Guadalajara
In early 1532, a Basque conquistador named Cristóbal de Oñate established the first colonial settlement in the region of Guadalajara. This initial site sat on Mesa del Cerro, now known as Nochistlán, Zacatecas. The purpose was to secure recent conquests and defend them from hostile natives. Water sources proved scarce at this location, causing the settlement to fail quickly. In 1533, authorities moved the village to a site near Tonalá. Four years later, Nuño de Guzmán ordered another relocation to Tlacotán. During the Mixtón War between 1540 and 1542, indigenous peoples like the Caxcan and Portecuex fought back against colonizers under Tenamaxtli's command. Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza eventually took control of the Spanish campaign to suppress the revolt. After multiple defeats, Mendoza made concessions such as freeing enslaved indigenous peoples and granting amnesty. The village barely survived the war, and villagers attributed their survival to the Archangel Michael. In 1542, records indicate that 126 people were living in Guadalajara. That same year, it was granted cityhood by the king of Spain. On the 14th of February 1542, the city was officially founded in the Atemajac Valley. The colony received its name from Nuño de Guzmán's Spanish hometown. On the 8th of November 1539, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V had granted a coat of arms and the title of city to the new town. He established it as the capital of the Kingdom of Nueva Galicia, part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. After 1572, the Royal Audiencia of Guadalajara became the only authority in New Spain with autonomy over Nueva Galicia. This shift occurred owing to rapidly growing wealth following the discovery of silver.
Miguel Hidalgo entered San Pedro on the 25th of November 1810, and the next day he was greeted effusively in Guadalajara. The city's workers had experienced poor living conditions and were swayed by promises of lower taxes and the abolition of slavery. Despite a soured welcome due to rebel army violence toward city residents, Hidalgo kept his promise. On the 6th of December 1810, slavery was abolished in Guadalajara, a proclamation which has been honored since the end of the war. During this time, he founded the newspaper El Despertador Mexicano, dedicated to the insurgent cause. Royalist forces marched to Guadalajara, arriving in January 1811 with nearly 6,000 men. Insurgents Ignacio Allende and Mariano Abasolo wanted to concentrate their forces in the city and plan an escape route should they be defeated. Hidalgo rejected this idea. Their second choice was to make a stand at the Puente de Calderon just outside the city. Hidalgo had between 80,000 and 100,000 men and 95 cannons, but the better-trained royalists won, decimating the insurgent army and forcing Hidalgo to flee toward Aguascalientes. Guadalajara remained in royalist hands until near the end of the war. On the 17th of January 1817, the insurgent army was again defeated on the outskirts of Guadalajara in the Battle of Calderón Bridge. New Galicia adhered to the Plan de Iguala on the 13th of June 1821. In 1823, Guadalajara became the capital of the newly founded state of Jalisco. In 1844, General Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga initiated a revolt against the government of President Antonio López de Santa Anna. Santa Anna personally ensured that the revolt was quelled. However, while Santa Anna was in Guadalajara, a revolt called the Three Hour Revolution brought José Joaquín Herrera to the presidency and put Santa Anna into exile. President Benito Juárez made Guadalajara the seat of his government in 1856, during the Reform War. French troops entered the city during the French Intervention in 1864, and it was retaken by Mexican troops in 1866. The 19th century was a period of economic, technological and social growth for the city. After Independence, small-scale industries developed, many of which were owned by European immigrants. Rail lines connecting the city to the Pacific coast and north to the United States intensified trade. From 1884 to 1890, electrical and railroad services, as well as the Guadalajara Observatory were established.
