Quito

Quito is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in northern Ecuador (see NG MapMachine satellite map (http://mapmachine.nationalgeographic.com/mapmachine/viewandcustomize.html?task=getMap&themeId=100&sext=-82.1,-2.56,-74.9,2.12&iext=-82.1,-2.56,-74.9,2.12&ext=-82.1,-2.56,-74.9,2.12)) in the Guayllabamba river basin on the eastern slopes of the Pichincha [1] (http://www.igepn.edu.ec/vulcanologia/pichincha/pichincha.htm) (4794 m), an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains. It is the second highest (2850 meters/9300 feet above sea level at the Plaza de la Independencia) capital city in the world after La Paz, Bolivia. Its population, according to the most recent census (2001), was 1,399,378. The area of Quito is approximately 290 km².

Quito is one of the eight sister cities of Louisville, Kentucky.

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Contents

1 History 1.1 Pre-Hispanic 1.2 Spanish colony 1.3 Gran Colombia 1.4 Ecuador 2 Demographics 3 Topographical zones 4 Political division 5 Points of Interest 5.1 Northern Quito 5.1.1 Museo del Banco Central 5.1.2 Parks 5.2 Old Town 5.3 El Panecillo 5.4 Outside the city 6 See also 7 References 7.1 General 7.2 Maps/Satellite Imagery/Geography

History

Pre-Hispanic

Quito's origins date back to the first millennium, when nomadic tribes roamed the area and ultimately formed a commercial center where Quito is currently located. Early in the 16th century, the Incas conquered the city, hoping to further the reach of their kingdom, but upon the arrival of the Spanish in 1533, those plans were abandoned. Rumiñahui, an Inca war general, burned the city to prevent the Spanish from taking it, thereby destroying any traces of the prehispanic city.

Spanish colony

Indigineous resistance to the Spanish conquest continued during 1534, and during this time, Diego de Almagro founded Santiago de Quito on August 15, 1534. On December 6, 1534 [2] (http://www.quito.gov.ec/ciudad/c_ciudad2.htm), the city was officially founded by 204 settlers and Sebastián de Benalcázar, who captured Rumiñahui and effectively ended organized resistance. Rumiñahui was then executed on January 10, 1535. On March 14, 1541, Quito was named a city, and on February 14, 1556, was given the title "Muy Noble y Muy Leal ciudad de San Francisco de Quito" ("Very Noble and Loyal City of San Francisco of Quito").

The Spanish brought the Catholic religion to Quito quickly, with the first temple (El Belén) being built even before the city had been officially founded. In January of 1535, the San Francisco Convent was constructed, the first of about 20 more churches and convents built during the colonial period. The Spanish heavily evangelized the indigenous people and also used them for construction, especially the initial stages. The Diocese of Quito was established in 1545, and then was elevated to the Archdiocese of Quito in 1849.

In 1809, after nearly 300 years of Spanish colonization, Quito was a city of about 10,000 inhabitants, and August 10, 1809, it was there were the first cry for independence was heard. The movement was ultimately defeated on August 2, 1810, when Spanish forces came from Lima, Peru, and killed the leaders of the uprising and about 200 inhabitants of the city. A chain of conflicts concluded on May 24, 1822 when Antonio José de Sucre, under the command of Simón Bolívar, led troops into the Battle of Pichincha. Their victory marked the independence of Quito and the surrounding areas.

Gran Colombia

Just days after the Battle of Pichincha, on May 29, 1822, the leaders of the city proclaimed their independence and anexion to the Republic of Gran Colombia. Simón Bolívar went to Quito on June 16, 1822, and was present for the signing of the Colombian Constitution on June 24, 1822.

Ecuador

This lasted until May 13, 1830, when Gran Colombia dissolved and the nation took the name Republic of Ecuador, becoming an independent nation. Quito was named the country's capital for being the original home of numerous prehispanic cultures, for its role in the independence of Ecuador, and because it was an important administrative seat.

The early years of the republic were marked with political unrest – in 1833, members of the Society of Free Inhabitants of Quito were assassinated by the government after they conspired against it, and on March 6, 1845, the Marcist Revolution began. Later, in 1875, the country's president, Gabriel García Moreno, was assassinated in Quito. Two years later, in 1877, archbishop José Ignacio Checa y Barba was killed by poisoning.

