Villahermosa ( , ; "beautiful town") is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Tabasco, and serves as the municipal seat (governing county) of the state. Located in Southeast Mexico, Villahermosa is known for its cultural history, natural resources, commercial development, and modern industrialization.
Coined La Esmeralda del Sureste ("The Emerald of the Southeast"), Villahermosa is a modern city with history dating back to the early 1500s. Its natural resources like cacao, sugarcane, bananas, tobacco, rice, and hardwood trees have made Villahermosa attractive to domestic investors. The city has become a hub for oil and gas operations in Southern Mexico and is referred to as the "Energy City of Mexico". The most recent oil discovery, at the Ogarrio oil field just 107 km west of Villahermosa, make it an important city in the production of hydrocarbons. Commercially, the city is popular with major retailers like Liverpool, Fábricas de Fráncia, Palacio de Hierro, Walmart, City Club, Costco, Soriana, Chedraui, Comercial Mexicana and Home Depot. National banks Santander Mexico and Banamex serve the city's financial needs.
Etymology In 1598, King Philip II of Spain named the city "Villa Hermosa of San Juan Bautista", and granted it use of a royal shield on its coat of arms, which is still in use today. During the city's long history, its name has changed many times. In 1916, governor Francisco J. Múgica decreed to eliminate the name of "San Juan Bautista", leaving only "Villahermosa".
Previous names Throughout the city's history, Villahermosa has had many names:
Villa Carmona (1564): name given by Diego de Quijada when he founded the city. San Juan Bautista (1565): in honor of the city's patron saint. Villa Felipe II: in honor of the Spanish monarch. Villa Hermosa de San Juan Bautista (1598): title granted by King Felipe II of Spain. San Juan de Villahermosa (1604): name given by the Viceroy Marquis de Montesclaros in honor of Juan de Grijalva, discoverer of Tabasco. Villahermosa del Puerto (1792): when Villahermosa is declared a "minor port". San Juan Bautista De Villahermosa (1811) San Juan Bautista de Tabasco (as of November 4, 1826): by decree of the State Congress. Villahermosa (officially instituted since February 3, 1916): by decree of the state governor Francisco J. Múgica; the official newspaper Tabasco from February 17, 1916, indicated "Villahermosa" must be written together and not separated into two words.
Symbols of the city Coat of arms On July 24, 1598, King Philip II of Spain granted the village of San Juan Bautista the title of Villa Hermosa de San Juan Bautista, and afforded it a royal coat of arms. In 1892, State Congress adopted the city's coat of arms as the official shield of the State of Tabasco.
The shield incorporates a quarterly heraldry design with a center inescutcheon. The coat of arms depicts the Spanish Imperial Crown for King Charles V, who served as Holy Roman Emperor and King.
The first quarter gules features four castle towers representing the Kingdom of Castile, the Crown of Aragon, the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada, and the Mediterranean Sea, four territories of land and sea. The four castles refer to the four lordships that initially carved up the area after it was conquered by Alfonso X of Castile.
The second quarter argent features a military arm wielding a two-edged sword, representing Spanish power over a province.
The third quarter argent features an Aztec woman wearing a feathered skirt in shades of sinople red and green, ribbons on her forearms, and flower bouquets in each hand.
The fourth quarter gules features a crowned lion with a protruding tongue representing the ancient Kingdom of León.Kingdom of Leon
The center inescutcheon features a crowned Virgin Mary dressed in gules and azure and the Pillars of Hercules tipped with globes. Written on the Pillars of Hercules is the motto “Plus Ultra“ reflecting overseas expansion. Charles V incorporated this symbolism in reference to the then-recent European discovery of America.
Geography Villahermosa is located approximately south of the Gulf Coast and about southeast of Mexico City. The municipality is in the center of Tabasco, which adjoins the northern municipalities of Nacajuca and Centla, and the southern municipalities of Jalapa, Teapa and the south-central municipality of Macuspana. It also borders the northwestern part of the State of Chiapas. The geographical coordinates of the municipality are north 18-20', south 17-43' north latitude; 92-35', west 93-15' west.
The urban area of Villahermosa occupies 61,177 km2 while the territorial extension of the municipality occupies 1,612 km2, which corresponds to 6.9% of the total state territory, occupying 7th place on the municipal extension scale. The territorial division of the municipality of Centro consists of a city, 7 villas, 1 village, 132 rancheries, and 117 boroughs (colonial) and fractions. The municipality contains 13 regional development centers (CORs) where most economic and social activities are carried out, including Villa Ocuiltzapoltán, Villa Macultepec, Villa Parrilla 1a. Section, Villa Subteniente García, Rosario Beaches, Villa New People of Roots, Poblado Dos Montes, Los Boquerones, Villa Luis Gil Pérez, and Villa Tamulte de Las Sabanas.
Today, Villahermosa is a modern, industrialized city and one of the most important commercial points in the stretch of territory between Mexico City and Cancún—perhaps second only to Mérida in Yucatán.
Natural resources
Villahermosa is located in the southeast of Mexico, between the rivers Grijalva and Carrizal. The average elevation of the city is 10 meters above sea level. The city also has several lagoons, the largest and most important of them being La Laguna de las Ilusiones ("Lagoon of Illusions").
The most important city thoroughfares are Paseo Tabasco, Gregorio Méndez Avenue, the Periférico, Ruiz Cortines Avenue, and Pino Suárez Avenue.
