In 1524, fresh off his victory over the Kaqchikel Maya of the Guatemalan highlands, Pedro de Alvarado established his first colonial capital on top of theirs, Iximche. Uprisings by the conquered population forced a move in 1527, and a new capital was built at the base of Volcan de Agua. That city was destroyed by a 1541 eruption. So in 1543, a new colonial capital was inaugurated, one that would actually last for more than 200 years.

Built as Santiago de los Caballeros, the city built in Guatemala’s Panchoy Valley would withstand devastating volcanic eruptions, and would be destroyed by major earthquakes, before finally being abandoned in 1773 in favor of what is now Guatemala City. As that new city was given the old name, the now-former capital became known as Antigua Guatemala, Old Guatemala.

We will talk more about the Spanish conquest of Guatemala from a visit to Iximche, and we’ve learned about the destruction of Antigua from its ruins (click here to read about that), so today we are just going to focus on the colonial city, its history, and its remnants.

Santiago de los Caballeros, which from now on we will just refer to by its modern name of Antigua Guatemala, was the capital of the Spanish Kingdom of Guatemala, which today would include Chiapas in Mexico, as well as all of Central American north of Panama. Besides being the capital, it was also really the only city of true importance between Mexico City and Panama City. But that said, other than having a base for decades of Mayan uprisings and a stopover point between the two larger and more important cities, Antigua offered little of strategic value to the Spanish Crown.

Guatemala is rich in jungle, but bereft of precious metals. It has natural beauty, but inland in the valley, zero value to transatlantic trade back to Spain. And outside the Mayan cities, there were not even large populations of natives to convert. (Plus, the Mayan golden age had ended 500 years prior, and the highland populations were significantly smaller than the classical age lowland cities.)

As a result, the city of Antigua Guatemala is sort of bereft of the major importance – and corresponding major events – of Mexico City or Panama City. Other than putting down local rebellions, it never engaged in conflict, especially not with other colonial powers.

The basic layout of Antigua Guatemala was – and still is – similar to that of many Spanish colonial cities. Planned originally by Alonso Lopez Cerrato, the first governor and captain-general, it is a strict grid, with a central square in the middle around which the most important buildings were constructed: cathedral, local governmental offices, palace for the captain-general, and market. And lucky enough for tourists, all four of these have been restored, at least to an extent, so visitors interested in this colonial history should begin here at Parque Central, the main square.

Taking the buildings in order of modern-day visitor access, we begin on the north side of the square with the Palace of Government. The double arches which are characteristic of a Spanish colonial (and even back in Spain) style front what is still the local governmental headquarters. Visits can only be made to the outside of the upper floor for a view over the park, and only during limited hours.

On the west side of Parque Central sits the original market. Today it hosts the largest place to buy traditional crafts and souvenirs in Antigua, though access to that is a small doorway between cafes that front the square.

On the eastern side of the square is Antigua’s original cathedral, or what remains of it. This is a reconstruction of the main facade, but inside, only a small portion of the church has been renovated for religious use. The remainder still sits in ruins, with access just around the corner (or out the back door of the refurbished portion). The interior isn’t anything special, but the park-facing facade is lovely, especially at night.

Finally, to the south side of Parque Central, one finds the beautiful yellow arches of the Palace of the Captains-General, which today houses the largest museum (other than ruins of convent complexes) in Antigua Guatemala, MUNAG, the National Art Museum of Guatemala. This free institution showcases Guatemalan art from pre-colonial times to modernity, as well as preserving the building itself, which is much larger than it appears to be from the outside.

(Don’t miss working your way all the way through, as the back courtyard holds a stunning view of Volcan de Agua over the ruins of the back portion of the palace.)

Of course, like any good Spanish city, Antigua Guatemala needed more than just a single cathedral. Churches and convents were built all over, ranging from small chapels to huge Franciscan complexes. Most of those are today ruins (again, click here to read about visiting those) from the 1773 earthquake, but the Iglesia de la Merced church was built more stably than most, only having opened in 1767, and only suffered minor damage, meaning the building you see today – probably the most beautiful in the city – is largely original.

As with the cathedral, the interior isn’t really anything special, but the decorations on the main facade, flanked by two towers, are truly stunning. You’ll note the yellow. Apparently many Catholic churches in Guatemala are done in this yellow for reasons no local could tell me.

Just down the street is the symbol of Antigua Guatemala, the Arch of Santa Catalina. This archway over one of the city’s main streets, topped with a simple clock tower, was originally built to allow nuns to travel from the convent of Santa Catalina to a school without going to the street. It was built in the 17th century, but the clock tower was added in the 1830s.

Other colonial remnants are fun to stumble across. A huge area for laundry sits outside the ruins of the convent of Santa Clara. Other buildings – nearly all reconstructions in modern times – offer plaques stating their original purposes. And a few restored churches date back, as well.

But of course, the most easily noticeable reminder of these early years of Antigua Guatemala is its tell-tale cobblestone streets, which visitors are literally destined to trip over while walking around. These are painstakingly maintained, with few days going by that I didn’t wander past a construction crew trying to re-level the impossible to level stones.

Santiago de los Caballeros, now Antigua Guatemala, is not the most exciting of Spanish colonial capitals. No major battles were fought here, and I don’t think the city even had much in the way of fortifications. The province of Guatemala was largely a backwater between Mexico and Panama. But it offers a really terrific opportunity to wander a colonial grid, to gaze on the ruins from natural disasters, and to see those buildings that survived in much of their former glory.

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