juan de Zumárraga, the first archbishop of Mexico. Zumárraga was considered to be a benefactor of the Indians, protecting them against the abuses of their Spanish overlords. There is also a natural-sized sculpture of the archbishop atop the cenotaph.

On its walls are dozens of bronze plaques that indicate the locations of the remains of most of Mexico City's former archbishops, including Cardinal Ernesto Corripio y Ahumada. The floor is covered with small marble slabs covering niches containing the remains of other people.[26]

The cathedral contains other crypts and niches where other religious figures are buried, including in the chapels.

The sinking ground and seismic activity of the area have had an effect on the cathedral's construction and current appearance. Forty-two years were required simply to lay its foundation when it was first built, because even then the Spaniards recognized the danger of constructing such a huge monument in soft soil.[6] However, for political reasons, much, but not all, of the cathedral was built over the remains of pre-Hispanic structures, leading to uneven foundation from the beginning.[27]

Fire of 1967[edit]

On 17 January 1967 at 9 pm, a fire caused by an electrical short circuit caused extensive damage to the cathedral. On the Altar of Forgiveness, much of the structure and decoration were damaged including the loss of three paintings; The Holy Face by Alonso López de Herrera, The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian by Francisco de Zumaya and The Virgin of Forgiveness by Simon Pereyns. The choir section lost 75 of its 99 seats as well a painting by Juan Correa along with many stored books. The two cathedral organs were severely damaged with the partial melting of their pipes. Paintings by Rafael Jimeno y Planas, Juan Correa and Juan Rodriguez Juarez were damaged in other parts of the cathedral. After the fire, authorities recorded the damage but did nothing to try to restore what was damaged. Heated discussions ensued among historians, architects and investigations centering on the moving of the Altar of Forgiveness, as well as eliminating the choir area and some of the railings. In 1972, ecclesiastical authorities initiated demolition of the choir area without authorization from the Federal government, but were stopped. The government inventoried what could be saved and named Jaime Ortiz Lajous as director of the project to restore the cathedral to its original condition. Restoration work focused not only on repairing the damage (using archived records and photographs), but also included work on a deteriorating foundation (due to uneven sinking into the ground) and problems with the towers.

The Altars of Forgiveness and of the Kings were subject to extensive cleaning and restorative work. To replace the lost portions on the Altar of Forgiveness, several paintings were added; Escape from Egypt by Pereyns, The Divine Countenance and The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian. The organs were dismantled with the pipes and inner workings sent to the Netherlands for repair, while the cases were restored by Mexican craftsmen with work lasting until 1977. Reconstruction of the choir area began in 1979 using the same materials as existed before the fire. In addition, any statues in the towers that received more than 50% damage from city pollution were taken out, with replicas created to replace them. Those with less damage were repaired.

Some interesting discoveries were made as restoration work occurred during the 1970s and early 1980s. 51 paintings were found and rescued from behind the Altar of Forgiveness, including works by Juan and Nicolas Rodriguez Juarez, Miguel Cabrera and José de Ibarra. Inside one of the organs, a copy of the nomination of Hernán Cortés as Governor General of New Spain (1529) was found. Lastly, in the wall of the central arch of the cathedral was found the burial place of Miguel Barrigan, the first governor of Veracruz.[4]

Late 20th-century work[edit]

Bases and other artifacts from the foundation excavation on display in front of the Cathedral

The cathedral, along with the rest of the city, has been sinking into the lakebed from the day it was built. However, the fact that the city is a megalopolis with over 18 million people drawing water from underground sources has caused water tables to drop, and the sinking to accelerate during the latter half of the 20th century.[28] Sections of the complex such as the cathedral and the tabernacle were still sinking at different rates,[29] and the bell towers were tilting dangerously despite work done in the 1970s.[5][27] For this reason, the cathedral was included in the 1998 World Monuments Watch by the World Monuments Fund.

Major restoration and foundation work began in the 1990s to stabilize the building.[27] Engineers excavated under the cathedral between 1993 and 1998.[29] They dug shafts under the cathedral and placed shafts of concrete into the soft ground to give the edifice a more solid base to rest on.[28] These efforts have not stopped the sinking of the complex, but they have corrected the tilting towers and ensured that the cathedral will sink uniformly.[27]

Cultural value[edit]

The cathedral has been a focus of Mexican cultural identity, and is a testament to its colonial history.[7] Researcher Manuel Rivera Cambas reported that the cathedral was built on the site sacred precinct of the Aztecs and with the very stones of their temples so that the Spaniards could lay claim to the land and the people.[6] Hernán Cortés supposedly laid the first stone of the original church personally.[7]

It once was an important religious center, used exclusively by the prominent families of New Spain. In 1864, during the Second Mexican Empire, Emperor Maximilian of Habsburg and Empress Charlotte of Belgium (later known as Maximiliano and Carlota of Mexico) were crowned at the cathedral after the magnificent arrival to the head city of their reign.

