Cuauhtémoc

Cuauhtémoc was the last tlatoani (ruler) of the Mexica and led the defense of Tenochtitlan during the Spanish siege of 1521. His name comes from Nahuatl — cuauhtli (eagle) and temo (to descend) — and means “the eagle that descends”, evoking an eagle diving on its prey.

Captured when the city fell, he was tortured and finally executed on Cortés’s orders in 1525. He is honored as a symbol of resistance, with a famous monument on Paseo de la Reforma.