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istance to smallpox, plague, typhus, and measles. These diseases were responsible for the
lossofmorethanthree-quartersofGuatemala'stwomillioninhabitantsinthefirst30years
following contact with the Spanish. It is thought that a third of the population died before
Alvarado's invading army even set foot in the indigenous peoples' Guatemalan homeland.
COLONIAL GUATEMALA
The Guatemalan capital required 10 years from its founding to complete and included a
cathedral, town hall, and Alvarado's palace. Alvarado died in 1541 while in Mexico at-
tempting to subdue an uprising. The city was destroyed shortly thereafter by a mudslide
that rolled down Agua Volcano after an earthquake and heavy rains combined to unleash
the contents of the flooded crater.
Guatemala's rich Colonial legacy is evident in Antigua's artwork.
Guatemala's capital was then moved a few miles away to present-day Antigua. It would
serve as the administrative headquarters of the newly established Audiencia de Guatemala,
which included the provinces of San Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, Chiapas,
 
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