Palace of Cortés, Cuernavaca, Colonial fortress in central Cuernavaca, Mexico
The Palace of Cortés is a two-story stone building with thick walls located in downtown Cuernavaca. It stands on the foundation of an earlier Aztec pyramid, creating a layered structure that mixes Spanish colonial construction with pre-Hispanic elements.
Hernán Cortés built this structure between 1523 and 1528 shortly after the Spanish conquest of the region. It stands as one of the oldest remaining buildings from the early colonial period in the Americas and marks the beginning of Spanish settlement in the area.
The second floor houses Diego Rivera's mural 'Historia del Estado de Morelos,' depicting events from the Spanish conquest through the Mexican Revolution.
Weekday mornings tend to be less crowded than weekends, making it easier to move through the building at your own pace. The layout moves straightforwardly from ground floor to upper level via stairs, so the visit is simple to navigate.
Visitors can spot exposed sections of the original Aztec pyramid in the ground floor if they look closely. These visible remains show how early Spanish builders reused and incorporated existing foundations rather than demolishing them completely.
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