San Miguel de Allende - 1542 to 1821

I finally went to the Museum about the history of San Miguel de Allende.  This is what I learned.

San Miguel was first discovered by the Spanish in 1536, when a monk named Juan de San Miguel led an expedition with a handful of indigenous kids to explore the area north of his convent. When he arrived in the valley of Rio Laja, he found a nice climate and lots of natural resources.  So he set up camp.  By 1551, the town of San Miguel had a chapel, school, hospital, inn and cattle ranches.  And rich silver mines were established nearby, including in Guanajuato.  

By 1700, San Miguel el Grande was a booming city.  It had over 2600 residents, including indigenous people, slaves, free blacks, Spanish, and Creoles- Spanish people born in Mexico.  The Umaran, Canal, Allende and other rich Creole families invested large amounts of their money to build their homes, and architectural infrastructure in the city including a parish, a central plaza, and lots of art.  It was one of the most beautiful cities in North America. 

One notable thing, is that the Jesuits in San Miguel el Grande had a lot of power at the time, and did a lot for the community. Including providing education and long term, very forgiving, loans to haciendas (farms). All was well.

But in the early 1700's, the Spanish Crown began the Bourbon reforms, named after the House of Bourbon / various kings in Spain that were descendants of Louis I de Bourbon.  The Bourbon reforms prioritized the wealth of the Crown over the well being of the residents in the colonies, including the city of San Miguel el Grande.  They imposed new taxes, created royal monopolies, expelled the Jesuits, and demanded repayment of all the Jesuit loans.  Citizens were angry and many became very poor.  

By 1800, New Spain / Mexico had been divided into 12 intendencias (states) and Crown infantry regiments had been established to defend the country against smugglers and potential attack by the British.  The infantries were largely financed by the affluent Creole families, including the Allende family.

In 1801, Ignacio Allende made his first declaration for independence.  He heard that Napoleon had invaded Spain and did not want to be ruled by the French.  

Around that time, there was also the hope of a new King in Spain, Ferdinand VII. Called  "The Desired" since he advocated for peace and better government.  Allende vowed to defend Ferdinand VII.  He gathered weapons and allies including members of the infantry, citizens, and Padre Hidalgo from a nearby town called Dolores.

On September 16, 1810, Allende and Hidalgo began an uprising that lasted about 10 years.  It ended on September 28, 1821 when Mexico was declared independent.

Allende and Hidalgo died early in the uprising.  But their names are eternally honoured.  San Miguel el Grande is now San Miguel de Allende.  And Dolores is now Dolores Hidalgo.   

Before all of this, in pre-hispanic times, some indigenous people had lived on the banks of the Rio Laja.  But mostly the indigenous people passed through and the hills just snoozed peacefully in the sunshine.

Pictures

1)The original church built in San Miguel el Grande is apparently somewhere behind the new big beautiful Parroquia.  The red lights in front of the parroquia are for a weekend long jazz festival.

2) The central plaza, across from the Parroqia, is a beautiful green space where people gather.

3) The museum is located beside the Parroquia and main square, in the house built by the Allende family, likely in the 1600s.  These old Creole family homes are so impressive and well preserved!  They usually have two floors around a courtyard.  The main floor was used for horse stables, supply storage, and street facing stores.  

4-5) The second floor, which usually has a gallery, is where the family lived. 

6) The streets in San Miguel de Allende are often narrow, and hilly.

7) One of the prettiest streets / section of a street.

8) Even the new streets in San Miguel de Allende are cobblestones.  Good shoes and lots of attention are required for safe walking