Located on the Zocalo it has, over time, been the focus of social and cultural activities, most of which have occurred in the 20th and 21st centuries. The cathedral was closed for four years while President Plutarco Elías Calles attempted to enforce Mexico's anti-religious laws. Pope Pius XI closed the church, ordering priests to cease their public religious duties in all Mexican churches. After the Mexican government and the papacy came to terms and major renovations were performed on the cathedral, it reopened in 1930.[30]

The cathedral has been the scene of several protests both from the church and to the church, including a protest by women over the Church's exhortation for women not to wear mini-skirts and other provocative clothing to avoid rape,[31] and a candlelight vigil to protest against kidnappings in Mexico.[32] The cathedral itself has been used to protest against social issues. Its bells rang to express the archdiocese's opposition to the Supreme Court upholding of Mexico City's legalization of abortion.[33]

Probably the most serious recent event occurred on 18 November 2007, when sympathizers of the Party of the Democratic Revolution attacked the cathedral.[34] About 150 protesters stormed into Sunday Mass chanting slogans and knocking over pews. This caused church officials to close and lock the cathedral for a number of days.[35] The cathedral reopened with new security measures, such as bag searches, in place.[34]

See also[edit]

  1. ^ "Dedications of the Cathedral of Mexico" (in Spanish). Archdiocese of Mexico. 2011. Archived from the original on 2012-03-11. Retrieved 2014-09-17.
  2. ^ "View of Guadalupe". PEERLESS. Archived from the original on 2012-04-28. Retrieved 2012-05-22.
  3. ^ a b "Catedral metropolitana de México". MSN. Archived from the original on 2009-10-31. Retrieved 2008-09-18.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Alvarez, Jose Rogelio (2000). "Catedral de Mexico". Enciclopedia de Mexico. 3. Mexico City: Encyclopædia Britannica. ISBN 1-56409-034-5.
  5. ^ a b c d "Metropolitan Cathedral Mexico City". Sacred Destinations. Retrieved 2008-09-18.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x Galind, Carmen; Magdelena Galindo (2002). Mexico City Historic Center. Mexico City: Ediciones Nueva Guia. pp. 41–49. ISBN 968-5437-29-7.
  7. ^ a b c d "Cathedral Metropolitan". Retrieved 2008-09-18.
  8. ^ a b "Metropolitan Cathedral of Mexico City –History". Archived from the original on March 13, 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-18.
  9. ^ Enciclopedia de Mexico. 16. Mexico City: Encyclopædia Britannica. 2000. pp. 8273–8280. ISBN 1564090345.
  10. ^ Cancino, Fabiola (2006-07-21). "Restauran el reloj de la Catedral tras nueve años". El Universal Online México, S.A. de C.V. Retrieved 2009-01-10.
  11. ^ PMC (2008-01-17). "Found atop Mexico City Cathedral - Time capsule from 1791". Retrieved 2008-09-18.[permanent dead link]
  12. ^ a b c Noble, John (2000). Lonely Planet Mexico City (in Spanish). Oakland, CA: Lonely Planet Publications. pp. 110–111. ISBN 1-86450-087-5.
  13. ^ a b c d Horz de Via, Elena (1991). Guia Oficial Centro de la Ciudad de Mexico. Mexico City: INAH-SALVAT. pp. 28–30. ISBN 968-32-0540-2.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Cano de Mier, Olga (1988). Guia de Forasteros Centro Historico Ciudad de Mexico (in Spanish). Mexico City: Guias Turisticas Banamex. pp. 32–37.
  15. ^ a b c "Catedral Metropolitano: 478 años de historia". Epoca (in Spanish). Mexico City: Archdiocese of Mexico. 565: 52–59. 1 April 2002.
  16. ^ In the chapels, the terms "left-hand" and "right-hand" are used with reference to the main altar of each chapel.
  17. ^ Mondragón Jaramillo, Carmen (7 January 2010). "Niños Jesus que obran milagros" [Nino Jesus that performs miracles] (in Spanish). Mexico: INAH. Retrieved January 20, 2010.[permanent dead link]
  18. ^ a b El Sol de México (9 November 2008). "Santo Niño Cautivo, patrono de los secuestrados" [Holy Niño Cautivo, patron of the kidnapped]. El Sol de México (in Spanish). Mexico City. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  19. ^ "Tiene arraigo en México la veneración al Niño Dios" [Veneration of the Niño Dios has deep roots in Mexico]. El Universal (in Spanish). Mexico City. Notimex. 2 February 2007. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  20. ^ Pepe, Edward (2011). Richards, Annette, ed. "From Spain to the New World: the hiring of the Madrid organist Fabián Pérez Ximeno by Mexico City Cathedral". Keyboard Perspectives. IV: 27–48.
  21. ^ Pepe, Edward (January 2007). "Writing a History of Mexico's Early Organs: A Seventeenth-Century Disposition from the Mexico City Cathedral". In Donahue, Thomas. Music and Its Questions: Essays in Honor of Peter Williams. Richmond: OHS Press. pp. 49–74. ISBN 978-0-913499-24-5.
  22. ^ Pepe, Edward (June 2006). "An Organ by Jorge de Sesma for Mexico City Cathedral". Revista de Musicología. Sociedad Española de Musicologia (SEDEM). 29 (1). JSTOR 20798165. (Subscription required (help)).
  23. ^ Flentrop, Dirk Andries; John Fesperman (1986). "The Organs of Mexico City Cathedral". Smithsonian Studies in History and Technology. 47.
  24. ^ "Mexico City's Metropolitan Cathedral completes organ restoration". Global Post. EFE. 14 May 2014. Retrieved 2014-09-17.
  25. ^ "Metropolitan Cathedral of Mexico City- The choir". 2007. Archived from the original on August 28, 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-18.
  26. ^ Ricardo Pacheco Colín (25 July 2005). "La Cripta de los Arzobispos, una joya escondida en la Catedral" (in Spanish). Gobierno de Presidente Fox. Retrieved 2008-11-20.
  27. ^ a b c d "A Walking Tour of Mexico City". Suzanne Barbezat. 9 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-18.
  28. ^ a b Greste, Peter (12 September 2008). "World: Americas Saving Mexico's sinking cathedral". BBC News. Retrieved 2008-09-18.
  29. ^ a b Wiley, John; Meli, Roberto; Sánchez, Roberto; Orozco, Bernardo (May 2008). "Evaluation of the measured seismic response of the Mexico City Cathedral". Earthquake Engineering & Structural Dynamics. 37 (10): 1249–1268. doi:10.1002/eqe.808. Retrieved 2008-09-18.
  30. ^ "Mexico City Cathedral". Time. 25 August 1930. Retrieved 2008-09-18. (Subscription required (help)).
  31. ^ "Protestan mujeres in minifalda frente a catedral Cd. de México" (in Spanish). Xinhua News Agency. 2008-08-17. Retrieved 2008-09-18. Women in miniskirts protest in front of Mexico City Cathedral
  32. ^ "150,000 Mexicans take to the streets to protest a spate of murders and kidnappings". Daily Mail. 31 August 2008. Retrieved 2014-09-17.
  33. ^ "Campanas de la Catedral de México repicaron en señal de duelo por ley del aborto" [Cathedral bells tolled in Mexico in mourning for abortion law]. ACI Prensa. 29 August 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-18.
  34. ^ a b "Message of forgiveness at Mexico City Cathedral". Catholic News Agency. 28 November 2009. Archived from the original on 22 May 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2008.
  35. ^ Grillo, Ioan (21 November 2007). "Mexico City's Cathedral closes after anti-Catholic protesters storm building during Mass". Catholic News Agency. Archived from the original on 22 January 2008. Retrieved 18 September 2008.