In 1882, insurgents arose against the regime of dictator Ignacio de Veintimilla. Their victory did not end the violence that was ocurring throughout the country. On July 9, 1883, the liberal commander Eloy Alfaro participated in the Battle of Guayaquil, and later, after more conflict, became the president of Ecuador on September 4, 1895. Upon completing his second term in 1911, he moved to Europe, but upon his return to Ecuador in 1912 and attempted return to power, he was arrested on January 28, 1912, thrown in prison, and assassinated by a mob that had stormed the prison. His body was dragged through the streets of Quito to a city park, where it was burned.

In 1932, the Four Days War broke out, a civil war that followed the election of Neptalí Bonifaz and the subsequent realization that he carried a Peruvian passport. Workers at a major textile factory went on strike in 1934, and similar unrest continues to the present day. On February 12, 1949, a realistic broadcast of H. G. Wells' novel The War of the Worlds lead to citywide panic and the deaths of twenty people who died in fires set by mobs. Later, in 1990, indigenous uprisings began, and in 1999, the nearby volcano Pichincha became active.

Demographics

(2001 census)

• population: 1,399,378 [3] (http://www.inec.gov.ec/interna.asp?inc=cs_tabla&idTabla=82&tipo=p&idProvincia=17&idSeccion=&idCiudad=51)
• number of households: 419,845 [4] (http://www.inec.gov.ec/interna.asp?inc=cs_tabla&idTabla=89&tipo=p&idProvincia=17&idSeccion=&idCiudad=51)

• illiteracy rate: 3.6% [5] (http://www.inec.gov.ec/interna.asp?inc=cs_grafico&idGrafico=1005&tipo=p&idProvincia=17&idSeccion=&idCiudad=51)
• unemployment rate: 8.9%
• underemployment rate: 43.8% [6] (http://www.inec.gov.ec/interna.asp?inc=enc_tabla&idTabla=295)
• average monthly income: $317 [7] (http://www.inec.gov.ec/interna.asp?inc=enc_tabla&idTabla=299)

See also Cantón Quito (= "Distrito Metropolitano de Quito").

Topographical zones

Quito is divided into three areas, separated by hills:

1. the center houses the colonial old city
2. the southern part is mainly industrial and residential, a working-class housing area.
3. The northern part is modern Quito, with high-rise buildings, shopping centers, the financial center and major business centers. Mariscal Sucre Airport [8] (http://www.quitoairport.com) is in the northern part.

Political division

As of October 2004, Quito is divided into 19 urban parrishes (parroquias urbanas):

1. Alfaro
2. Benalcázar
3. Chaupicruz
4. Chillogallo
5. Cotocollao
6. El Salvador
7. González Suárez
8. Guápulo
9. La Floresta
10. La Libertad
11. La Magdalena
12. La Vicentina
13. San Blas
14. San Marcos
15. San Roque
16. San Sebastián
17. Santa Bárbara
18. Santa Prisca
19. Villa Flora

Points of Interest

Northern Quito

Museo del Banco Central

This museum [9] (http://cce.org.ec/index.php?action=detalle&id_c=45&id_d=30&det_action=detalle) is an excellent showcase of Ecuadorian art and culture. On the ground floor it has a marvellous and extensive collection of pre-colonial (including pre-Incaic) potteries, sculptures, gold, lithics, and even a mummified body. There are also some beautiful but somewhat distorted models that help evoke the way various parts of Ecuador must have looked like, from the Pambamarca fort to the Cochasquí tumuli complex. The highlight of this collection is a golden sun mask of the La Tolita culture. The second floor is dedicated to Colonial art; several paintings and sculptures with religious themes are in exhibition. The third floor is devoted to contemporary Ecuadorian art.

