The Zócalo (Plaza de la Constitución)

The Zócalo is the popular name of the Plaza de la Constitución, Mexico City’s main square in the Historic Centre, flanked by the National Palace and the Metropolitan Cathedral. It is one of the largest public squares in the world.

It is called Plaza de la Constitución after the 1812 Constitution of Cádiz, sworn while Mexico was still part of the Spanish empire, not after a Mexican constitution. The nickname “Zócalo” (base or plinth) comes from a 19th-century Independence monument of which only the base was built.