The silence of the city of Campeche is both magical and moving. This city, guarded like a precious relic by its inhabitants, is proud to celebrate its 465 years of existence.
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Possessing one of the best-preserved historic centres in Mexico, it was declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 1999. What was once the fortress of the Spanish crown in the Gulf of Mexico is now a delightful city that appears to have been designed by the gods.
Campeche is the westernmost of the three states comprising the Yucatan Peninsula. It is covered by forest and enjoys a tropical climate, with rains in the summer and autumn. The city of Campeche, its capital, is located on the east coast of the Gulf of Mexico. Its historic centre consists of three districts: the walled section whose mansions were inhabited by the Spaniards during the colonial era; the San Francisco district to the north of the fortification, where the Mayan population lived and San Roman in the south, where Mexican indigenous peoples and mulattos brought in from the Caribbean Islands settled.
The city of Campeche, built on the site of the domain of Ah Kim Pech (Lord Tick) was the first Spanish settlement on the Yucatan Peninsula. Founded on October 4 1540, it was initially called San Lazaro and subsequently renamed Villa de San Francisco de Campeche. A few years later, the city became one of the most important ports in America for shipping the immense wealth produced in the inland forests. This era gave rise to the legend of the buccaneers. Morgan, Lorencillo, and the Mulatto are the mythical names of the men that besieged and plundered the city of San Francisco to seize the riches transported by the vessels of the Spanish Crown. The colonial authorities proceeded to fortify the city by erecting a massive wall, construction of which began in 1686.
Campeche is a beautiful city built in an elongated checkerboard shape due to the characteristics of the coast. The remains of the walls that encircled the town in the 18th century can still be seen at various points in the city today. Two of the four gates and seven bulwarks of incalculable architectural interest have been preserved. As the Campeche historian Roman Piña Chan remarked, Campeche's history is written in the stones, bulwarks, doors and walls that speak to us of the past, of Spanish navigators and bloodthirsty pirates.
In Campeche, time goes by slowly and peacefully. Although it is a maritime city, its residents encourage visitors to enjoy its nostalgia; cuisine, long walks and intense cultural life that manage to respect its traditions. The hospitable inhabitants of this state-the term "campechano" is synonymous with goodness and simplicity- are probably the proudest of their Mayan legacy of all those in the Mayan world. The state boasts a wealth of archaeological sites, all within easy access of the city of Campeche. Legendary Mayan settlements such as Edzna, Becan, Xpuhil and the magnificent Calakmul are just a few of them.