The population surpassed one million in 1964, and by the 1970s it was Mexico's second-largest city and the largest in western Mexico. Most of the modern city's urbanization took place between the 1940s and the 1980s, with the population doubling every ten years until it stood at 2.5 million in 1980. The population of the municipality has stagnated, and even declined, slowly but steadily, since the early 1990s. Migrants coming into Guadalajara from the 1940s to the 1980s were mostly from rural areas and lived in the city center until they had enough money to buy property. This property was generally bought in the edges of the city, which were urbanizing into residential areas. In the 1980s, it was described as a divided city east to west based on socioeconomic class. Since then, the city has evolved into four sectors, which are still more or less class-centered. The upper classes tend to live in Hidalgo and Juárez in the northwest and southwest, while the lower classes tend to live in the city center, Libertad in the northeast, and southeast in Reforma. However, lower class development has expanded on the city's periphery and upper and middle classes are migrating toward Zapopan. The 1992 Guadalajara explosions occurred on the 22nd of April 1992, when gasoline explosions in the sewer system over four hours destroyed streets in the downtown district of Analco. Gante Street was the most damaged. Officially, 206 people were killed, nearly 500 injured and 15,000 were left homeless. The estimated monetary damage ranges between $300 million and $1 billion. Three days before the explosion, residents started complaining of a strong gasoline-like smell coming from the sewers. City workers were dispatched to check the sewers and found dangerously high levels of gasoline fumes. However, no evacuations were ordered. An investigation into the disaster found that there were two precipitating causes. The first was new water pipes that were built too close to an existing gasoline pipeline. Chemical reactions between the pipes caused erosion. The second was a flaw in the sewer design that did not allow accumulated gases to escape. Four officials of Pemex were indicted and charged on the basis of negligence. Ultimately, however, these people were cleared of all charges.
Guadalajara has the third-largest economy and industrial infrastructure in Mexico and contributes 37% of the state of Jalisco's total gross production. Its economic base is strong and well-diversified, mainly based on commerce and services, although the manufacturing sector plays a defining role. It is ranked in the top ten in Latin America in gross domestic product and the third-highest ranking in Mexico. In its 2007 survey entitled Cities of the Future, FDi magazine ranked Guadalajara highest among major Mexican cities and designated it as having the second strongest economic potential of any major North American city behind Chicago. The electronics and information technology sectors have nicknamed the city the Silicon Valley of Mexico. Guadalajara is the main producer of software, electronic and digital components in Mexico. Telecom and computer equipment from Guadalajara accounts for about a quarter of Mexico's electronics exports. Companies such as General Electric, IBM, Sanmina, Intel, HCL Technologies, Hitachi, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, HP Inc, Siemens, Flextronics, Oracle, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services, Cognizant Technology Solutions and Jabil Circuit have facilities in the city or its suburbs. This phenomenon began after the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement. International firms started building facilities in Mexico, especially Guadalajara, displacing Mexican firms, especially in information technology. One of the problems this has created is that when there are economic downturns, these international firms scale back. Guadalajara was selected as Smart City in 2013 by IEEE, the world's largest professional association for the advancement of technology. Several cities invest in the areas of research to design pilot projects and as an example, in early March in 2013 was the first Cluster Smart Cities in the world, composed of Dublin, Ireland; San Jose, California; Cardiff, Wales, and Guadalajara, Jalisco. The Secretariat of Communications and Transportation also reported that Guadalajara, Jalisco was chosen as the official venue for the first Digital Creative City of Mexico and Latin America.
