QUERTARO

estado (state), central Mexico. It is bounded north and northeast by San Luis Potos, southeast by Hidalgo and Mexico, southwest by a corner of Michoacn, and west by Guanajuato. Situated on the central plateau, its 4,420-square-mile (11,449-square-kilometre) territory is almost evenly divided between mountainous, mineralized areas in the north and rolling plains and fertile valleys in the south that form part of Mexico's Bajo region. The Otomi-Chichimec Indians occupying the region were conquered in 1531, and Spanish colonization began in the 1550s. Quertaro was administered with Guanajuato before it became a state in 1824. Although deposits of gold, copper, lead, tin, and other metals occur in the state, the chief mineral products are opals and mercury. In the southern lowlands a variety of crops are cultivated, including fruits, grains, medicinal plants, and sweet potatoes. The breeding of fighting bulls is also an important activity. The main Ciudad JurezMexico City highway and railroad traverse the state, linking Quertaro (q.v.) city, the state capital, with other plateau cities. Pop. (1990 prelim.) 1,044,227. city, capital of Quertaro state, central Mexico. Situated on the Mexican Plateau, 6,119 feet (1,865 m) above sea level and 162 miles (261 km) by highway and railroad northwest of Mexico City, it is considered an excellent example of a Spanish colonial city. It was founded by the Otomi Indians and was incorporated into the Aztec empire in 1446. Until 1531, when it was brought under Spanish control, it served as an Otomi outpost against the warlike tribes to the north. Throughout most of the colonial period, Quertaro was important primarily as a way station and supply centre serving the rich mining districts of Guanajuato and Zacatecas. In 1810 Quertaro was the scene of a plot against Spain that led to the uprising headed by Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla in September of that year. In 1848 the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, terminating the Mexican War, was signed there. The forces of Benito Jurez defeated those of Emperor Maximilian at Quertaro in 1867; and on a nearby hill Maximilian and his generals faced the firing squads. The Mexican Constitution of 1917 was written in Quertaro, which was also the birthplace of the National Revolutionary Party of Mexico (1929), the dominant political force in the republic. Quertaro's colonial buildings include the cathedral (restored several times), the federal palace, and the churches of Santa Rosa, Santa Clara, and San Agustn. The city's 5-mile- (8-kilometre-) long aqueduct, borne on piers 46 feet (14 m) thick, was built in 172638. One of Mexico's oldest and largest cotton factories is located in Quertaro, which also produces textiles and pottery and processes crops cultivated in the agricultural hinterland. The Autonomous University of Quertaro (1951) is located in the city. Quertaro lies at the junction of three main railway lines to Mexico City, to which it is also linked by highway and air. Pop. (1990 prelim.) mun., 454,049.