History of Morelos, Conquest and Revolution

History of Morelos, Conquest and Revolution (1929–1930) was a fresco painted by Mexican artist Diego Rivera in Cuernavaca's Palace of Cortés.

In his adult years, Rivera spent time studying art in Europe both in Madrid, Spain and Paris, France.

Coming back to Mexico during the middle of its political revolution, Rivera was drawn in by then Mexican Secretary of Education, José Vasconcelos, who called him to create paintings on the walls of prominent state buildings.

[2] Rivera then began to partake in the muralist movement, creating works dealing with the political issues of the time – revolutionary nationalism – in relation to Mexico's past and quickly becoming one of the most well known artists of the Mexican muralism movement, with many considering Rivera's pieces to be unforgettable, as they stick within the minds and hearts of those that see them.

It was used as the Cortés family's personal home for some time and then was transformed into a prison, state legislature, and eventually into a museum, which it remains as currently.

[5][6] Rivera agreed to complete the commission, on the condition that he be granted free rein over the subject chosen for the mural.

The mural is a linear portrayal of Mexico's history, focusing on the city of Cuernavaca, painted in a chronological sequence.

[7] It takes up three walls and other smaller sections of an open corridor on the second floor of the palace, totaling 148.6 square meters of painted space.

Rivera depicts the building of the Palace of Cortés by Indian slaves and then shows them as laborers for the Spanish ruled state of Morelos, in which they were predominantly sugarcane cutters.

Rivera then proceeds to show the religious history and details the conversions by Catholic priests which took place throughout Mexico.

The last panel shows an image of Emiliano Zapata – a main and important figure in the Mexican revolution – depicting liberation from Spanish colonial rule.

Because he was working on his mural for the National Palace at the time, he decided to continue with his theme of Mexico's history in relation to Spanish conquest and the hardships natives endured because of it.