San Marcos | |
|---|---|
Municipality | |
 Panoramic | |
 Flag | |
| Nickname: Marquesa de La Ensenada | |
  San Marcos Location in Guatemala | |
| Coordinates:14°57′55″N91°47′45″W / 14.96528°N 91.79583°W /14.96528; -91.79583 | |
| Country |  Guatemala |
| Department |  San Marcos |
| Area | |
• Municipality | 119 km2 (46 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 2,398 m (7,867 ft) |
| Population (2018 census)[1] | |
• Municipality | 47,063 |
| • Density | 400/km2 (1,000/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 47,063 |
| Climate | Cwb |
San Marcos is a city and municipality inGuatemala. It is the capital of the department ofSan Marcos. The municipality has a population of 47,063 (2018 census).
In September 1897, after the failure of both the interoceanic railroad and theCentral American Expo and the deep economic crisis that Guatemala was facing after the plummeting international prices of both coffee and silver, the people of Quetzaltenango raised in arms against the decision of presidentJosé María Reina Barrios to extend his presidential term until 1902.[a] A group of rebels, among them a former Secretary of Reina Barrios's cabinet -Próspero Morales-, began to combat on 7 September 1897 attackingSan Marcos; after several battles and some gains inOcos,Coatepeque andColomba the rebels were definitely defeated on 4 October 1897. As a result, on 23 October 1897, San Pedro Sacatepéquez became the capital ofSan Marcos Department.[3]
In 1903 the eruption of theSanta María volcano in the neighboring department ofQuetzaltenango was responsible for the destruction of the twin towns of San Marcos andSan Pedro Sacatepéquez.[5] The towns were rebuilt and on 16 December 1935, during the presidency of generalJorge Ubico, it was annexed toSan Pedro Sacatepéquez forming the municipality of La Unión San Marcos. However, this system did not work and La Unión San Marcos was broken apart on 20 July 1945, but San Pedro Sacatepéquez lost the capital ofSan Marcos Department to the municipality of San Marcos.[6]
Towards the end of the 20th century San Marcos became a hot spot for drug trafficking in Central America, and one of the top lords was Juan Chamalé Ortiz, who was heavily involved in cocaine trafficking, and was accused by US authorities of helping to move over 40 tons ofcocaine throughCentral America en route to theUnited States. Ortiz worked with local fishermen to smuggle cocaine in small fishing boats and may have also commissioned semi-submersibles to transport the drug. Ortiz also controlled a major opium poppy producing area, theSan Marcos Department, where he was a popular local figure. He owned at least ten estates in his area of operations, centered in San Marcos city, and provided numerous jobs, in addition to cultivating local support by throwing parties and sponsoring beauty contests.[7]
San Marcos is one of the most important regions in Guatemala given its proximity to the highlands,Mexico and to thePacific Ocean coast, where most of the drugs coming fromSouth America land. Ortiz exerted influence over local politicians and police in the region, and relied on a powerful local support network to conduct his business. He is thought to have worked out a deal that made him theSinaloa Cartel's top transporter, helping the Mexican group move drugs that arrived via Pacific routes. Ortiz Chamalé was captured in 2011 inQuetzaltenango and extradited to theUnited States in 2014 where he was sentenced to 262 months in jail; when Ortiz was arrested in 2011, locals protested to demand his release.[7]
The city is home of thefootballclubDeportivo Marquense who play in Guatemala'sPremier League in theEstadio Marquesa de la Ensenada.[8]
.jpg)
San Marcos has asubtropical highland climate (climate typeCwb), according to theKöppen climate classification. The weather is pleasant to warm, though with cool to cold mornings, throughout the year. There are two seasons: thedry season from November to April and thewet season from May to October, which produces almost all the annual rainfall of about 1,377 millimetres or 54 inches.
| Climate data for San Marcos, Guatemala (1990–2003) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 25.0 (77.0) | 26.5 (79.7) | 25.5 (77.9) | 26.5 (79.7) | 26.7 (80.1) | 26.0 (78.8) | 25.2 (77.4) | 23.5 (74.3) | 23.0 (73.4) | 23.5 (74.3) | 24.0 (75.2) | 24.0 (75.2) | 26.7 (80.1) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 20.2 (68.4) | 20.2 (68.4) | 20.9 (69.6) | 21.2 (70.2) | 20.7 (69.3) | 20.0 (68.0) | 20.6 (69.1) | 20.6 (69.1) | 19.8 (67.6) | 19.8 (67.6) | 20.1 (68.2) | 20.3 (68.5) | 20.4 (68.7) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 11.4 (52.5) | 11.4 (52.5) | 12.1 (53.8) | 13.7 (56.7) | 14.5 (58.1) | 14.2 (57.6) | 14.3 (57.7) | 14.3 (57.7) | 13.9 (57.0) | 13.3 (55.9) | 12.6 (54.7) | 12.0 (53.6) | 13.1 (55.7) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 2.6 (36.7) | 2.7 (36.9) | 3.3 (37.9) | 6.2 (43.2) | 8.2 (46.8) | 8.4 (47.1) | 7.9 (46.2) | 8.0 (46.4) | 8.0 (46.4) | 6.9 (44.4) | 5.1 (41.2) | 3.8 (38.8) | 5.9 (42.7) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −6.5 (20.3) | −4.0 (24.8) | −5.0 (23.0) | −0.5 (31.1) | 0.5 (32.9) | 4.0 (39.2) | 2.0 (35.6) | 3.0 (37.4) | 0.0 (32.0) | 0.0 (32.0) | −2.5 (27.5) | −4.0 (24.8) | −6.5 (20.3) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 4.3 (0.17) | 4.4 (0.17) | 15.5 (0.61) | 66.9 (2.63) | 180.4 (7.10) | 289.2 (11.39) | 157.9 (6.22) | 208.4 (8.20) | 287.2 (11.31) | 110.4 (4.35) | 30.4 (1.20) | 21.7 (0.85) | 1,376.6 (54.20) |
| Average rainy days | 0.8 | 0.8 | 2.1 | 7.3 | 12.8 | 20.3 | 13.6 | 16.1 | 20.8 | 12.1 | 3.8 | 3.1 | 113.5 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 80.1 | 81.0 | 83.4 | 87.0 | 90.0 | 88.7 | 86.6 | 87.3 | 90.6 | 89.0 | 85.7 | 82.0 | 86.0 |
| Source: INSIVUMEH (humidity 1990–1996)[9] | |||||||||||||
San Marcos is completely surrounded by municipalities ofSan Marcos Department:
Places adjacent to San Marcos, Guatemala | |
|---|---|
Media related toSan Marcos, Guatemala at Wikimedia Commons| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