Climate Like most of Tabasco, Villahermosa has a tropical monsoon climate (Am). Temperatures during the spring and summer seasons can reach upwards of 40 °C (104 °F), with humidity levels hovering around 30% during the same period (for total humidity-adjusted temperatures in the high forties). During its short "winter", Villahermosa's climate is very humid but daytime temperatures decrease to around 28 °C (82 °F).
In October 2007, Villahermosa suffered its worst flood in recorded history. Several hundred thousand people were displaced because of flooded homes.
Demographics According to the World Population Review 2021, there are 913,606 inhabitants in the Metropolitan area of Villahermosa, a 1.69% growth rate. Although the first inhabitants settled in 1557, the official occupation occurred on June 24, 1564.
History
Founded officially on 24 June 1564 by the Spanish explorer Diego de Quijada on the banks of the Grijalva River under the name of Villa Hermosa, in 1826 the village was raised to the rank of city under the name of San Juan Bautista de la Villa Hermosa (Saint John the Baptist). During the French intervention in Mexico, French troops occupied the city in 1863. In 1916, the governor of Tabasco, Francisco J. Múgica, ordered the restoration of the city's name to Villahermosa.
Colonial Age The Villa Carmona was later christened San Juan Bautista and was divided into neighborhoods. The oldest of them was the neighborhood of Esquipulas, on the ridge of the hill of Esquipulas and around the Church of Our Lord of Esquipulas, with his image of Christ black, which had been brought from Esquipulas, Guatemala.
By 1596, Lazaro Suárez de Córdova was Mayor of Tabasco and continued to dispatch in Santa Maria de la Victoria as the capital, and because the pirates had been attacking much of the coast of Tabasco, it commands to build in San Juan Bautista (today Villahermosa) the Fort House or Royal Warehouse. This was in order to defend the population and safeguard the flows Real. The Royal Warehouse was located on what are the current streets of Juárez, Reforma, Madero and Lerdo.
On July 24, 1598, the King granted the city of San Juan Bautista the title of Villa Hermosa de San Juan Bautista as well as a royal shield, which currently identifies the state of Tabasco and is one of the oldest in the Americas.
In 1604, the Mayor of Tabasco Juan de Miranda requested the Viceroy Juan de Mendoza and Luna to authorize the powers to be changed from Santa Maria de la Victoria to Saint John the Baptist (now Villahermosa) in addition to requesting that the name of the city be changed to San Juan de Villahermosa, authorizing the change of name of the city, not so the transfer of powers.
King Philip II of Spain gave the city the title of Villa Hermosa as well as a Coat of Tabasco's Royal Shield. As the pirate attacks did not cease, and they continually destroyed and raided the village of Santa María de la Victoria, in the year 1619, the change of the powers of the province to San Juan Bautista before the Marquis de Guadalcázar Diego Fernández de Córdoba, authorizing it on December 3 of that same year. However, was re-established. The move was not made because many residents did not want to leave Santa Maria de la Victoria.
Capital of Tabasco for the first time In 1640, due to the continuous pirate attacks on the village of Santa María de la Victoria, the authorities of the Province requested the Viceroy Diego López Pacheco and Portugal to change the capital of the Province to San Juan de Villahermosa, which the Viceroy authorized on 3 February 1641. The transfer of powers took effect on June 24 of that same year, making Villahermosa the new capital of the Province of Tabasco. The "Fortín de la Encarnación" was immediately built in what is now the park of "the birds" on the corner that forms the current streets of May 5 and Zaragoza at the foot of the hill of "La Encarnación".
In 1677, as Mayor Diego de Loyola, the privateers fiercely attacked the capital Villahermosa de San Juan Bautista, forcing the authorities to leave the city and transfer the powers to the village of Tacotalpa, which served as capital of the province for the next 118 years. On June 21, 1677, the Mayor of Tabasco informed the Viceroy that the fear of pirate invasions had caused the depopulation of entire villages such as Cunduacán, and that Villahermosa, which was the capital, had depopulated, too.
In 1688, lookouts, trenches and fortifications were built in Villahermosa to protect the desolated city from pirate attacks. However, in 1711, Villahermosa was again fiercely attacked by English pirates, who set fire to the Royal Warehouse that was the Government House, and the defenders had to take refuge in the Fortín de la Encarnación, which withstood the attack, though the pirates burned down many houses, leaving the town in ruins.
It was not until July 16, 1717, when the then-Mayor of Tabasco Alonso Felipe Andrade, at the head of an army of Tabasco and Veracruz forces, attacked the pirates on the Island of Tris (now the island of Carmen) which at the time belonged to Tabasco. Though Andrade was killed, the Tabasco forces expelled the pirates and founded that same day the military post of Nuestra Señora del Carmen (today City of Carmen). However, in 1757, the English pirates counterattacked the military post of Nuestra Señora del Carmen, setting it on fire and destroying it, and then re-attacking the Tabasco coasts.
Finally, in 1785, the Tabasco militias, commanded by Captain Juan de Amestoy and Lieutenant Francisco Interiano, defeated and permanently evicted the English from Carmen Island.
Capital of Tabasco for the second time In January 1795 the Viceroy Miguel de la Grúa Talamanca authorized the change of the powers of the Province of Tabasco from Tacotalpa to Villa Hermosa de San Juan Bautista, taking effect on Monday, August 15 of that year. Thus, after 118 years, Villahermosa is again the capital of Tabasco.