Chilpancingo de los Bravos, Mexico Tourism

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location at a junction on the Cuernavaca to Acapulco road makes it an excellent base from which to explore the still largely undisturbed mountainous regions both near at hand and further afield.

History

Since ancient times the area around Chilpancingo (Náhuatl: "place of the wasps") has been the home of a succession of Indian tribes, the Olmecs being the first to leave any traces. In the colonial period its role as a staging post for east-bound merchandise, en route to the central highlands, gave the town its chief raison d'être. In 1813 Chilpancingo's prestige increased when it became the venue for the first Mexican National Congress, chaired by José María Morelos. The soubriquet "de los Bravos" was acquired in 1825, being recognition for the outstanding contribution of the three Bravo brothers to the cause of Mexican independence. Today the city is a centre for the agriculture and forestry in the surrounding area.

Pride of place must go to the Museo Regional with archaeological finds mainly from Guerrero. Of the rest, only the Government Palace (Palacio de Gobierno; frescos illustrating Mexican history), the parish church, and the zoological garden are at all noteworthy.