The word Guanajuato comes from the Purépecha “quanaxhuato” and means “place where frogs abound.” The city is located in the center of the state of the same name and stands out as a mountainous region, with long, steep slopes and deep valleys. This means it is exposed to flooding at times of torrential rains, but also favors the use of water resources through the construction of dams.

In the year 1541, the viceroy Don Antonio de Mendoza granted Don Rodrigo Vázquez the lands occupied by what is now the city of Guanajuato. In 1570 the town of Santa Fe de Guanajuato was legally founded, and in 1679, by decree of Viceroy Enrique de Rivera, Guanajuato was given the title of Villa de Santa Fe and Real de Minas de Guanajuato. In 1741 King Felipe V granted it the title of the “very noble and loyal city” of Santa Fe and Real de Minas de Guanajuato.

The mining sector was essential to the economy of Guanajuato, and endowed it with its unique characteristics that are visible in its streets even today. The economic growth of the city developed rapidly due to the discovery of rich mineral veins of gold, silver and copper.

Mining zones are usually found in mountainous areas of abrupt relief, with steep slopes and difficult topography, so the streets of Guanajuato are distinctively narrow and irregular, although they were designed to allow the passage of the carts used for mining and for the supply of all kinds of materials and products from the fields. In the 18th century the construction of the Presa de la Olla dam began, and by the time Alexander von Humboldt visited Guanajuato its nearby mines were the greatest center of silver production in New Spain. In 1786 it was named capital of the Municipality of Guanajuato and, since 1824, capital of the state of the same name.

In addition, it was a scene of the Independence movement. On September 28, 1810, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla fought the first insurgent battle there, known as the occupation of the Alhóndiga de Granaditas, a place that served for the storage and trade of grains in the region. Spanish families had taken refuge here, where the royalist troops were quartered, so it was besieged by the rebel troops. Eleven years later, in 1821, the Independence of Mexico was declared. In 1858, during the first presidential term of Benito Juárez, the city was the capital of Mexico.

During the French intervention, it fell to the Imperialists and was occupied by the French army. In 1868, it was recovered by the forces of General Florencio Antillón. During the Porfiriato period, it was the center of major mining activities that boosted the state’s economy. Thanks to this, the Esperanza Dam was built, while the Monument to Peace, the Monument to Hidalgo, the Federal Palace and the Juárez Theater were inaugurated.

The Zone of Monuments amounts to 1.9 km2 across 175 blocks that comprise buildings of historical value, including: the Church of San Diego Alcalá, the Church of the Society of Jesus, the Parish Church of Our Lady of Guanajuato, the Church of San Sebastián and San Roque, the Parish Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe de Pardo, the Church of Santa María de la Asunción, as well as the Church and Former Monastery of San Francisco. Other significant buildings have civil purposes, such as: the Juárez Theater, the Mint, the Alhóndiga de Granaditas, and the Federal Palace.

Guanajuato’s city plan is marked by its alleyways and famous tunnels, built where a river once flowed, endowing it with a unique appearance in Mexico.

Moreover, it is one of the Mexican cities with the greatest number of cultural attractions, and includes outstanding examples of Baroque architecture and the Churrigueresque style. It has long hosted the Cervantino International Festival held annually during the month of October where artistic performances of all kinds are staged, and now considered the most important cultural festival in Mexico and Latin America. The city of Guanajuato is also a university city with an intense cultural life.

It was declared a Zone of Historical Monuments in 1982 and in 1988 was inscribed by UNESCO on the World Heritage List as the “Historic City of Guanajuato and Adjacent Mines”; in addition, it is part of the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, also inscribed on the World Heritage list.