The International Film Festival of Guadalajara is a yearly event which happens in March. It mostly focuses on Mexican and Latin American films, however, films from all over the world are shown. The event is sponsored by the Universidad de Guadalajara, CONACULTA, the Instituto Mexicano de Cinematographía as well as the governments of the cities of Guadalajara and Zapopan. The 2009 festival had over 200 films shown in more than 16 theaters and open-air forums, such as the inflatable screens set up in places such as Chapultepec, La Rambla Cataluña, and La Minerva. In that year, the event gave out awards totaling US$500,000. The event attracts names such as Mexican director Guillermo del Toro, Greek director Constantin Costa-Gavras, Spanish actor Antonio Banderas and U.S. actor Edward James Olmos. The Guadalajara International Book Fair is the largest Spanish-language book fair in the world, held each year over nine days at the Expo Guadalajara. Over 300 publishing firms from 35 countries regularly attend, demonstrating the most recent productions in books, videos and new communications technologies. More than 350,000 people attend from Mexico and abroad. In 2009, Nobel prize winner Orhan Pamuk, German children's author Cornelia Funke and Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa participated with about 500 other authors present. Mariachi music is strongly associated with Guadalajara both in Mexico and abroad even though the musical style originated in the nearby town of Cocula, Jalisco. The connection between the city and mariachi began in 1907 when an eight-piece mariachi band and four dancers from the city performed on stage at the president's residence for both Porfirio Díaz and the Secretary of State of the United States. This made the music a symbol of west Mexico, and after the migration of many people from the Guadalajara area to Mexico City, it then became a symbol of Mexican identity as well.
Construction began on the Metropolitan Cathedral in 1558 and the church was consecrated in 1616. Its two towers were built in the 19th century after an earthquake destroyed the originals. They are considered one of the city's symbols. The architecture is a mix of Gothic, Baroque, Moorish and Neoclassical. The interior has three naves and eleven side altars, covered by a roof supported by 30 Doric columns. The Palace of the State Government is in Churrigueresque and Neoclassical styles and was begun in the 17th century and finished in 1774. The interior was completely remodeled after an explosion in 1859. This building contains murals by José Clemente Orozco, a native of Jalisco, including Lucha Social, Circo Político, Las Fuerzas Ocultas, and Hidalgo. The Degollado Theater was built in the mid-nineteenth century in Neoclassical design. The main portal has a pediment with a scene in relief called Apollo and the Muses sculpted in marble by Benito Castañeda. The interior vaulted ceiling is painted with a fresco by Jacobo Gálvez and Gerardo Suárez which depicts a scene from the Divine Comedy. The Former Hospice Cabañas extends along the entire east side of the Plaza de los Mariachis. This building was constructed by Manuel Tolsá beginning in 1805 under orders of Carlos III. It was inaugurated and began its function as an orphanage in 1810, in spite of the fact that it would not be finished until 1845. It was named after Bishop Ruiz de Cabañas y Crespo. The façade is Neoclassical and its main entrance is topped by a triangular pediment. Today, it is the home of the Instituto Cultural Cabañas and its main attraction is the murals by José Clemente Orozco, which cover the main entrance hall. Among these murals is Hombre del Fuego, considered to be one of Orozco's finest works.
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Common questions
When was Guadalajara officially founded and where?
Guadalajara was officially founded on the 14th of February 1542 in the Atemajac Valley. The city received its name from Nuño de Guzmán's Spanish hometown.
Who established the first colonial settlement that became Guadalajara?
Cristóbal de Oñate, a Basque conquistador, established the first colonial settlement in the region of Guadalajara in early 1532. This initial site sat on Mesa del Cerro, now known as Nochistlán, Zacatecas.
What happened during the 1992 Guadalajara explosions?
The 1992 Guadalajara explosions occurred on the 22nd of April 1992 when gasoline explosions in the sewer system destroyed streets in the downtown district of Analco. Officially, 206 people were killed, nearly 500 injured and 15,000 were left homeless with estimated monetary damage ranging between $300 million and $1 billion.
Why is Guadalajara called the Silicon Valley of Mexico?
Guadalajara is called the Silicon Valley of Mexico because it is the main producer of software, electronic and digital components in the country. International firms such as Intel, IBM, General Electric, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Oracle, Siemens, and HP Inc have facilities in the city or its suburbs.
When did Miguel Hidalgo enter Guadalajara and what did he do there?
Miguel Hidalgo entered San Pedro on the 25th of November 1810 and was greeted effusively in Guadalajara the next day. On the 6th of December 1810, slavery was abolished in Guadalajara, a proclamation which has been honored since the end of the war.