Mendoza, Antonio de, 1490?-1552, Spanish administrator, first viceroy of New Spain (1535-50) and viceroy of Peru (1551-52). Of noble family, Mendoza held high offices before going to Mexico, where his wise rule earned him the appellation "the good viceroy." He alleviated the condition of the indigenous people (though opposing enforcement of the New Laws of Bartolomé de Las Casas), fostered religion, and encouraged education. He brought the first printing press to America at the request of Bishop Zumárraga. He quelled numerous revolts, notably the insurrection of indigenous peoples in Nueva Galicia (called the Mixtón War) in which Pedro de Alvarado was killed. By fostering expeditions, especially those under Marcos de Niza and Coronado, he pushed exploration far northward. Industry and agriculture were also developed, bringing prosperity. In brief, he extended and consolidated the conquest begun by Hernán Cortés, and established the sure basis for Spain's long rule in Mexico. Efforts to discredit and oust him, originating with Cortés, ended in failure. In 1551 he took office as viceroy of Peru and again opposed enforcement of the New Laws. The audiencia, however, overruled him.

Mendoza, Iñigo López de: see Santillana, Iñigo López de Mendoza, marqués de.

Mendoza, Pedro de, b. 1501 or 1502, d. 1537, Spanish conquistador, first adelantado [civil and military governor] of Río de la Plata (present-day Argentina). After a military career in Europe, he received (1534) from Emperor Charles V a commission to conquer and colonize the Río de la Plata region. With 11 vessels and 1,200 men, he sailed from Sanlúcar de Barrameda in 1535. He reached the estuary of the Río de la Plata in January and founded Buenos Aires in 1536. Attacks by the indigenous people, scarcity of food, and various disasters made the site untenable. Leaving Juan de Ayolas in charge, Mendoza sailed for Spain in 1537 and died at sea. Buenos Aires was abandoned in 1541, by order of Domingo Martínez de Irala, and the colonists moved to Asunción.

Mendoza, Pedro González de, 1428-95, Spanish cardinal and archbishop of Toledo. He was the son of the poet Iñigo López de Mendoza, marqués de Santillana. He supported Henry IV of Castile in his struggles against the nobles and later sided with Isabella I against Juana la Beltraneja. More a soldier than a prelate, he fought in the battle of Toro (1476) against the Portuguese and later took part in the conquest of Granada. He also cultivated literature and wrote religious and political works.

Mendoza, city (1991 pop. 773,559), capital of Mendoza prov., W Argentina. With a backdrop of snowcapped mountains, Mendoza is surrounded by a fertile oasis, known as the "Garden of the Andes," irrigated by the Mendoza River. It is an agricultural market and the center of a rich wine-producing region, largely settled by Italian immigrants. Food processing and petrochemicals are also important to the city's economy. Mendoza was founded in 1561 and belonged to Chile until the creation of the viceroyalty of Río de la Plata (1776). Destroyed by earthquake in 1861, the town was rebuilt and expanded rapidly after the completion of the railroad to Buenos Aires late in the 19th cent. It was also the eastern terminus of the Transandine Railway. It was in Mendoza that San Martín began (1817) the final liberation of Chile from Spain. The city has three universities. Its landmarks include a Franciscan monastery where several Argentine national heroes are buried.

Mendoza is the capital city of Mendoza Province, in Argentina. It is located in the northern-central part of the province, in a region of foothills and high plains, on the eastern side of the Andes. As of the , Mendoza's population was 110,993. The metropolitan population was 848,660 in 2001, making Greater Mendoza the fourth largest census metropolitan area in the country.

A major road between Argentina and Chile runs through Mendoza and the city is a frequent stopover for climbers on their way to climb Aconcagua (the highest mountain in the Western Hemisphere) or for other mountaineering, hiking, horseback riding, rafting, and other sports. In the winter, skiers come to the city for its easy access to the Andes.

Two of the main industries of the Mendoza area are wine making and olive oil production.

History

On March 2, 1561, Pedro del Castillo founded the city and named it Mendoza after the governor of Chile, Don García Hurtado de Mendoza. Before this time it was populated by three tribes, the Huarpes, the Puelches, and the Incas. The Huarpes devised a system of irrigation that was later developed by the Spanish. This allowed for an increase in population that might not have otherwise occurred. The system is still evident today in the wide trenches that run parallel to the city streets. It is estimated that fewer than 80 Spanish settlers lived in the area before 1600, but later prosperity increased due to the use of indigenous and slave labor, and the application of the Jesuits present in the region. When rivers were tapped as a source of irrigation in 1788 agricultural production increased. The extra revenues generated from this, and the ensuing additional trade with Buenos Aires, no doubt led to the creation of the state of Cuyo in 1813 with José de San Martín as governor. From Mendoza San Martin would organize the army with which he won the independence of Chile and Peru.

Mendoza suffered a severe earthquake in 1861 that killed at least 5,000 people. The city was rebuilt, incorporating innovative urban designs that would better tolerate such seismic activity. Mendoza was rebuilt with large squares and wider streets and sidewalks than any other city in Argentina. San Martin street, and five main equidistant squares, are examples of that design. Tourism, wine production, and more recently the exploitation of hard commodities such as oil and uranium ensure Mendoza's status as a key regional centre.

