Sep 15, 2016
Guatemala National Day 2016
This Doodle’s Key Themes
On September 15th, the spirit of freedom fills the air as Guatemala marks Independence Day with parties, children’s parades, feasts, fireworks, the waving of blue-and-white flags, and civic ceremonies. On this day in Antigua in 1821, legislators signed the act of independence, liberating Guatemala (plus Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua) from almost 300 years of Spanish colonial rule.
The country’s road to emancipation is conjured up with performances of La Conquista (The Conquest), in which dancers reenact the conquest of the Mayan Indians by Pedro de Alvarado, a Spanish soldier, and the Antorcha de la Independencia (Torch of Independence), a relay race with torch bearers that pays tribute to Guatemalan heroine of independence, Maria Dolores Bedoya, who rallied Antigua’s residents, lantern in hand, the night before the pivotal vote.
Today’s Doodle celebrates National Day with a depiction of Arco de Santa Catalina, an Antiguan landmark built in 1694—a vivid symbol of Guatemala’s colonial past.
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