Cuautla is a medium-sized city in the Mexican state of Morelos, that's good as a base to access many of the towns that form a part of the UNESCO heritage site of former missions established on the slope of Popocatepetl volcano by combi. It has a direct bus from the southern bus terminal in Mexico - around MXN$160 and 2 hours.
It's most known as the place where the Mexican revolutionary hero General Emilio Zapata was ambushed and assassinated. Long story short, the Mexican revolution was to overthrow the 30-year dictator President Porfirio Diaz, who was supposed by the United States and the Roman Catholic Church. The President created economic stability for Mexico and built infrastructure, but there was no democracy or freedom, and peasants were getting more and more pressured into producing products. Diaz promised to step down but decided to go for another term instead, leading to the revolution.
The revolution went on for years, with multiple presidents getting assassinated. Zapata was the ruler of Morelos at the time, and he did not submit to any of those regimes. He is generally considered to be the cleanest historical figure Mexico has.
Earlier there was a controversial painting that depicted him as a feminine figure.
The points of interests are all located around the city centre, including the train museum.