Chiquimula is the head of the department of Chiquimula in the Republic of Guatemala. During the colonial era it was part of the Corregimiento de Chiquimula de la Sierra. Then, the earthquake of June 2,1765 destroyed it, ruining the church, leaving cincuentra and three dead and many injured After the Independence of Central America in 1821, the town of Chiquimula was assigned as the seat of the homonymous Circuit in District Nº4 for the delivery of justice through jury trials. As of 2000, it is a member of the Commonwealth of North-East of Guatemala, and for the decade of 2010, Chiquimula was considered one of the most prosperous municipalities of eastern Guatemala, due to the rapid growth in its local and international trade.
Among its tourist attractions are the colonial ruins of the church of Chiquimula de la Sierra, which was destroyed by the earthquake of the Holy Trinity in 1765 and retains vestiges of its splendor despite having been abandoned since then.