Monasteries on the slopes of Popocatépetl
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How it came to be
The Monasteries on the Slopes of Popocatépetl are early 16th-century foundations spread across the Mexican states of Morelos, Puebla and Tlaxcala. They were built just after the Conquest by the first missionaries, Franciscans, Dominicans and Augustinians, who set out to convert the indigenous population to Christianity.
The Franciscans, invited by Hernán Cortés, came first and in 1524 founded the monasteries of Huejotzingo, Cuernavaca, Calpan and Tochimilco. The Dominicans followed from 1526 at Oaxtepec, Tepoztlán and elsewhere, and the Augustinians from 1533 at Ocuituco, Totolapan and other towns. Ocuituco, founded in 1534, is described as the first Augustinian monastery on the American mainland.
Most of the complexes set a wide atrium in front of the church, with an open chapel and small posa chapels at the corners. Mass for the new converts, who were not used to entering large enclosed buildings, was held outdoors. The model spread across Mexico and beyond; the monasteries were inscribed as a World Heritage site in 1994, and Tlaxcala Cathedral was added in 2021.
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