Parks

1. Parque Metropolitano [10] (http://www.quito.gov.ec/ciudad/c_parq_metro.htm) is the largest urban park in South America. The park is located in the north of Quito, on the hillside, behind the Atahualpa Olympic Stadium [11] (http://www.ecuafutbol.org/UI/contenido.aspx?page=/asociaciones/pichincha.htm&seccion=5&nivel=0&subnivel=14). The park is an excellent place for mountain biking, walking, running or just exploring the different sculptures that are display for the public. The park has 4 sites where you can bring your family and friends to have a picnic or a BBQ. The backside of the park has a beautiful view of Cotopaxi, Antisana [12] (http://www.igepn.edu.ec/vulcanologia/Antisana/antisana.htm) and the Guayllabamba river basin.
2. La Carolina [13] (http://www.quito.gov.ec/ciudad/c_parq_carolina.htm) park is the place to be on Sundays. You will be among thousands of Quiteños playing fútbol (soccer), básket (basketball), ecua-volley (volleyball with less emphasis on spiking to score; more of a throw and it allows using your feet like soccer), doing aerobics, flying kites, running, snacking or just observing the thralls of people just walking around. The park is situated on the northern area of Quito not too far from the shopping district. The southern part of the park has a small pond where you can rent paddle boats. There are also many artists performing on weekends. In the western part of the park you will find the Quito Exhibition Center [14] (http://pequenaindustria.com/ferias_historia.asp) with different exhibits every month.
3. El Ejido [15] (http://www.quito.gov.ec/ciudad/c_parq_ejido.htm) is the park situated between the old part of the city and the modern section. Here you will find handicrafts every Saturday and Sunday. Local painters sell Oswaldo Guayasamín [16] (http://www.guayasamin.com), Eduardo Kingman or Gonzalo Endara Crow copies and Otavaleños are selling traditional sweaters and carpets.
4. La Alameda [17] (http://www.quito.gov.ec/ciudad/c_parq_alameda.htm) park has the oldest astronomical observatory [18] (http://www.epn.edu.ec/OAQ) in South America. The park has a monument of Simón Bolívar and a small lake where families like to rent boats.

Old Town

The "centro histórico", historical center, as it is called, was appointed [19] (http://whc.unesco.org/archive/repcom78.htm#2), along with the historic center [20] (http://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=29) of Kraków (Cracovia) [21] (http://www.krakow.pl), Poland, as the first UNESCO World Heritage Cultural Site [22] (http://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=2) in 1978 and has many appealing plazas (the Independence Plaza being the most important) and manierist and baroque churches, including the Cathedral, the convent and church of St. Francis, which is the largest building of the Colonial era built by the Spaniards in South America, the church of El Sagrario, convent and church of Santo Domingo and the church of the Society of Jesus, or "La Compañía" which was built after the model of the Church of the Gesu in Rome. There are also several museums, many of them dedicated to Colonial art and history; some of the most renowned are the City Museum ("Museo de la Ciudad") [23] (http://www.museociudadquito.gov.ec), the Metropolitan Cultural Center [24] (http://www.centrocultural-quito.com) and the museum of the Convent of St. Francis. Markets are scattered throughout the area.

El Panecillo

See El Panecillo.

Outside the city

1. Mitad del Mundo.

See also

• Charles Marie de La Condamine
• Cuarenta
• Geography of Ecuador

References

General

1. Quito Distrito Metropolitano (http://www.quito.gov.ec) official Web site
2. History (http://www.quito.com.ec/interna.asp?id_modulo=1&id_submenu=3&id_idioma=2), accessed April 12, 2005, Quito Tourist Portal, Corporación Metropolitana de Turismo
3. Information about Quito (http://www.inquito.com/)
4. Footprint travel guides (http://www.footprintbooks.com/SECTIONS/guides/book.asp?productid=205) South American Handbook 2005
5. Google
   1. Google (http://www.google.com.ec) Google Ecuador
   2. Google Search: ecuador (http://news.google.com/news?q=ecuador&scoring=d&num=100) Google News
   3. Google Search: Quito (http://www.google.com/search?q=Quito)
   4. Google Search: Quito (http://answers.google.com/answers/search?q=Quito) Google Answers
   5. Google Maps (http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=-0.150000,-78.350000&spn=2.576294,3.944092&t=k&hl=en) Satellite view, Quito

Maps/Satellite Imagery/Geography

1. CIA - The World Factbook -- Ecuador (http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ec.html) includes small schematic map of Ecuador (CIA)
2. Ecuador (Country Profiles from National Geographic MapMachine) (http://plasma.nationalgeographic.com/mapmachine/profiles/ec.html) includes MapMachine maps and satellite images of Ecuador and Quito (National Geographic Society)
3. Quito: Weather and Much More From Answers.com (http://www.answers.com/quito) reference, encyclopedia articles, facts (Answers.com, GuruNet)
4. Quito (http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/world/A0840845.html) "Quito." The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia (electronic version of Columbia Encyclopedia). © 1994, 2000-2005, on Infoplease. © 2000–2005 Pearson Education, publishing as Infoplease.
5. Ecuador & the Galapagos Islands travel | Lonely Planet World Guide (http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/south_america/ecuador_and_the_galapagos_islands/)
6. MAPRED (http://200.55.6.87/es/a2.asp?vista=QUIT&pais=Ecuador) Quito, Ecuador, "Mapa interactivo de la Ciudad"be:Кіта

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