Culture

The festival of the Vendimia represents the grape harvest in early March each year, where 17 beauty queens from each provincial district are nominated, and one winner is selected by a panel of about 50 judges. The queen from Mendoza City cannot be chosen because she acts as host for all other queens.

Mendoza has an intense cultural activity. There are several museums, including a natural history museum called Museo Cornelio Moyano in General San Martín Park and a Historical Foundational Area Museum called Museo del Área Fundacional located in the Pedro del Castillo Square. In Maipú, 15 km southeast from Mendoza, there is the Museo Nacional del Vino (National Wine Museum), which focuses on the history of winemaking in the area. In Mayor Drummond, 14 km south from Mendoza, there is the Emiliano Guiñazú - Casa de Fader art museum, hosted in an 1890 mansion where many walls have paintings by the artist Fernando Fader.

Urban structure

The city is centered around Independence Square (Plaza Independencia) with pedestrianized Sarmiento street running through its center. Other major streets, running perpendicular to Sarmiento, are 9 de Julio St., San Martín Avenue, and running parallel to Sarmiento are avenues Colón, Arístides Villanueva and Las Heras. Four additional plazas, San Martín, Chile, Italia, and España, are located 2 blocks off each corner of Independence Square. Unique to Mendoza's streets are the exposed stone ditches (small canals) which run alongside many of the roads supplying water to the many trees that provide welcome shade.

The Parque San Martín was designed by Carlos Thays. On its premises you can find a zoo, football stadiums, and the Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. A view of the city is available from the top of the hill Cerro de la Gloria.

There are many Internet cafes and other establishments that offer wi-fi technology. Restaurants and wine bars on Arístides Villanueva Avenue become very active day and night during weekends and various types of accommodations are available including luxurious five star Park Hyatt Mendoza, facing Plaza Independencia and the soon to be finished Sheraton Hotel.

Transportation

Mendoza is 1,037 kilometres from Buenos Aires (13 hours by bus) and 380 kilometres from Santiago, Chile (6-7 hours by bus). Mendoza also has an International Airport. It takes less than 2 hours to fly from Buenos Aires and less than 1 hour from Santiago, Chile.

The Mendoza public transport system includes buses, trolleybuses and taxis. The trolleybuses are more comfortable than the city buses, but are slower and not as numerous nor is the system as extensive as that for the buses. In 2008, Translink in Vancouver, Canada sold their old trolley fleet to Mendoza

A heritage railway or tourist railroad, "The Wine Train" (Tren del Vino) is being planned which will also provide local transportation, it will run along wine producing districts of Mendoza.

Transandine Railway

Mendoza developed partly because of its position at the beginning of the Transandine Railway linking it to Santa Rosa de Los Andes in Chile. This line is currently out of use, but there were plans to restore it in the summer of 2007. Due to the lack of concrete actions to restore this link, the most recent estimations are that the line could be restored around October, 2009. However, as of October 2007, there is no indication of any restorative work underway .

The Transandine Railway is a metre gauge line, with sections of rack, whilst the railways it links with are both broad gauge. A journey from Buenos Aires to Chile involved two breaks-of-gauge, and therefore two changes of train, one at Mendoza, and the other at Santa Rosa de Los Andes in Chile.

People

See

Twin cities

• Ramat Gan, Israel
• Tacna, Peru

In film

Mendoza is referenced in the 2006 acclaimed film Children of Men in which it is reported that the parents of the youngest person on the planet hail from the city of Mendoza in a bleak 2027.

Throughout his career, the French director Jean-Jacques Annaud has prided himself on ambitious films that focus on the human heart in conflict with itself. But none compares to the scope and challenge of his 1997 film Seven Years In Tibet. To recapture the experience, Annaud literally rebuilt Tibet in Mendoza, Argentina. The dozens of spectacular sets ranged from a 220-yard long re-creation of the capital city of Lhasa (built in the foothills of the Andes), to a 9000-square-foot re-creation of the legendary Hall of Good Deeds in the Potala, the ancient palace of the Dalai Lama. (It was built in an abandoned garlic warehouse outside the city of Mendoza.)

Climate

Mendoza has wet summers with drier winters. Average temperatures for January (summer) are 32 °C (90 °F) during daytime, and 18.4 °C (65 °F) at night. For July (winter), the average temperatures are 14.7 °C (58 °F) and 2.4 °C (36 °F), respectively. Despite the intensity of agriculture possible due to irrigation from major rivers, Mendoza is classified as semi-desert. Annual rainfall is 223.2mm.

References

Publications

• V. Letelier, Apuntes sobre el terremoto de Mendoza (Santiago de Chile - 1907)
• V. Blasco Ibánez, Argentina y sus Grandezas (Madrid - 1910)

See also

• 1861 Mendoza earthquake
• 1985 Mendoza earthquake
• 2006 Mendoza earthquake

External links

• Universidad Nacional de Cuyo
• Photos of Mendoza and surroundings
• (Spanish) Municipality of Mendoza Official website
• (Spanish) Tourism office
• (Spanish)
• (Spanish) Tourism Website of Mendoza
• Weather information from FallingRain

Newspapers

(Online editions)

• (Spanish) Diario Los Andes
• (Spanish) Diario Uno
• (Spanish) Ciudadano Diario
• (Spanish) Jornada
• (Spanish) El Sol
• (Spanish) Cuyo Noticias