What modern city is built on the ruins of Tenochtitlan?

Mexico City is built on the ruins and historic site of Tenochtitlan. After the Mexica capital fell in 1521, Hernán Cortés and the Spanish established a colonial city over much of the existing island settlement, reusing its stones, streets, and central political geography.

Tenochtitlan had been founded on an island in Lake Texcoco and was connected by causeways and canals. The Spanish drained and reshaped the lake environment over centuries, so modern Mexico City no longer resembles the watery landscape that surrounded the Aztec capital. Nevertheless, much of the historic center occupies the same ground.

The modern Zócalo, or Plaza de la Constitución, lies near the original ceremonial and market center. The Templo Mayor archaeological site is just northeast of the plaza, where excavations reveal layers of the Mexica city beneath colonial and modern buildings. “Aztec” is the familiar broad label, but the people and capital were more precisely Mexica.