San Miguel de Allende 7.62

San Miguel de Allende is a city and municipality located in the far eastern part of the state of Guanajuato in central Mexico. It is part of the macroregion of Bajío. It is 274km from Mexico City and 97km from the state capital of Guanajuato. Historically, the town is important as being the birthplace of Ignacio Allende, whose surname was added to the town’s name in 1826, as well as the first municipality declared independent of Spanish rule by the nascent insurgent army during the Mexican War of Independence. San Miguel de Allende was also a critical epicenter during the historic Chichimeca War (1540-1590). Today, the town is a proclaimed World Heritage Site attracting thousands of tourists and new residents from abroad every year.However, the town waned during war times and at the beginning of the 20th century was in danger of becoming a ghost town during influenza pandemic that caused regional diaspora. Its Baroque/Neoclassical colonial structures were "discovered" by foreign artists who moved in and began art and cultural institutes such as the Instituto Allende and the Escuela de Bellas Artes. This gave the town a reputation, attracting artists such as David Alfaro Siqueiros, who taught painting.