Yucatan

The Yucatan is a encompased by Mexico, Chan Santa Cruz and parts of Guatemala. East of the isthmus of Tehuantepec, bordering the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea on its maritime borders, its argued whether if its located in North or Central America, Politically, it is considered part of North America

Satelite Image of the Yucatan Peninsula

The Yucatan is characterized by its long cultural heritage of the maya and a persisting spanish influence on the architecture which can be seen in the city of merida and various other urban centers and haciendas spread throughout the peninsula, before the war, most of the Peninsulas Population on the Mexican side were mayan or considered themselves as so untill the 1922 Mayan Act which saw these groups expelled to Chan Santa Cruz or the largely undeveloped region of El Peten in Guatemala.

History

Pre-Human

The Yucatan Peninsula has the infamous Chicxulub Crater Impact, which was estimated to be created 66 Million Years ago of 15 Kilometers Aprox. (9 Miles) in Diameter, this crater marked the end of the cretaceous period.

Pre-Historic Era

One of the first evidences we have of human life in the yucatan was found in 2020 by Archeologist Jerónimo Avilés on Chan Hol Cave, the skeleton of a 30 year old woman was found, it is estimated it dates back to 9,900 Years.

Mayan Era

The Yucatan was a vital territory for mayan civilization, hosting many maya archeological sites such as Chichen Itza,Tulum and Uxmal and even promoting their spread south to chiapas or parts of Guatemala

Map of Archeological Sites on the Yucatan

Spanish Era

The spanish era in the yucatan saw radical changes, the introduction of old world disease rabaged the population, reducing the maya population allowing for an easier conquest of most of the peninsula by Francisco de Montejo, where an extensive period of conversion of the natives to catholicism started, in which mayan religious traits merged with the new religion, forming new traditions such as the Hanal Pixan, a mayan dia de muertos, thanks to this and other merges, the majority religion among the natives and mestizos quickly turned to catholicism.

The spanish period set the yucatanese economy to being slave based in henequen plantations, a very valuable plant which made the spanish riches and allowed for the state to develop more of its areas, but also created a great divide between the mayan working class and the spanish upper class, which saw many mayan revolts and resistance by some mayan tribes in the thick jungles, who often raided transports and carriages, with the last mayan resistance holding being the city of Nojpetén (Capital of the Itza) Fall to an spanish assault on 1697.