External links[edit]


text:
Salvatore Colombo

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Pietro Salvatore Colombo, OFM (October 28, 1922 - 9 July 1989) was the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Mogadiscio (Somalia) from 1976 until his assassination.

Colombo was born in Carate Brianza, near Milan. He served the people of Somalia from 1946, after he had been ordained a priest in Milan, Italy, until his death 43 years later. He was appointed as the first Bishop of Mogadishu in 1975, and ordained as Bishop of Mogadishu on 16 March 1976.[1]

Bishop Colombo was well regarded by non-Catholics, whether Muslim or secular. Bishop Colombo was known for his pragmatic oversight of aid projects, making sure that aid projects could operate after the foreign aid workers went home. The government of President Siad Barre did not tolerate proselytizing, but was comfortable with the humanitarian aid dispensed by the Church.[2]

Bishop Colombo was killed in his cathedral by an unknown assassin. President Barre blamed radical Islamists and offered a bounty for their capture.[3]

No bishop has been appointed for Mogadishu since Monsignor Colombo's death. Currently, the welfare of Catholics in Somalia is overseen by an Apostolic Administrator, Dr. Giorgio Bertin, who is also the Apostolic Administrator of Mogadishu.

See also[edit]

Catholic Church titles
Preceded by
Antonio Silvio Zocchetta
as Vicar Apostolic
Bishop of Mogadiscio
1975 – 1989
Succeeded by
Giorgio Bertin
as Apostolic Administrator